The roles of consumer ethnocentrism, animosity, and cosmopolitanism in sponsorship effects

Abstract

Purpose– This paper aims to examine the impacts of consumer ethnocentrism, animosity and cosmopolitanism on the effects of sponsorships on brand affect and brand trust, using latent growth modelling (LGM) to disentangle the static and dynamic components of brand affect and brand trust.Design/methodology/approach– An online panel of UK participants reported their perceptions of a French sponsor at three successive points (before, during and at the end of the 2012 London Olympics). Of the 903 respondents at T1, 694 remained at T2 (76.8 per cent) and 577 (63.9 per cent) remained at T3. Another 302 respondents only at T3 controlled for potential mere measurement effects. The data were analysed using LGM techniques.Findings– Due to sponsorship effects, brand affect and brand trust increased linearly over time. However, consumer ethnocentrism and animosity negatively moderated these increases. Cosmopolitanism enhanced brand affect but not brand trust.Research limitations/implications– As market globalisation exposes foreign firms to potential backlash from consumer nationalistic orientations towards their products, sponsorship strategies must consider the interplay between these nationalistic sentiments and sponsorship effects. While foreign sponsors are typically preoccupied with determining the fit between their brand and a local event, they must also consider individual-level nationalistic sentiments. The success of companies in foreign markets depends on creating favourable country-directed consumer attitudes.Originality/value– Beyond demonstrating the application of LGM to individual-level longitudinal analyses, this study extends sponsorship research by considering a previously unexplored area with key academic and managerial contributions, namely, the role of consumer nationalism in sponsorship effects. The strategic uses and outcomes of international sponsorship must be considered in conjunction with consumers’ perceptions of foreign brands from a nationalistic perspective.