Sponsorship | Marketing Curriculum

Abstract

Corporate sponsorship of sports, the arts, community events, and causes has been recognized as a marketing communications tool. Corporations and organizations have embraced sponsorship as a vital component of their marketing strategy. The use of corporate sponsorship has increased over the last twenty years and it now provides an economic impact nearing $200 billion, when sponsorship fees and related advertising, sales promotions, and client entertaining are included. Yet despite its widespread use among practitioners, sponsorship continues to receive little attention in the academic environment. This study examined the coverage given corporate sponsorship/events marketing in several current promotion/advertising textbooks. Introduction Corporate sponsorship of sports, the arts, entertainment and causes has been recognized as marketing communications tool. In 1986, the International Events Group (IEG,) estimated the amount of sponsorship spending in North America at approximately $1 billion (Ukman, 1996). By 2005, sponsorship, defined as a cash...