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Article Type: Original Research

Providing a Branding Model for a Selection of Sports Products

Subject Areas : Fabric and Cloth History

Marjan Mirjalili ¹ (Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran)
Zahra Hajianzehae ² (Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran)
Ali Zarei ³ (Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran)
Farideh Ashraf Ganjouei ⁴ (Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran)

Received: 2023-07-31 Accepted : 2023-08-14 Published : 2023-06-01

Keywords: Content Analysis, branding, sports products, foundational data theory,

Abstract :

Despite the high capacity of sport products market and the considerable productive potential in Iran, activists have not achieved much success in this field. One of the main challenges of this industry is the weakness in branding and marketing products because there is no capital more efficient than a powerful name. In the first phase of this research, the indexes of several articles focusing on branding were obtained in authentic sources, and then the index extraction was completed through semi-structured interviews with branding and sports products experts. In the second phase, in order to investigate the appropriateness of the extracted indicators with the local conditions of the country and the field of Irani an sports brands, The Fuzzy Delphi method was used and a questionnaire was given to academic and industry experts to determine that the indicators are appropriate to the field. In the third phase, using the data-based method, a paradigm model for branding sports products was developed. This model has been evaluated by the structural equation modeling method with PLS approach. The data analysis revealed that the final model comprised a set of phenomenon-based indicators, intervening factors in branding, causal and influential factors, contextual factors, strategies and the consequences. In this study, several categories were achieved in the branding of sports products field, to which paying attention will culminate in the ultimate goal of branding

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Full-Text:

Providing a Branding Model for a Selection of Sports Products

Abstract

Keywords: Content Analysis, Branding, Foundational Data Theory, Sports Products

1. Introduction

Nowadays, the field of business competition has become more complicated than in the past due to the activities of various competitors, the threat of newcomers, the power of bargaining and the increase in the level of consumer expectations, the emergence of new technologies, the use of new methods of production and services. For this reason, organizations are required to use new approaches in order to increase awareness and provide products to customers and ultimately increase market share. Many organizations have come to believe that one of their most valuable assets is the brand of their products and services. One of the essentials of the senior management of any organization is to create a powerful brand that, while fulfilling its promises and commitments, will improve its strength and capability over time.

The brand creates value for the customer and the organization and shows why the customer pays more for the top brand and also plays a significant role in creating added value for an organization like capital, technology and raw materials. Therefore, the special value of the brand can be mentioned as one of the methods of achieving a sustainable competitive advantage. The role of brands in identifying the company's product in today's expanding markets is an undeniable role. Building a strong brand is the ultimate goal of many organizations. In today's market conditions, it is very important to get the right position in the mind of the consumer so that the consumer is loyal to the company. It seems that building a strong brand provides advantages for the company, including finding a large number of loyal customers and reducing the vulnerability of marketing activities.

Branding is one of the ways to achieve this goal, and brands play a special role in the development of cultures, the business arena, and people's decisions and top brands unconsciously create value for customers [1]. The advantages of brands, despite the complexity of achieving it, can be mentioned as an efficient tool to differentiate services and gain a competitive advantage to create value for customers and their loyalty [2, 3]. Sports goods, like other consumer products, need a brand to differentiate them from competitors and give them a unique feature [4]. In this regard, branding based on a scientific model is one of the effective tools for marketers, also, branding acts as a strong marketing weapon and an information signal available for today's sports goods marketers. Rajabzadeh et al. determined the effect of brand equity, brand image and fan commitment on the international branding of Iran's top football clubs [5]. Research data were analyzed based on structural equations. The results show that the brand equity variable and its sub-criteria have a positive and significant effect on brand image, brand image on the duration of fans' commitment, and fans' commitment on the branding of football clubs in our country. Hoshiar et al. investigated the relationship between the structure of branding rules in sports goods and the level of customer satisfaction. The findings of the research showed that there is a positive and significant relationship between the structure of branding rules in sports goods and the level of customer satisfaction [6]. Javani et al. presented a branding model with a strategic thinking approach in Iranian sports and through in-depth interviews, they extracted 15 main categories at three behavioral, organizational, and event levels [7]. Javani investigated the paradigm model of branding in the sports industry. In this research, the final model was obtained through in-depth interviews and through 3 steps of coding the paradigmatic approach [8]. Fasih Mardanlou in a research determined the effective factors on branding of sports events in Iran. In the findings section of this research, coding factors and the final analysis of 11 interviews were conducted, leading to the identification of 58 subthemes and 16 items in the form of 4 components [9]. Ekhlasi et al. presented a suitable indigenous model for branding for online food sellers using the qualitative method of foundational data theory. This model states that paying attention to things such as providing high-quality services and goods, fully understanding the needs of customers, creating trust-building infrastructure, paying attention to mutual interactions with users, and creating a suitable platform and facilitating interactive processes between customers can create a reliable brand in the space. become risky [10]. Mohammadi et al. identified the factors affecting internal branding of Iranian sports federations. The findings showed that the educational activities of group and explanatory meetings, internal communication and leadership and management activities are factors that affect the internal branding of sports federations [11]. Crane (2010) concluded that building and maintaining a strong entrepreneurial brand for the growth, durability and sustainability of a business in today's competitive and complex environment is important [12].

