Step by Step:
We’ve discussed the sponsorship stats that can help you boost your strategy, but what about the absolutely vital components to the best sponsorship strategies out there? Here are a few necessary parts to achieving both practical and winning event sponsorship investments.
Understand Your Potential Sponsors
Record your wishlist of sponsors and research as much as you can about them. Particular areas of note include industry, existing sponsorships, upcoming events for the brand (product or campaign launches), marketing goals, and competitor activity. The more you are able to ascertain in advance, the better your initial sponsorship pitch will be.
See how each brand could align with your event, if at all. At the end of that process, you will know more or less who exactly fits the bill as likely event sponsors.
Network with & Contact Your Potential Sponsors
After recording and researching your list of potential sponsors, contact the ones you can, or find them. This process will vary by brand and contact; try a few methods of contact: email, phone, networking event. Adjust your strategy by brand to make your contact feel as comfortable as possible.
Develop & Maintain a Trusting Relationship with Sponsors
Once your sponsors are signed, it is important to develop and maintain a trusting relationship with each brand. Even in the off-season, keep up contact to ensure your team can adjust to any changes in the brand’s goals or strategy relating to its sponsorship. Off-season work can also ensure you aren’t scrambling at the end; begin discussing potential activation options after the recap of the previous event - what better way to implement any changes discussed than getting it moving straightaway? Your sponsors can, in turn, provide you with positive testimonials and referrals.
Promote, Promote, Promote
You can create the greatest event sponsorship package, but if you do not promote it well, then you will not get anywhere near the results you desire. Creating and promoting an event app is a good idea. Make sure it runs on all different types of operating systems. Following up with attendees using a well-written survey gives you back useful information to even better promote the next event. This gives sponsors another way to connect to your attendees as well - you only have to open the Disneyland app for an example and you’ll see AT&T’s affiliation right away.
Analyze & Report
This brings us to the next vital component to a great sponsorship strategy: analyzing and reporting on the event. There are many ways to draw data on the event before, during, and after. No matter how it is done, as that depends upon the event itself, draw as much data as possible and you will have the tools you need to create the best sponsorship strategy possible.
This should be an ongoing discussion with each sponsor. Undoubtedly, each brand will also be tracking some things you cannot, and information sharing will help both sides improve for the next event (and even sometimes can facilitate a quick-change mid-event for improvement).
Know You & Your Event’s Value
Make sure that you know exactly what is being invested in the event and how. You need to know what you are providing and proposing just as well as how much you are receiving out of the event. Remember: sponsorship is not meant to offset your marketing budget (though that can sometimes be a happy outcome).
A valuation will provide the confidence you need to support the numbers you quote to potential partners. If you’re struggling with how to value your assets (or even if you’re looking to find new ones), Tandem can help.
Work with a Sponsorship Agency to Launch the Best Sponsorship Strategies
At Tandem Partnerships, we work to launch the best sponsorship strategies. When we partner with you, we ensure maximum return on your sponsorship investment.