Investigating the Relationship of Experiential Marketing on Customer Satisfaction in Sports Clubs through the Mediation of Relationship Quality

The primary objective of this research was to investigate the relationship of experiential marketing on customer satisfaction in sports clubs through the mediation of relationship quality. In terms of purpose, this study was an applied research, and in terms of nature, it was a descriptive-correlational study conducted in the field. The statistical population of this research consisted of all customers of sports clubs in Shahrud County. Based on the common rule for determining the minimum required sample size in structural equation modeling (i.e., number of variables multiplied by 10), 148 individuals were selected as the statistical sample using random sampling (n=148). Data collection tools in this research included standardized questionnaires: Rezaei's Experiential Marketing (2015), Bahmat's Customer Satisfaction in Sports Clubs (2012), and Relationship Quality (Yu & Kim, 2008). The validity of the questionnaires was confirmed by 7 experts and professors in sports management. In addition to content validity, convergent and discriminant validity were used to confirm the measurement tools, and Cronbach's alpha coefficient and composite reliability coefficient were used to determine the reliability of the questionnaires. For data analysis, descriptive statistics (frequency, mean, percentages, standard deviations, and table generation) and inferential statistics were used to test the hypotheses, including the use of structural equation modeling method, specifically the partial least squares approach, using two software packages: Smart-PLS4 and SPSS26. The results of the research showed that experiential marketing has a positive and significant effect on customer satisfaction with respect to the mediating variable of relationship quality in sports clubs in Shahrud city. Furthermore, ethical marketing also affects satisfaction.