Bajadi (2019) dealt with branding in the field of industry. In this research, while discussing and conceptualizing industrial branding, a set of challenges and processes related to branding that have received less scientific attention, such as the issue of audiences, dimensions of industry branding, cultural branding theory, and industry legitimacy, have been examined. The results show that industry brand has an impact on market performance and market value of companies [13]. Considering the researches of the researchers in line with the topic under discussion, it can be said that there have been few researches in the field of branding of sports products in Iran, which have paid attention to some aspects of branding in a limited way, while there are many other cases in the branding of products. And the services are important, examples of which have been presented in foreign research. Therefore, the existing background indicates the absence of a comprehensive model for branding sports products in a specific and local way for Iran. On the other hand, the use of content analysis techniques and foundation data theory in branding has a good history and increases the validity of the chosen method; Therefore, the existing records, in addition to confirming the necessity of conducting this research, support the process and method of conducting this research.

2. Materials and Methods

According to the problem facing this research, its various dimensions are explained in terms of methodology based on the onion of the research (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Onion of the research process [14]

The research has a practical orientation; Because now there are sports brands in the country and the results of this research can be applied in the implementation of the current development in the field of selling sports products. Also, this research is exploratory in terms of its purpose, which is carried out in a single cross-sectional manner, and because the method of collecting the data required for this research was collected using semi-structured interviews from marketing and sports experts, it is considered qualitative, which is in the category of Interpretive researches are placed and considering that we have reached from the part to the whole, the approach of this research is inductive. In terms of strategy, this research has used qualitative analysis strategy.

In the qualitative part of this research, three steps have been implemented. In the first stage of this research, content analysis method was used to identify branding indicators. Then, in order to check the appropriateness of the extracted indicators with the native conditions of the country and the field of Iranian sports brands, fuzzy Delphi method has been used.

At the end, in the third stage, using the foundation data method, a paradigm model for the branding of sports products was developed and presented. In the first stage (content analysis approach), documents and documents (including internal and external articles and research), marketing and branding experts, and experts in the field of sports products were considered as the statistical population. Sampling in the documents department was done using available sampling method and selection of experts by snowball method, which finally ended up with 10 people. In both sections, sampling continued until the principle of sample adequacy. In the second stage (Delphi method) and third stage (foundation data theory), marketing and branding experts and experts in the field of sports products familiar with the subject were considered as the statistical population, and 12 experts were surveyed using the snowball method.

In the first step of the research, the method of library studies in the form of document analysis was used to collect the data and by using the index card to identify the indicators. In the second and third steps, semi-structured interviews were used. For this purpose, a researcher-made and semi-open questionnaire was used. In this way, in the second step (Delphi method), a number of basic and specific questions were defined regarding the identified indicators for the experts to comment on and provide their suggestions. In the third step (foundation data theory), the experts of this department were asked to express their opinions about the relationship between indicators and the desired process for branding sports products. Data analysis was done by content analysis method and using Atlas.ti.8 software and fuzzy Delphi method and Excel software.

In the quantitative part of this research, the model obtained from the qualitative stage has been tested and the results of the questionnaire related to the final indicators have been analyzed in the presented model. In this section, the descriptive research method is correlation. The statistical population includes the customers of the selected brands of sports products in the country, which is defined as an unlimited number, and the sample size is calculated using the formula for determining the sample size, which is equal to 178 people, and the random sampling method is simple. Data collection has been done in the field using a completed questionnaire.

