Brand, Identity and Reputation: Exploring, Creating New Realities ...

The Impact of Relationship Marketing on Reinforcing Corporate Brand, Identity and Reputation: Analysis of
Five Sport Cases
Ergun Gide, CQUniversity, Sydney Australia
S M Riad Shams, CQUniversity, Sydney Australia
Introduction
A multi-case study research has been conducted on five grown sport cases to realise how they have been utilising RM to
reinforce their corporate brand, identity and reputation in the aim of gaining competitive advantage. The aim of the
research was to identify the RM perspectives for reinforcing corporate brand, identity and reputation from the RM
practices of the cases. Eleven RM indicators, which are actually various RM perspectives that an organisation can
employ to enhance competitive advantage, are found in the research. The findings of the study ascertain the analysed
RM indicators and the subsequent competitive advantages that an organisation could gain by utilising these RM
indicators to reinforce corporate brand, identity and reputation. Therefore, these RM indicators are established for
marketers to reinforce corporate brand, identity and reputation.
Research Methodology
Cricket Australia (CA), Arsenal Football Club, Indian Premier League (IPL), Hawthorn Football Club of Australian
Rules Football, and England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have been chosen as suitable cases.
Data Collection
This research utilised documents and or contents review in depth along with its sub categories such as archival records,
audio-visual materials as data collection method for the content analysis of the web sites and other publications of the
selected cases.
Analysis
Data analysis was centred on identifying key RM perspectives that these grown cases have been utilising to enhance
competitive advantage of their corporate brand, identity and reputation.
The analysis pattern of this study followed the case analysis style suggested by Creswell (1998), Dey (1995), Stake
(2000, 2003), Stavros (2005) and Yin (2003, 2009). The relevant variables (RM perspectives, which are standardised
here as RM indicators) identified from the cases have been analysed through insight, intuition and impression for
comprehending whether the identified variables are pertinent to the area of inquiry (impact of identified RM indicators
on reinforcing brand, identity and reputation) by direct interpretation and or naturalistic generalisation.
Eleven RM indicators are identified from the analysed RM practices (based on their market offerings) of the cases, as
different RM perspectives that an organisation can employ to enhance competitive advantage of corporate brand,
identity and reputation. Also, the academic significance (relevancy with enhancing competitive advantage) of these RM
indicators is recognised based on the findings of various authors (Andersen, 2005; Buttle, 2009; Gummesson, 2002; Ian,
2005; Kurtz, 2009; Lars and Berggren, 2010; Little and Marandi, 2003; Looney and Seiler, 2003; Rajaobelina and
Bergeron, 2009; Stavros, 2005). The RM indicators are:
● High stakeholder service, stakeholder commitment and stakeholder contact;
● Relationship and service values instead of bureaucratic legal values;
● Understanding customer and other stakeholder‘s contemporary and latent needs;
● Cherishing Barren Meadow (CBM);
● Flexibility on customer or other stakeholder‘s preferences;
● Proving advantage through customers or other stakeholders‘ experiences;
● Further segmentation of a segmented market or niche marketing;
● Relationship factor focused branding;
● Customisation;
● Orientation on benefits or knowledgeable customers;
● Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Database Marketing.
Synthesis
Data synthesis was based on following two criteria:
● Whether the analysed product and service offerings of the cases are associated with one
of the RM indicators;
● Summarising the impact of the associated RM indicator with a product or service offering on reinforcing
competitive advantage of corporate brand, identity and reputation image of the respective sport case.
Findings (Impact of RM Indicator on Reinforcing Competitive Advantage of Corporate Brand, Identity and
Reputation of the Analysed Cases)
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