Sport Events as Brand Extensions of a Destination Brand: A Case Study of Phoenix, AZ

• Author / Creator

  Trzonkowski, Robert Arthur

• Sport events have been linked to building a destination image and brand. Researchers have argued that destinations should implement competitive promotional strategies, such as unique destination marketing campaigns and creative destination branding. One strategy that could be considered is to create destination brand extensions. Brand extensions leverage an established brand name (commonly referred as the parent brand) to launch a new product (the extended brand). In doing so, when applied strategically, brand leveraging and brand extension concepts have been shown to strengthen brand equity, brand value, reputation of destination, and the core destination brand if visitors are able to create strong attachment to the extended brand.
  The purpose of this study was to examine sports events as destination brand extensions and study their function within a host destination’s overall brand. More specifically, this study used an intrinsic case study to evaluate the Phoenix Metropolitan Area (PMA) and examine the ways in which sports events potentially act as extensions relative to the area’s destination brand. The following research questions are used to guide this research: (a) How do tourism stakeholders in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area view sports events as brand extensions? and (b) How does the Phoenix Metro Area strategically use sports events as destination brand extensions? A total of 16 semistructured interviews were conducted in person and via Zoom with key personnel from local tourism organizations in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, such as Visit Phoenix, Tempe Office of Tourism, and Experience Scottsdale. The interviews were transcribed and coded using thematic analysis to identify themes and patterns within the data, examining semantic (physically present) and latent content (implicit meaning). Findings from this study showed that “outdoor” emerged as the area’s overarching parent brand, which, as a result, helped link and distinguish the Valley’s various destination brand extensions. Four individual brand extensions were identified: (a) weather, (b) resorts, (c) recreation and leisure activities, and (d) sport/sports events. The results from this study provide evidence that stakeholders in the PMA realize that sports events in the Valley are valuable destination brand assets, but they also understand that events hosted in the PMA are only one of multiple brand extensions that, when grouped together, define the Valley as a popular “outdoor” tourism destination. Furthermore, it was discovered that, if marketers and tourism stakeholders choose to promote a holistic destination brand that employs an integrated destination branding approach, by framing sports events as destination brand extensions, this creates a more effective and efficient marketing dynamic to promote the area’s complex and multidimensional “outdoor” brand. Thus, this study provided insights into how marketers and local DMOs in the PMA (and potentially other markets) can utilize and leverage “outdoor”-related sports events as destination branding assets to elevate and enhance the destination’s greater mix of tourism products and services, particularly the area’s supplemental “outdoor” products and services.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • destination brand extensions
  • sports events
  • brand extension
  • destination branding
  • parent brand

• Graduation date

  Fall 2020

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Arts

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/r3-a4zw-3428

• License

  Permission is hereby granted to the University of Alberta Libraries to reproduce single copies of this thesis and to lend or sell such copies for private, scholarly or scientific research purposes only. Where the thesis is converted to, or otherwise made available in digital form, the University of Alberta will advise potential users of the thesis of these terms. The author reserves all other publication and other rights in association with the copyright in the thesis and, except as herein before provided, neither the thesis nor any substantial portion thereof may be printed or otherwise reproduced in any material form whatsoever without the author's prior written permission.