Quantitative data have been analyzed using PLS modeling technique. In the quantitative part of this research, in order to evaluate the proposed model, structural equation analysis with PLS approach has been used, and Smart PLS software has been used for this purpose.

3. Results and Discussion

3.1. Findings of the qualitative section

3.1.1. The results of the content analysis method

Using the content analysis method, 45 Persian and Latin articles focusing on branding have been studied and examined in authoritative sources, and then through semi-structured interviews with 10 experts in the field of marketing and branding and experts in the field of sports products. The extraction of indices was completed, after removing similar items and synonyms, 89 effective indices were analyzed using Atlas.ti.8 software. The data in the qualitative section was initially collected using document analysis of articles and through semi-structured and in-depth interviews. Due to the simultaneity of data collection and analysis in the content analysis method, after conducting each interview, the initial analysis of the interview was started immediately. The interpretation process begins with categorization and open coding. Open coding aims to transform data and phenomena into concepts. For this purpose, first the data is separated. Phrases are categorized based on semantic units so that annotations and concepts (codes) are attached to them. Open coding can also be done with varying degrees of accuracy and attention to detail. A text can be coded sentence by sentence, line by line, paragraph by paragraph, or consider one code for the entire text.

3.1.2. The results of the fuzzy Delphi method in the branding of sports products

Fuzzy Delphi method has been used in order to examine the appropriateness of indicators extracted from the research literature with the native conditions of the country and the field of Iranian sports brands. In the Delphi method section, the identified indicators in the form of a questionnaire were provided to the experts to comment on the feasibility, applicability and effectiveness of focusing on each of them in the Iranian sports products market (values from 1: very little importance to 5: very important) Necessary). Since experts have different characteristics, they also have different mentalities, and if the options are answered based on different mentalities, the analysis of variables is worthless. Therefore, by defining the range of qualitative variables, experts have answered the questions with the same mentality. The basis of these opinions was guided in such a way that it can screen the most important indicators in this regard and help to provide the most efficient branding model. Based on this, the identified indicators were provided to the experts in 3 stages and finally, after the third iteration, all the indicators were summarized with the average difference of opinions less than 0.1. Then, the indicators for which the average opinion was less than the average (3) were excluded from the analysis set, and other indicators were used for the foundation data theory. In the following, the results of confirming and rejecting the indicators of each component are presented in the form of a graph with relevant explanations. The category of the central phenomenon of sports products branding includes 13 indicators, which according to the results of the fuzzy Delphi, the indicators of the mental image of the brand for the customer, brand personality and brand identity, according to experts, are more appropriate to the local conditions of the country and the field of Iranian sports brands. In this way, they are considered as the final indicators of the central category of this research. The category of intervening factors in the branding of sports products includes 16 indicators, which have been identified according to the experts according to the local conditions, based on the results of fuzzy Delphi integrated marketing communication (IMC) indicators and the support of managers. In this way, they are considered as the final indicators of the category of intervening factors in this research. The category of effective causal factors in the branding of sports products includes 13 indicators, based on the results of fuzzy Delphi, the indicators of quality of products and services and building trust in customers, according to experts, are more suitable to the local conditions of the country and the field of Iranian sports brands. Thus, it has been considered as the final indicators of the category of causal factors for this research. The category of contextual factors effective in the branding of sports products includes 13 indicators that, based on the results of fuzzy Delphi, indicators of changes and changes in the environment and cultural context, according to experts, are more appropriate to the local conditions of the country and the field of Iranian sports brands. In this way, it has been considered as the final indicators of the contextual conditions category for this research. The category of effective strategies in the branding of sports products includes 22 indicators, which, according to the experts, are more suited to the local conditions of the country and the field of Iranian sports brands, based on the results of fuzzy Delphi, the indicators of gaining a competitive advantage, improving the special value of the brand and creating a positive association for the brand. Thus, it has been considered as the final indicators of the strategy category for this research. The category of the consequences of sports product branding includes 12 indicators, which according to the experts, based on the results of fuzzy Delphi, the indicators of creating brand loyalty and emotional and emotional involvement of the customer are more appropriate to the local conditions of the country and the field of Iranian sports brands. Thus, it has been considered as the final indicators of the strategy category for this research.

