Diploma thesis analyses connection of sponsorship and sales support in transnational corporations. It defines how these corporations direct their sponsorship strategies, if globally or locally. In the first chapter, it describes connection of sponsorship and commercial communications from the law, tax and mostly marketing point of view. In the second chapter, it describes possible forms of sales support in sponsorship projects. The third chapter analyses the impact of the globalization on sponsorship and sales support and describes integrated marketing communication. Telefónica S.A. and McDonald's Corporation are described as practical examples of the connection of sponsorship and sales support in transnational corporations.

The main subject of my diploma work is the analysis of the sport's sponzorship effectivity as one of the implement of the firm's communication mixt. This is made for the firm DEKTRADE inc., which is the main sponsor of the cycling team. For better illustration of the sponzorship's function in sports the work is firstly focusing on sports as a marketing branch, then defines sponzorship from the economic and law points of view, maps out its development, shows the possibilities in using it in the field of sports, determines its position in the communication mix of the firm and introduces the possibility for measuring the effectiveness of the capital investments putting in sport's sponzorship. There are also methods of the sponzorship's efficiency assessments in the dissertation. Concretely the survey of the sponzorship's response, general knowledge of the mark and media monitoring. At the conclusion of this work is the reccomendation for improving of the existing situation.

This thesis reports findings from a study that analyzed the sponsorship strategies, objectives, and benefits of the Canadian Hockey Association's women's ice hockey support program. There has been a notable increase in recent years in the number of women sport spectators and sport participants in ice hockey, which has increased the sport's potential for sponsorship. Women's ice hockey is Canada's fastest growing sport with approximately 40,000 females registered from coast to coast - an increase of over 400% in the last 10 years. (http://www. canadianhockey.ca). Although small in size compared to the men's program, (Women= 37,700, Men= 470,714) these numbers suggest that women's hockey is a good candidate for targeted sponsorship marketing approaches such as direct marketing and relationship marketing. Relationship and direct marketing are approaches to marketing and business communications that have emerged recently in the literature and can be used to enhance the benefits of sponsorship. Relationship marketing can be described as an integrated effort to identify, maintain, and build a network with individual customers and to continuously strengthen the network for the mutual benefit of all parties involved (McDonald and Milne, 1997). Direct marketing methods can be used to help identify, build and maintain relationships with customers and prospective customers using database technologies. According to Shani (1997), database marketing is a necessary tool to implement relationship marketing and involves the collection of information about past, current, and potential customers to build a customer database. The thesis study was designed to assess the marketing and sponsorship activities of thirteen major corporate partners involved in the women's program at the premier ($500,000+), broadcaster, or associate/program ($100,000+) levels. Eight corporate partners participated in the study. Interviews were conducted, in each case, in the offices of the respective corporations. Each interview was recorded and transcripts were prepared of the tape recordings. In addition to the audio recordings and transcripts, observations were made on-site and a wide range of sponsorship-related promotional materials were collected. The data were analyzed according to the corporate objectives, strategies and benefits obtained and the marketing & sponsorship methods that were utilized. Four major sponsorship objectives were found, ranging from traditional goals such as brand (and corporate) image & awareness and community involvement to more innovative objectives in sales and integrated promotions and advertising. Nine core corporate programs offered to the sponsors by the CHA are outlined in the thesis including: the Initiation Program; Skills Development Program; Experience a Dream; Fun Days; Medals of Achievement; Schools Program; PlayRight; the Coaching Certification, Development and Rewards Program; and Women in Coaching and Role Model Seminars. The research found a number of benefits of these core programs for the sponsors, including opportunities for relationship marketing, direct marketing, and niche marketing. Although for the most part CHA sponsors were very optimistic and supportive of the women's ice hockey program, there were a number of barriers and issues that concerned them. This research shows, however, that corporate partners for the most part were able to overcome these barriers and that they felt it was important to support the women's game of ice hockey in Canada. / Education, Faculty of / Kinesiology, School of / Graduate

Background: This research focused on sport sponsorship related to six sponsors from different industries that are affiliated with a South African football club, namely Kaizer Chiefs; and has drawn from the perceptions and experience of Kaizer Chiefs supporters at in their ability to identify and assess the six sponsors. Results: This research has provided a framework to investigate the interrelationships between sport sponsorship, sponsor awareness, corporate image and intention to purchase sponsors' products. The main findings of the research were that category sport sponsorship awareness has a positive effect on sponsor awareness; and that corporate image has a positive effect on intention to purchase sponsors' products. No significant positive relationship was found between sponsor awareness and corporate image. Furthermore, no conclusive evidence was found to support the hypothesis that sponsor awareness has a positive effect on intention to purchase sponsors' products. Conclusion: The framework proposed within this research has highlighted the supporting role that sponsor awareness plays in achieving media coverage objectives, as well as the role that corporate image plays in achieving sales objectives. The results have further emphasised that corporate image is the more dominant indicator of sponsorship effectiveness as it ultimately leads to increased sales. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

