European Journal of Business and Management www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1905 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2839 (Online) Vol.6, No.10, 2014 107 The Impact of Sponsorship Activities on Consumer Based Brand Equity Behaviours: Evidence from the Mobile Telecommunication Industry in Ghana Dr. Divine Mawuli Akwensivie 1* Dr. Bedman Narteh 2 William Kofi Iden 3 1. Methodist University College Ghana, P. O. Box DC940, Dansoman, Accra, Ghana 2. University of Ghana Business School, P. O. Box LG78, Legon, Accra, Ghana 3. Methodist University College Ghana, P. O. Box DC940, Dansoman, Accra, Ghana * dmmawuli@yahoo.com Abstract This study examined the impact of sponsorship on consumer behaviour in the Ghanaian telecommunication sector for which a conceptual frame work was developed. The research was conducted using self-administered questionnaire as the main method of data collection tool. A total of four hundred and twenty (420) questionnaire on the purpose of this study were sent to customer of all the telecom companies in Ghana specifically Accra. Out of this, a total of four hundred and eighteen (418) valid questionnaires were obtained from respondents within a span of two months. The findings of the study revealed that out of the four (4) consumer based brand equity behaviour understudied, brand awareness is the foremost effect of sponsorship activities on mobile telecommunication subscribers. Brand image was also found to be positively and significantly related to sponsorship activities. Additionally, the study also affirms the assertion that sponsorship activities carried out by firms result in high patronage of products and services offered by these firms. Finally, brand loyalty was also found to be positively and significantly related to sponsorship activities. Furthermore, for sponsorship to effectively have an impact on consumers’ behaviour, it should not be used in isolation but as an integrated approach with other marketing communications tools such as public relations, exhibitions and trade shows, advertising, direct marketing and sales promotions. Moreover, marketing practitioners are keen to use the effects of sponsorship on consumer behaviour to influence management and board of director’s decisions on increase investment for sponsorship activities. Nevertheless, the subjected has been limited to comprehensive studies in and outside Ghana, it is interesting and deemed to be appropriate to further investigate the topic and address the knowledge gap. Keywords – Sponsorship, Consumer bahaviour, Consumer based brand equity, Brand awareness, Brand image, Purchase intention/Brand usage and Brand loyalty. 1. Introduction In the early 1990s, the Ghanaian economy saw some deregulation in the telecommunication industry through National Communication Policy. By 1994, it brought about a split of the state owned Post and Telecommunication Company into two exclusive individual entities with each having its own budget allocation as well as management. This saw the private sector coming into active participation in the Telecommunication industry of Ghana. Since then, the telecom industry in Ghana have achieve continuous remarkable growth in the economy. Currently, according to National Communication Authority (NCA) August 2012 report, as at the end of June 2012, the country's total mobile subscriber base is 23,370,773 representing a population penetration level of 97.4%. The industry have grown from the stage where it welcomed Millicom Ghana (now trading under the brand name Tigo) as the first investor in the market and was using analogue to were almost all the six competing operators including world and regional heavyweights such as MTN, Vodafone, Bharti (Airtel), Millicom (Tigo) and Glo Mobile Ghana are using digital, which is Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM), except Expresso and are competing fiercely in the market. To survive in this fierce competitive environment, one needs to understand the behaviours of their customers. According to Czinkonta and Ronkainen, (2004), sponsorship is one promotional tool many marketers are using to influence consumer behaviour. Literature on sponsorship indicate that many researchers (Aaker, 1991&1996, Keller, 2003, Arens, Weigold & Arens, 2011 and Pickton &Broderick, 2005) have been interested in sponsorship because of its corresponding effect on consumer behaviour, its necessity in today’s marketplace and how sponsorship can be used to acquire a certain level of competitive advantage. This paper is to develop a conceptual framework on sponsorship and consumer behaviour with specific emphasis on consumer based brand equity element such as brand awareness, brand image, brand patronage/usage and brand loyalty. 2. Statement of problem Review of exiting literature portrays that a number of studies have been contacted on what sponsorship is and, perhaps more importantly, what it is not (Waite 1977, Sandler and Shani, 1989, Meenaghan, 1991; Lagae, 2005;