3.1.3. Results from foundational data theory

In the data theory section of the foundation, in parallel, based on interviews with experts as well as review of existing research (statistical sample of the content analysis section), the identified indicators were divided into main categories, sub-categories and open codes. The basis of this division was considered in such a way that the axes approved in the content analysis method (6 axes: central phenomenon, causal conditions, contextual conditions, intervening conditions, strategies and consequences) as the main category, the indicators approved by the Delphi method. As a sub-category and other indicators (rejected in the Delphi method) according to the theoretical content of the available sources and the opinion of experts, it was defined as an open code. Table (1) shows the results of this division.

Table 1. Indicators extracted from coding stages

Main article	Subcategory	code opener
A central phenomenon	The mental image of the brand for the customer - brand personality - brand identity	- brand differentiation - brand attractiveness - moral beliefs and human values in the brand - brand dynamism - brand innovation - brand positioning - brand prominence and uniqueness - brand function - culture - brand promise
Causal conditions	Quality of products and services - Building trust in customers	- Responding to the needs and interests of customers - Comprehensive vision for branding - Social perspective - Economic perspective - Political perspective - Necessity of strategic thinking - Brand comprehensiveness - Trans-organizational - Paying attention to branding in the mission of the organization - Brand dynamism - Existence of a large number of customers
Background conditions	- Environmental changes and developments - Cultural context	- Security of customers' personal and financial information - Knowing the market - Guaranteeing product replacement and return - Variety of supply - Variety of demand - Competitors - Market - Beneficiaries - Religion - Economic conditions - Time to enter the market
Intervening conditions	- Integrated Marketing Communications - Managers' support	- Time, cost and efficiency of the processes - The need to update the brand - Customer satisfaction with the purchase - The need to provide information - Competitors' performance analysis - The security of the trading process - Internet and IT - Environmental requirements - The need to pay attention to the principles of sensory marketing - Meaningfulness of communication - Ability to exchange Information - government support - financing - teamwork
Strategies	- Obtaining a competitive advantage - Promotion of the special value of the brand - Creating a positive association for the brand	- Brand design - Understanding customers - Editing content - Choosing the right features for the product - Strategic planning for branding - Interaction with customers - Proper delivery of goods - Building trust in customers - Creating a favorable mental image - Gaining dignity in the eyes of customers - Customer behavior (action) - Brand development - Knowing people's mental assumptions - Holding significant and interesting events - Building trust between stakeholders - Internal marketing (attention to employees) - Completing the company's product collection - Advertising - Using consultants
consequences	- Creating brand loyalty - Emotional involvement of the customer	- Reducing the desire of customers to buy from competitors' brands - Speeding up the processes in the buying, selling and supply chain - Business development - Earning money - Gaining customer satisfaction - Improving the popularity of the brand - Creating a sense of belonging in the customer - More customer orientation towards the brand - Forming a style A new life

Also, the relationship between the main categories obtained from the literature review and interviews was analyzed and the model of the research process was obtained.

According to the data obtained from the research process and the analyzes carried out, the final paradigm model has been obtained. This research, with a qualitative approach, seeks to find the views of the owners and agents, that in this model, there is a set of relationships between all the factors of the model, which ultimately ends in the results of branding for a selection of sports products. The research paradigm model shows the flow of processes and activities that happened in the context of the study. This model includes five parts, which are: causal conditions, contextual conditions, intervening conditions, strategies and consequences. In the middle of the model is the central phenomenon around which activities take place. The flow of processes and activities that took place in the context of this research shows that the central phenomenon is the branding of sports products.

As it has been determined from the results of this research, the researcher, at the beginning and through the application of content analysis method in the first part, identified 13 indicators for the identification of the brand of sports products and as a result its branding which is considered a central phenomenon in this research and Next, 16 intervening indicators (facilitating or inhibiting factors) in the branding process of sports products, 13 causal and effective indicators in branding, 13 contextual and environmental indicators, 22 strategic and strategic indicators and finally 12 consequential indicators have been identified. In the continuation of the research and in order to check the appropriateness of the indicators identified from the content analysis, the opinions of experts and specialists in the field of marketing and branding were used, and during the implementation of the fuzzy Delphi method and the distribution of 3 stages of the Delphi questionnaire containing the identified indicators, in the section The central phenomenon, identification and branding of sports products into 3 indicators (the mental image of the brand for the customer, brand personality, brand identity), intervening factors in branding into 2 indicators (integrated marketing communications, managers' support), causal and effect factors into 2 indicators ( quality of products and services, building trust in customers), background conditions affecting 2 indicators (environmental changes and developments, cultural context), strategies and strategies for 3 indicators (gaining competitive advantage, improving brand value, creating positive associations for the brand) and consequences And the results of branding reached 2 final indicators (creating brand loyalty, customer's emotional and emotional involvement).

