Abstract:
Sports sponsorships are a widely used promotional strategy all over the world, and there is empirical evidence that the Sri Lankan paint industry is also using sports sponsorships. Therefore, this study examines the impact of sports sponsorship on purchasing intention with special reference to the paint industry in Sri Lanka, with the mediating effect of brand image. Three independent variables were identified according to the previous literature, namely attitude toward the event, sponsorship awareness, and sports sponsorship fit, which influence the purchasing intention of the paint industry. The deductive approach was followed to conduct this research study, and hypotheses were developed with previous literature support. A quantitative study was conducted with a sample size of 384, and the convenience sampling technique was used. 452 questionnaires were distributed among the population, and data was collected with an 86.94% response rate. SPSS was used as the data analysis tool, and the findings revealed that there is a positive relationship between sports sponsorship and purchasing intention. Further, it has been found that all independent variables have a significant positive impact on purchase intention. Also, it has been found that brand image is influenced by all independent variables, and brand image mediates the relationship between all the independent variables and the dependent variable. The findings of this study can be used to improve the promotional campaigns conducted by the paint industry in an informed manner. Further, this paper provides directions and suggestions for future research in this context.