A sponsorship within sports can be based on different criteria depending on what type of company you ask. Thus, it is important for the athletes to be able to present the most attractive criteria within their sponsorship proposals. The aim of this study is therefore to provide a better understanding on which criteria that attracts companies to sponsor women in motorsport. The result from this study can thereby guide women in motorsport regarding which criteria they should include in their sponsorship proposal. Moreover, the result can help companies who are interested in getting a deeper understanding on the benefits that follows by sponsoring women in motorsport. The study is exploratory with a qualitative approach that has been conducted through case studies, which was based on semi-structured interviews with four companies. These companies were selected since they are currently sponsoring women in motorsport and could therefore explain which criteria, they find attractive with these sponsorships. The main findings of this study show that the criteria that mostly attracts companies to sponsor women in motorsport are media exposure, brand awareness and equality between genders. / Sponsring inom sport kan vara baserat på olika kriterier beroende vilket företag man frågar. Därmed är det viktigt för idrottare att kunna presentera de mest attraktiva kriterierna i sina sponsringsförslag. Av den orsaken är syftet med denna studie att ge en bättre förståelse för vilka kriterier som attraherar företag att sponsra kvinnor i motorsport. Resultatet från denna studie kan därigenom vägleda kvinnor inom motorsporten gällande vilka kriterier de bör inkludera i sina sponsringsförslag. Studien kan även hjälpa företag som vill få en djupare förståelse för fördelarna som resulterar av att sponsra kvinnor inom motorsporten. Den här forskningen är undersökande med en kvalitativ strategi och har genomförts med hjälp av fallstudier, baserade på semistrukturerade intervjuer med fyra stycken företag. Dessa företag valdes ut eftersom de för närvarande sponsrar kvinnor inom motorsporten och de kan därför förklara vilka kriterier de tycker är attraktiva med dessa sponsorskap. Resultatet av denna forskning visar att de kriterier som främst lockar företag att sponsra kvinnor inom motorsporten är medieexponering, varumärkeskännedom samt jämställdhet mellan könen.

Open Source software plays an essential part in modern software development. Ifn ot used directly by a project, it may very well be used second or even third hand through its dependencies. Any disruption in the delivery, quality or reliability of a vital dependency may send large shock waves throughout a project. This poses the question of how much trust we can put into these open source dependencies and their overall viability. In this study we investigate the effects funding through GitHub Sponsors has on NPM packages and how it affects their viability. By analyzing data queried from GitHub, NPM and NPMS we analyze how different factors affects the viability of NPM packages, with the overall aim of determining the impact funding has on a projects viability.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to increase the understanding of why companies choose to sponsor non-profit football clubs in Sweden. The goal is that the increased understanding leads to non-profit football clubs being able to make themselves more attractive to sponsors. Research question: What are the main motives for companies choosing to sponsor non-profit football clubs in Sweden? Method: Qualitative method and quantitative method with a case study of Sundbybergs IK football. Qualitative approach in the form of semi-structured interviews with 3 sponsors of Sundbyberg IK football and a survey of the remaining sponsors of Sundbybergs IK football. Theories: Marketing theories have been applied in the study to deepen the knowledge about the sponsorship of non-profit associations. The theories used are Corporate social responsibility, word of mouth, legitimacy theory and Return on investment. Empirics: Empirics are presented in our study by presenting themes that have been consistent in the interviews in text. The results from the survey are presented in diagrams. Conclusion: The conclusion of this study is that the main reason why companies choose to sponsor Sundbybergs IK football is that they want to achieve increased Corporate social responsibility (CSR) and to be perceived as a responsible company in society. Also the companies want to achieve legitimacy in their place of business as well as in existing and new markets by sponsoring non-profit football clubs. Studies have also shown that the respondents do not have a financial gain as a main reason for the sponsorship of Sundbybergs IK football.

