What are the most important factors of establishing global brand image in sport marketing?

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TABLE OF CONTENT

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION1

Background1

Problem statement1

Aims and objectives2

Research questions2

Significance2

Outline3

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW4

Brand Knowledge4

Brand Awareness5

Brand Image6

Types of Brand Associations7

Celebrity Credibility10

Celebrity Likeability10

Theories on Effectiveness of Endorsers10

Brand Personality/ celebrity endorsement11

Factors Influencing Celebrity Endorsement14

Physical Attractiveness14

Credibility of the Endorser15

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY17

Research method17

Case study19

Reliability/Dependability19

Validity21

Ethical Considerations22

CHAPTER 4: DISCUSSION23

SWOT analysis23

Strengths23

Weaknesses24

Opportunities25

Threats26

The Role of Endorsers27

Relevance to the individual28

Determining an endorser's value28

Endorser product congruence and endorser consumer congruence29

Endorser/audience match30

Endorser/product match30

Benefits of using an endorser30

Risks of using an endorser32

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION37

REFERENCES39

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Background

Across all major media and advertising outlets (television, print. and radio), celebrity endorsements for sports are commonplace. It has been estimated that one quarter of all advertisements employ the use of a celebrity spokesperson to endorse a consumer service or product (Alsmadi 2006 69). Celebrities are those individuals known to the public for accomplishments in areas either related or unrelated to the product class being endorsed. Celebrities may be sports figures, actors or actresses, musicians, comedians, or any other type of entertainer. Fictional created characters for the purposes of promotion are also considered celebrities. This category can include human and nonhuman spokespersons. The umbrella of celebrity endorsements has branched out to include professional experts, CEOs, and other high ranking company officials who act as spokespersons for their products. Many companies also endorse their CEOs for their products. The professional experts are also used to endorse products and then consumers associate these experts opinion to the quality of the products. Hence, endorsement plays a vital role in creating a strong business image (Borja de Morzota 2003b 23).

Problem statement

The key in brand image research is to identify or develop the most powerful images. Brand image can be power, wealth, sophistication, and most importantly identification and association with other users of the brand. Brand equity can be increased by creating a strong brand image. A positive brand image is formed by generating strong, favorable and unique associations to the brand in the memory. In my own word, brand image is the image or a picture of a good or service which is formed in the customer's mind.

Aims and objectives

The dissertation will investigate what are the most important factors of establishing global brand image in sport marketing. In sports marketing research, sports celebrities have proven to be effective endorsers. However, recently, sports celebrities are considered not only as vehicles for product endorsement, but as cultural products that can be sold as “brands” (Buijs 2005 23).

Research questions

The researcher will address the following question

What is the role of sports celebrities in creating brand image for Nike?

What are the basic factors considered for sports marketing?

What are the strategies used for creating global brand image?

Significance

This research is very important contribution to the literature. The researcher studied the factors which affect the brand image of sports marketing. The existing literature is based on the celebrity endorsement of all products except sports goods. In this age of globalization, consumers have become very much brand conscious. It is very important to study the factors which affect the ...