Umeå University's logo

Sponsoring is recognized as a multifaceted strategic decision, intertwined with the level of advertising spending. It is an approach to gain competitive advantage through increasing brand awareness and sales. In Sweden there is an increasing amount of money from organizations that is directed to sponsoring. Investment in sponsorship/corporate collaborations has increased within the past 10 years. In 2022 the investments exceeded SEK 9 billion, which implies a new record in Sweden. Companies place a larger emphasis on sustainability following the introduction of the UN agenda 2030. The focus on sustainability in sponsorships has likewise risen and is a commonly used strategy to enhance their perceived corporate social responsibility and reputation. Despite all positive outcomes of sponsoring, there has been criticism against sponsorship which indicates that decisions are unfounded and that they don’t follow a formalized sponsorship decisionmaking process. Further, previous research has predominantly focused on consumer perception, rather on the managerial perspective. Therefore, this study aims to examine how managers in perceived sustainable companies make sponsorship decisions. By looking into their selection criteria for sponsorship partner, their methods for evaluating and assessing various options, and the additional factors that managers may consider, the study aims to a more strategic approach of how to make sponsorship decisions.

The study was conducted through qualitative interviews with sponsorship managers in companies that are ranked in the top 150 on sustainable brand index. These companies belong to the industries electricity, food, grocery store and insurance. The findings identify two different decision-making processes depending on what direction in sponsorship they refer to, namely grassroots sponsorship and large-scale sponsorship. We found that policies & criteria, congruence and relationships are variables that both decision-making processes consider when making their decisions. Complementary in large-scale sponsorship, risk and outcome assessment is also considered. The findings also portrayed that in the decision-making process, considering congruence and choosing a company should preferably be in a geographic area close to the consumers and employees. The study also concludes that grassroots sponsorship and large-scale sponsorship in local areas is preferable to focus on since it leads to increased perceived sustainability among consumers.