MECHANISM OF SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE MARKETING OF SPORTS INDUSTRY BRANDS

Introduction. The article raises the actual issue of the transformation of social responsibility of brands under external pressure from society, which is manifested in the shift of emphasis from conceptual principles to the achievement of business goals with the tools of social responsibility. The social responsibility of sports industry brands was chosen as the object of research due to the dualistic nature of sport, which can be both a product and a tool of social responsibility. The subject of the study is the mechanism of socially responsible marketing, as the latter provides prospects for solving the problem of balancing the goals of social impact and commercial goals. The purpose of the article is to justify the mechanism of socially responsible marketing of sports industry brands. Research materials were scientific works in the field of social responsibility, in particular, in the sports industry, and the author's own research. The main methods used in the work are structural-genetic and morphological analysis and synthesis, comparison, generalization, logical and graphic methods. Results. The article states the problem of increased risks of mistrust and dissatisfaction on the part of stakeholders due to the interweaving of social responsibility and commercialization in the activities of brands, in particular, in the sports industry. It is hypothesized that strategic responsibility as a part of the brand development plan based on the implementation of an improved mechanism of socially responsible marketing will allow to reconcile the company's economic goals, the wishes and expectations of stakeholders and ensure the long-term interests of society. Based on the analysis of the components of the existing mechanisms of social responsibility, their connections and the specifics of sports, the key requirements for the mechanism of socially responsible marketing of sports industry brands were determined. The essence of the mechanism of socially responsible marketing of sports industry brands is revealed and its structural scheme is proposed. The main operating principle of the improved mechanism has been defined, the formation and implementation of which will allow sports industry brands to achieve commercial success while positively influencing society and the environment. Prospects for further research — the systematization of socially responsible marketing tools and the development of standardized criteria for measuring the impact of social responsibility initiatives in the sports industry.