Becoming more than an athlete: developing an athlete's personal brand using strategic philanthropy

Research Question:The current research examined the effect of an athlete promoting his philanthropic efforts to his Instagram followers. Specifically, we assessed how adopting this strategy impacted his followers' perceptions of, and level of fandom towards, his personal brand. Research Methods:We used a longitudinal research design including a pre-intervention survey, an intervention, and a post-intervention survey separated by a six-month interval. We analysed free-thought brand associations, perceptions of athlete philanthropy, and levels of fandom reported by an athlete's Instagram followers from two independent samples (N-T1 = 165;N-T2 = 172) and a longitudinal sample (N = 32). Results and Findings:Results indicated that the athlete's promotion of his philanthropic activities positively impacted his brand image. This change was characterized by a shift from the prominence of sport-specific brand attributes to perceptions of overall character. In addition, followers reported increased perceptions of the athlete's engagement in philanthropy, and stronger levels of overall fandom towards the athlete. Research Implications:Findings demonstrated the promotion of philanthropic activities impacted the brand associations consumers linked to the athlete's personal brand, and strengthened the overall connection between the athlete and his followers. Findings extend athlete branding knowledge and provide practical implications to inform how athletes and agents may implement social media brand management.

Automated summary

The research demonstrated that an athlete promoting his philanthropic efforts led to a positive impact on his brand image and overall connection with fans. Followers' perceptions shifted from sport-specific attributes to the athlete's character, and engagement in philanthropy increased. This study extends knowledge on athlete branding and provides practical implications for social media brand management strategies.