3.2. Findings of the quantitative section

As mentioned, after qualitative investigations and according to the survey conducted on 178 random samples in this research (of which 42% were men and 58% were women), the model presented with the help of partial least squares method and PLS Smart software was evaluated. The evaluation results in this section include three categories: validity test (including convergent validity test and divergent validity test), reliability test and structural model test, the results of which are described below.

3.2.1. Convergent Validity Test

In the methodology of the structural equation model, it is necessary to examine the internal validity of the constructs in order to determine that each item has a proper relationship with its variable. For this purpose, factor loading test was used. As can be seen in Table (2), the factor load obtained for all questions (items) is higher than the standard significance value of 0.7 and the corresponding t statistic is greater than the threshold of 1.96; Therefore, at the confidence level of 95%, the factor load of the questions is significant and the placement of each item in its variable is confirmed.

Table 2. Confirmatory factor analysis for the field conditions variable

Variable

Object

factor load

standard error

Statistic

Contextual Conditions (CC)

cultural context (CU)

environmental change (EC)

0.864777

0.739371

0.036522

0.059607

678149/23

404195/12

causal factors (CF)

Quality of products and services (QPS)

trust building (T)

0.904390

0.841941

0.013211

0.030444

457718/68

655136/27

Intervening Factors (IF)

Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC)

Manager Support (MS)

0.893686

0.875883

0.015879

0.020171

282118/56

423370/43

Pivotal Phenomenon (CP)

Brand Mind Image (BIM)

Brand Personality (BP)

Brand Identity (BID)

0.840800

0.830031

0.709032

0.023041

0.025569

0.046873

491245/36

462274/32

126771/15

Strategies (S)

Brand association (BA)

Brand Equity (BE)

Competitive Advantage (CA)

0.860415

0.840167

0.835705

0.024654

0.028988

0.029718

900245/34

28/983042

28/121341

Consequences (C)

Customer emotional involvement (EI)

Brand Loyalty (BL)

0.876680

0.892953

0.020515

0.012723

732805/42

182785/70

3.2.2. Divergent Validity Test

In order to check the independence of the research variables from each other, the divergent validity test is used, in this research two tests, AVE and Fornell-Larker, are used.

The results of the Average Variance Extracted Index (AVE) test showed that the average variance extracted of all model variables (consequences, background conditions, causal factors, central phenomenon, intervening factors, and strategies) are respectively equal to 0.78, 0.65, and 76. 0, 0.63, 0.78 and 0.71), is higher than the 0.5 threshold; Therefore, it is concluded that the items can adequately explain the variance of the variables of the research model. Also, the results of the Fornell-Larker test confirm that the correlation of the items of each construct with its own variable is higher than that of other variables. Values larger than the corresponding row and column in the main diameter confirm this case (Table 3).

Table 3. The results of the Fornell-Larker test

	C	CC	CF	CP	IF	S
Consequences (C)	0/885
Contextual Conditions (CC)	0/369	0.805
causal factors (CF)	0/501	0.442	0.874
Pivotal Phenomenon (CP)	0/629	0.494	0.700	0.796
Intervening Factors (IF)	0/496	0.428	0.699	0.692	0.885
Strategies (S)	0/713	0.447	0.672	0.740	0.598	0.845

According to the mentioned results, the divergent validity of the research model is confirmed.

3.2.3. Reliability Test

In the measurement model, the internal consistency of the model or the level of reliability was investigated by calculating two composite reliability indices and Cronbach's alpha, and the results of table (4) show a value higher than 0.7 for both indices, which is a confirmation.

Table 4. AVE values and reliability indices

Variable	consequences	Background conditions	Causal factors	A central phenomenon	interfering factors	Strategies
Cronbach's alpha	0.823089	0.763065	0.793838	0.805617	0.823072	0.900626
Composite reliability	0.878265	0.784832	0.865674	0.837198	0.878235	0.882631

3.2.4. Main Model Outputs

According to the confirmation of the measurement model, it is possible to evaluate the structural model and the relationships between the variables. The results of the test of path coefficients and t-statistics on the research model showed that all the relationships of the variables have a t-statistic value higher than 1.96, which indicates the confirmation of the relationships at the confidence level of 95%; In other words, it can be said that the influence of all variables in the model has been confirmed (Figures 2 and 3).

