Spill-over effects in multi-sponsored events: Theoretical insights and empirical evidence

Schema congruency theory suggests that consumers’ judgments of a sponsoring firm’s brand, such as attitudes toward the brand, are influenced by the degree of similarity or fit between the event and the brand. In short, the better the perceived fit, the more likely that the positive associations one has with the event will transfer to the sponsor’s brand. For a variety of reasons nowadays many events are co-sponsored, hence research is required to understand the ramifications that one sponsor may have on perceptions of another sponsor’s brand. Within this study we present empirical support that: 1) perceived fit between an event and a sponsor as well as the fit between cosponsors can be defined on three dimensions; and more importantly, 2) that perceptions of one sponsor spill-over to affect perceptions of another sponsor – an insight of clear practical import. Just as associations between the event and the sponsor influence consumers’ perceptions, so do perceived associations between co-sponsors.