In this dissertation, I report findings of a case study I conducted in Giles County, Virginia, my hometown, to better understand the way land impacts rural digital literacy sponsorship. With the help of 13 participants, I studied the ways land impacted their access to digital infrastructures and internet access and presented the following questions: how does land impeded access and support access to broadband infrastructure in Giles County? How does land impact what digital literacies residents in Giles County pursue, and how do they navigate the county's "dead zones" I begin the study by diving into the status of internet in Giles County, and I review the failed attempt made by legislators to provide "universal broadband" to the entire state of Virginia. Next, I review the literature on Deep Mapping Analysis and Literacy Networks to provide context as to how I am using land as a framework for studying rural digital literacy sponsorship. Then, the first analysis chapter uses Deep Mapping Analysis to discuss maps reflecting the status of internet access within the county, and then discusses how these maps help support the experiences of participants in the first round of interviews. The second findings chapter focuses on the Literacy Networks created by participants Veronica, Libby, Makayla, and Heather and explores how their networks show the connections between land and infrastructures as rural digital literacy sponsors and what that teaches us about rural access in general. Finally, I conclude with three implications from these analysis chapters that encourage scholars, community scholars, and legislators alike to pay more attention to the role land plays in internet access and rural digital literacy sponsorship. Most importantly, this work calls for legislators to consider what their part is in helping their rural constituents receive the internet access they need to survive without implicating those who cannot afford it or harming the land where they live. / Doctor of Philosophy / In this dissertation, I report findings of a case study I conducted in Giles County, Virginia, my hometown, to better understand how land sponsors rural digital literacies. With the help of 13 participants, I studied the ways land impacted their access to digital infrastructures and internet access via the following questions: How does land hinder or support access to broadband infrastructure in Giles County? How does land impact how residents interact with technology while living in Giles County? And, how do they navigate the county's "dead zones?" I first describe the status of internet in Giles County by reviewing the failed attempts made by legislators to provide "universal broadband" to the entire state of Virginia. Next, I review the literature on literacy sponsorship and rural literacies to provide context as to how I am using land as a framework for studying rural digital literacy sponsorship. The first analysis chapter uses maps to discuss the status of internet access within the county, and then I explain how these maps provide supporting information for the experiences of participants in the first round of interviews. The second findings chapter uses drawings from my participants that depict their rural digital literacy sponsorship in a network form, which was followed by a second interview to discuss the connections between land, infrastructure and rural digital literacy illustrated in their drawing. Finally, I conclude with three implications from these analysis chapters that encourage scholars, community scholars, and legislators alike to pay more attention to the role land plays in internet access and rural digital literacy sponsorship. Most importantly, this work calls for legislators to consider what their part is in helping their rural constituents receive the internet access they need without implicating those who cannot afford it or harming the land where they live.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine whether or not a winning performance within professional cycling influences the stock exchange. It looks at the impact a win has on a team’s main sponsor through the effect on said sponsor’s company stock price. Methodology: This study has a positivistic and deductive approach when testing the theory of market efficiency. It uses event study methodology to measure the effect of new information on a company’s stock price. The event period lasts from the last working day before the event to the first working day after the event. The study examined 99 winning performances in the UCI World Tour, from January 1, 2005, to April 30, 2016. Normal return before the event window was calculated from an estimation period of 250 working days. A T-test was used to assess if the results were significant. Results: The study found, based on the complete samples including all cycling races, that there is no significant effect on a main sponsor’s stock price. The Average Abnormal Return came out as 0,04 percent. 46 one day races were examined, resulting in an AAR of -0,1 percent. This means that there was no significant effect on the sponsor’s stock price. For the stage races, on the other hand, the 44 measurements resulted in an AAR of 0,38 percent with a positive 5 percent significance level. Nine measurements derived from the Grand Tours resulted in an AAR of -0,96 percent and a negative 5 percent significance level. Conclusions: The conclusion of this study is that there is no significant effect on the main team sponsor’s stock price, regardless of categorisation. While single day races generated no significant effect, the stage races did have a positive significant effect. Based on the study, The Grand Tour races resulted in a negative effect but the samples for this category were too few to draw a final conclusion from.

På grund av att dagens samhälle kantas av ett informationsöverflöd måste organisationer hitta andra vägar för att träffa rätt med sin kommunikation. Tidigare kommunicerades varumärkens budskap ut via traditionella medier men nya trender har medfört nya kommunikationsmetoder som sponsring via idrottsarenor med olika kommunikativa målsättningar. Då mycket av den tidigare forskningen på kommunikation via idrottsarenor har ett internationellt perspektiv med kommersiella aktörer tar denna studie istället avstamp i Sverige med hopp om att bidra med ett nytt perspektiv. Syftet med studien är att skapa ökad förståelse för kommersiella, kommunala och ideella aktörers kommunikativa arbete med arenasponsring. För att besvara studiens syfte och frågeställningar har en kvalitativ metod använts i form av samtalsintervjuer. Samtalsintervjuerna har genomförts med sju strategiskt utvalda respondenter som verkar inom kommersiella, kommunala och ideella organisationer och som fick avge sin syn på fenomenet arenasponsring. Resultatet visar att organisationernas arbete med att kommunicera via en idrottsarena handlar dels om att namnsätta en arena, dels att kommunicera på plats i arenan eller i egna kanaler samt genom att ha egna relationsskapande aktiviteter i anknytning till arenan. Genom arenasponsringen så kan de skapa kännedom om sitt varumärke, öka försäljningen och skapa relationer med sina intressenter. Trots att arbetet med kommunikationen via arenasponsringen är likvärdig för den övervägande delen av respondenterna skiljer sig dock deras incitament åt. Gemensamt för den övervägande delen av respondenterna är att de belyser det faktum att genom arenasponsringen så gagnar de stor publicitet i media.