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Figure 2. The main model in the state of significant numbers (t-value)

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Figure 3. The main model in the mode of path coefficients

Also, the high value of the coefficient of determination in the dependent variables CP, S, and C, which was obtained as 0.6, 0.55, and 0.51, respectively, indicates the high predictive power of the model.

In addition, the evaluation of model fit indices showed that the value of f2 effect for all relationships was higher than at least 0.02 and for the effect of the central phenomenon on strategies (1.2) and the path of strategies on strong outcomes (1.03) and the effect of factors Causal (0.16) and interfering factors on the central phenomenon (0.15) are moderate.

On the other hand, the positive value obtained for the Q2 criterion in all research variables indicates the acceptable generalizability of this model; With the GOF value equal to 0.630, the overall fit of the model has been evaluated as strong.

The main model hypothesis	Path coefficient	Statistic t	The coefficient of determination	Result
Strategies → Consequences	0.713185	16.058645	0.509	Confirmation

Branding of sports products with a strategic thinking approach showed that creating a mental image of the brand requires a marketing plan that can connect favorable, unique and powerful associations with the brand in the consumer's memory. Consumers' mental associations of the brand can be formed in different ways beyond marketing activities, based on past research conducted by Rezvani et al. (2016), Ekhlasi et al. (2015), Karimian et al. , Pernet and Benoit (2008) and Bajadi (2019) among the most important of them is the personal experience of the product and obtaining information from various sources such as news, reports, media tools, word-of-mouth advertising, consumers' understanding of the brand, name, logo, and the like [10, 13, 15-17]. As a result, the image or association of the brand directly affects the perceived value. In other words, a brand that creates more mental benefits, the consumer will consider it more valuable in comparison with competitors and will be committed to the brand with trust created. The unique associations of each brand can be identified through its identity.

The results showed that the most important aspect of identity dimensions (physical, personality, culture, communication, consumer reflection and consumer mentality) is the consumer's personality, which allows companies to determine the concept of the project and design their brands. Based on the obtained results, in order to realize the brand identity in the branding paradigm, three categories of causal, mediating and background factors are needed.

Mediating factors: As Mousavi et al. (2016) of course, today, integrated marketing communication alone is not enough to maintain and maintain the audience, and organizations are forced to improve their communication with the audience. Also, management is considered as the most vital element of an organization due to having a double influence on other components and as a result on the activities, through the necessary support and support for the implementation and providing the infrastructure to achieve the branding goal, as a complement [18].

Causal factors: in various studies conducted by researchers such as Ekhlasi et al. (2015), Alizadeh et al. (2016) and Kamili et al. (2017) increasing the quality of services and products has been stated as an important factor in increasing the value perceived by customers, which plays a vital role in the survival of companies [19-21]

Background factors: Specific conditions that affect strategies are called background conditions. These conditions oversee the space that dominates the environment and form a set of concepts and layers or background variables that are included in the paradigm model: environmental changes and developments, cultural context [15]. Effective on branding can be divided into six parameters of competition, technological changes, political changes, changes in natural factors, statistical changes, and changes in cultural and social factors [13, 15, 16, 22]. The impact of these six factors on the business is out of control due to being an environment, but if you keep them in mind and make a decision during branding, through correct prediction, agile and coordinated with them, you can be sure of the success of the desired brand. In this regard, the three strategies of gaining a competitive advantage, promoting the special value of the brand and creating a positive association for the brand increase the desire of customers to buy the respective brand and lead to the creation of loyalty to the brand and emotional and emotional involvement of the customer. In short, it should be said that emotional and emotional branding can create a better relationship between customers of sports products and brands. For this purpose, it is necessary to focus more on the goals, needs, desires and desires, which are all under the unconscious influence of the customer

