Sportstar International

Memo
To: Sportstar Board of Directors

From: Andrea Trejo, Marketing Director

Date: Oct 29, 2023

Re: Importance of Sponsorships in Company Promotional Mix

Purpose

The purpose of this memo is to further inform about the benefits of adding sponsorships into our
promotional mix while avoiding credibility issues. Although many concerns of conflict come with
the introduction of sponsorships this memo will also summarize how our team can develop an
action plan in order to follow through with sponsorships effectively and efficiently.

Creating the right Sponsorships

While sponsorships have previously raised concerns surrounding credibility issues, the reality is
that if our team strongly plans and develops an outline of our goals prior to the introduction of a
sponsorship, then we are more likely to be better at avoiding any of these issues and concerns.
Upon further research, it seems that many companies who endorse the use of sponsorship’s
find that creating a checklist is very helpful in the planning process. This plan would include key
campaign elements, timelines, values, and any goals we wish to accomplish out of the
sponsorship (1). For our brand, this would make it much easier to set and revise goals, as well
as track them. Like promotional methods that are already in use, the idea of sponsorships is to
bring awareness, and by creating a plan that allows us to revisit at any given time, we would be
able to closely monitor the success of a campaign much better. Furthermore, by creating a
checklist, we can also be sure that we are finding the right people to endorse our brand, so the
campaign doesn’t seem as ungenuine. We must know our own goals so that we can make them
known and therefore ensure that any influencer we work with also has goals that align with ours
and our company values. In doing so we can protect the reputation of our company and brand
name. Additionally, this brings me to my next point, which is that sponsorships open the door to
a pool of influencers that we can work with to grow our brand. The rise of social media has
given micro influencers, social media influencers, and celebrities large platforms with large
audiences. Specifically, the type of influencers I believe our brand would benefit the most from
working with is college athletes that already have online platforms. The idea behind this is that
working with them would further ensure the safety of our reputation. College athletes are
already held at a higher standard than most regular influencers and this is because they
recognize the importance of representing something other than their own brand and reputation
(2a). By working with them we can further slim our chances of being involved in conflict and still
reach a larger audience bringing in a great return on investment in the time and funds we spend
on developing the right sponsorship campaign. Overall if we create the right sponsorship, we
can see extreme success within our company.

Benefits of Sponsorships

Although there are many other great forms of advertisement and marketing like going through
traditional media and word of mouth, sponsorships are currently what is on the rise and
therefore bring in many more benefits to companies. For example, they would allow for us to
reach a larger audience. Sponsorships have helped brands globalize themselves by working
with social media influencers who then engage with their own audience and influence their
thoughts and behaviors. Specifically in the sports industry, as it is becoming more global,
marketing through sponsors has become a valuable source of communication (3). For our brand
this could mean reaching a whole new audience that may not even be one of our target
audiences, because the reach is essentially much larger than traditional forms of promotion.
Lastly, as this new form of advertisement continues to make its way into the industry,
consumers are already reacting different to the way they see commercials. Although there were
doubts about how consumers would take a paid post in our company, I personally feel that
consumers enjoy the relate ableness of a product when they see one of their favorite stars
promoting it. In a study it was even proven that “influencer style of promotion generated more
positive response” from the audience in comparison to just a regular commercial (2b). When
consumers sense a connection between their selves and the promoter, they are more likely to
buy the product. In the same study that was previously mentioned, they described it as the
“Megan Markle effect”, which stated that as Markle rose to fame along with the royal family, it
was typical that the clothes she was wearing or the brands she was promoting would instantly
see a high amount of consumer traffic flow in (2c). Overall, this proves and relates back to the
idea that analyzing and finding the right people to work with can be largely beneficial to our
company.

Conclusion

Overall, while the idea of introducing a new promotional method such as sponsorships and
endorsements may seem freighting, it is safe to say that it is not uncommon and for sure it is
safe to say that sponsorships can bring many benefits to our brand. Our brand can expand
much more rapidly by reaching new and unintended audiences as well as make great
connections with potential influencers who can also mutually benefit from working with us.
Overall, this new world of marketing and promoting is still changing and growing, so we can’t be
so sure that there will be no mistakes, but taking the leap of faith to introduce sponsorships into
our promotional mix will allow us to learn and grow as a company.

2
References

(1) https://usf-
flvc.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/openurl?institution=01FALSC_USF&vid=01FALS
C_USF:USF&date=20230701&aulast=McMullan,%20Kylie&issue=4&spage=443&title=B
usiness%20Horizons&atitle=A%20checklist%20for%20managers%20to%20enhance%2
0influencer%20partnerships%20and%20avoid%20potential%20pitfalls.&sid=EBSCO:bu
h&volume=66&pages=443-
452&issn=00076813&ISBN=&genre=article&id=DOI:10.1016%2Fj.bushor.2022.09.003

“A Checklist for managers to enhance influencer partnerships and avoid potential pitfalls”

(2) https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=shib&db=buh&AN=151
225134&site=ehost-live&custid=s3654090

“ Under the Influence: Social Media Influencers’ Impact on Response to Corporate..”

(3) https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=shib&db=buh&AN=859
1190&site=ehost-live&custid=s3654090

“Maximizing the marketing potential of sponsorship for global brands.”