THE GROWING IMPORTANCE OF SPONSORSHIP 347How sponsorship works
A number of theoretical constructs can be used to understand the eff ects of sponsorship.
Given the fact that sponsor messages are oft en simple and limited to company or brand
names, one could argue that the eff ectiveness of sponsorship is based on the exposure eff ect
(see Chapter 3 ), which implies that increased familiarity with the brand as a result of exposure
to a sponsor’s name in the long run generates a preference for the brand. As such, the main
eff ect of sponsorship is that the brand ends up in the evoked set or the choice set of the
consumer, without attitudinal-related eff ects. Additionally, it could be argued that both the
episodic (event-based) and the semantic (as a result of longer-term exposure) memory of
spectators and participants in a sponsored event are stimulated, which could lead to higher
levels of brand awareness than those resulting from advertising exposure.^12
Congruity theory could also explain the eff ectiveness of sponsorship. Basically, this theory
states that people best remember information that is congruent with prior expectations. As
a result, sponsorships that are consistent with the expectations of the target groups about
the product could be better recalled.^13 Similarly, just as there seems to be a carry-over eff ect
between the attitude towards the ad and the attitude towards the brand, it could be argued
that there is the same eff ect between the prior attitudes towards the sponsored event or cause
and the sponsoring brand. Furthermore, it can be expected that the more a person is involved
with what is being sponsored, the stronger the carry-over eff ect between the sponsoring
brand and the sponsored event will be.^14
Apart from these cognitively oriented theories, context eff ects can also partly explain how
and why sponsorship works. Th e context of a message may be important in how a message is
perceived. Since sponsorships tend to occur in positively evaluated environments, the resulting
positive mood could enhance the positive image of the sponsoring brands.^15
Finally, the behaviourist perspective may be relevant. Th e principles of operant condition-
ing posit that behaviour may be conditioned by the consequences that follow it. On the basis
of this principle, it can be argued that sponsorship draws attention to a brand and in that way
reinforces past favourable experience with the brand. Th e stimulus is being associated with a
satisfactory experience and therefore reinforces it. When this point of view is accepted, it implies
that sponsorship is only eff ective when it is directed towards consumers who are already
using the brand. Another principle of conditioning is vicarious learning. By educating con-
sumers on how a product can be used, vicarious learning increases the purchase probability.
Applied to sponsorship, showing a famous and positively evaluated athlete using or endorsing
a product may positively infl uence the target group.^16 Th is mechanism is very similar to the
source eff ect in advertising: linking a relevant brand to a credible source (a bank to a classical
concert, a beer to a famous entertainer) may improve its image.^17The growing importance of e-media
It is fair to conclude that sponsorship is an increasingly important instrument of marketing
communications. Worldwide, the annual growth of sponsorship between 1990 and 1999 was
estimated at between 10% and 15%. In the 1990s, the annual growth of advertising and sales
promotion was only 6%. As a result, the relative importance of sponsorship in communica-
tions budgets has, on average, increased to 7%.^18 In some countries (Italy, South Africa and
Australia), more than 13% of the advertising budget is spent on sponsorship.^19 F u r t h e r m o r e ,
part of the advertising budget is directly sponsorship-related in that it supports and leverages
the sponsorship eff orts (see below). According to a 2007 report,^20 the sponsoring industry was
worth €7.8 billion in 2007, and the industry has grown by 37% since the year 2000. Germany
is Europe’s biggest sports sponsorship market with estimated expenditure of €2600 million
(33% of the market). Th e UK is the second largest market on €1395 million (17%). Europe’sM11_PELS3221_05_SE_C11.indd 347M11_PELS3221_05_SE_C11.indd 347 3/6/13 4:07 PM3/6/13 4:07 PM