Poster Presentation

Paper ID : 1903-12THCONG

Oral / Poster Presentation File: 1903-THCONG.jpg 

¹Islamic Azad Univercity Tehran Branch.Tehran.Iran

²Islamic Azad Univercity Tehran Branch.Tehran.Iran

Brand image involves the consumer’s perceptions about a particular brand, as reflected by the brand associations held in a consumer’s memory. The image of the athlete brand is the attributes of the athlete from the perspective of its consumers. Although studies focusing on just athlete brands are lacking, so the purpose of this research is to develop a brand image model for Iranian athletes. The research is qualitative. 35 sport management, fans, professional athletes and students of physical education (Isfahan) participate in this research. sampling method is theoretical . Data were collected through in-depth interviews in a semi-structured method. Validity and reliability were used to Participants' review and expert review methods. The method of data analysis based on grounded theory method (GTM) (Schatzman dimensions analysis method). Data analysis showed that the core category of research is the image of the Iranian athlete brand, which has 4 main axes, including the individual image of the athlete brand, the social image of the athlete brand, the cultural image of the athlete brand and the sports image of the athlete brand and 12 conceptual ranges including attractiveness Appearance (5 items), personal life (7 items), myth (6 items), social attractiveness (5 items), athlete communication (5 items), social responsibility (8 items), Protocol (5 items), religion (4 items) ), Body Fit (3 items), sport success (5 items), athlete Expertise (6 items) and competition style (7 items). It is believed that the SABI will help scholars and managers better understand how consumers perceive and evaluate the brand image of an athlete in Iran. The scale can also be used as a diagnostic tool allowing various sport agents and managers to identify weaknesses of the athlete as a brand and develop effective strategies in building stronger brands.

Brand image; Athlete brand; Schatzmann Theory; Dimension Analysis

Sport management