EVENTS SPONSORSHIP AS A BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP: SUGGESTING THE CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS

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Marios Sotiriadis

Keywords

Events marketing, business partnership, sponsorship, critical success factors, Comrades Marathon

Abstract

Sponsorship is now a commonly used component of the integrated marketing communications of many organisations. Despite the importance of sponsorship in the events marketing, this topic has not been investigated sufficiently. The aim of this paper is to explore and identify the critical success factors (CSFs) that determine sponsorship as a business partnership between an event organisation and its sponsor/s. This study proposes a framework of CSFs for events sponsorship as partnership, based on the model suggested by Tuten and Urban (2001). This framework provides (i) a foundation from which sponsorships could be evaluated in a more systematic and strategic manner; and (ii) a guidance for partners’ programs and plans in undertaking sponsorship ventures. It then empirically investigates this issue by a qualitative research method, a case study on Comrades Marathon, South Africa, in order to test and validate the suggested framework by means of practitioners’ perceptions and opinions.

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