According to the evaluations, it can be said that among the indicators of the background conditions, which include environmental changes and cultural context, only the impact of the cultural context index on the mental image of the brand (core phenomenon indicators) has been confirmed and its impact on the index of brand personality and brand identity is rejected. Among the indicators of causal factors, which include the quality of products and services and building trust in customers, the influence of the quality index of products and services on the mental image of the brand and the personality of the brand has been confirmed, and its effect on the brand identity index has been rejected. In addition, the effect of trust building index on customers has been confirmed only on brand identity and its effect on mental image and brand personality indicators has been rejected. Among the indicators of intervening factors that include integrated marketing communications and managers' support, the influence of the integrated marketing communications index on brand identity and brand personality has been confirmed and its impact on the brand mental image index has been rejected. In addition, the influence of managers' support index only on the mental image of the brand has been confirmed and its influence on the indicators of brand identity and brand personality has been rejected. Among the key phenomenon indicators that include brand mental image, brand personality and brand identity, the impact of the brand mental image index on creating a positive association for the brand and gaining competitive advantage has been confirmed and its effect on the brand equity enhancement index has been rejected. In addition, the effect of the brand personality index on all three indicators of creating a positive association for the brand, improving brand equity and gaining a competitive advantage was rejected, while the influence of the brand identity index on all three indicators of creating a positive association for the brand, improving the brand equity was rejected. And gaining a competitive advantage is confirmed. Among the indicators of strategic factors, which include creating positive association for the brand, improving brand equity and gaining competitive advantage, the influence of the index of gaining competitive advantage on both indicators of creating brand loyalty and emotional and emotional involvement of the customer has been rejected. In addition, the influence of the index of improving brand value on both indicators of creating brand loyalty and emotional and emotional involvement of the customer has been confirmed. Also, the influence of the indicator of creating a positive association for the brand on both the indicators of creating brand loyalty and the customer's emotional and emotional involvement has been confirmed.

4. Conclusion

The results of the research showed that the final model consists of all the central phenomenon indicators (brand mental image for the customer, brand personality, brand identity), intervening factors in branding (integrated marketing communications, managers' support), causal and effect factors (quality of products and services, building trust in customers), background conditions (environmental changes and developments, cultural context), strategies (gaining competitive advantage, enhancing brand equity, creating positive associations for the brand) and consequences (creating brand loyalty, emotional and emotional involvement of the customer).

Based on the obtained results, it can be said that the cultural-social context (as a platform for creating an emotional image of the brand and brand personality) has an effective and significant role in the branding of sports products. Although its influence on the brand identity index and personality has been rejected; This can also be a result of limited efforts in branding sports products in Iran. In other words, one of the main problems of Iranian sports brands is that they have not been able to create a suitable mental, emotional and cultural background in the mind of the customer. In addition, the significance of the support of company managers on the mental image of the brand shows the effort and desire of the branding managers, but because the efforts were not based on the correct marketing approach, it did not have an impact on the brand identity and brand personality.

Among the central phenomenon indicators, the results showed that the brand mental image index can only lead to creating a positive association for the brand and gaining a competitive advantage, but it cannot lead to the improvement of the brand's special value. In other words, it does not have enough power to achieve the main goal; But from there, the brand identity index, as opposed to the brand personality index; It has been effective on all three indicators (creating a positive association, improving brand equity and gaining a competitive advantage); We find that the marketing of sports products in Iran, despite the fact that it agrees with the creation of brand identity, does not believe in the personality of the brand and has not drawn a correct personality of sports brands in the market. Therefore, it is recommended (according to the results of the research) to promote the special value of the brand and create a positive association for the brand as a tool to create customer loyalty and emotional and emotional involvement at the top of the marketing goals of sports products.

The researchers found in this research that according to the identified conditions, the most important solutions to overcome these problems can be summarized as follows:

Establishing modern management, practical marketing and reducing production costs, the need for national (and then international) branding of Iranian sports products in order to reduce investment risk and increase capital return, study, manage and strengthen established brands by updating information, monitoring the market and competitors and The development of new products, the need for the government's functional support in the discussion of legislation and its implementation, marketing research and continuous market research of customers in order to retain current customers and attract new customers, attention to the effect of culture and efforts to cultivate the consumption of domestic brands and efforts to create positive associations with the brand and build trust. In customers, the creation of a marketing information system in companies in order to achieve integrated marketing communications is generally noted; Branding (and especially marketing) is not a single approach of the company's activity and it should not only be in harmony with all the company's activities, plans and goals, but it should also be involved and placed in their infrastructure. Therefore, the first step in correcting the unfavorable situation of the Iranian sports products market is fundamental and correct branding.

5. References

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