How to Get Event Sponsorship!

Summary

In this video, Chris Bayliss, CEO of the Sponsorship Collective, debunks common misconceptions about event sponsorship and emphasizes the importance of understanding your audience. He explains that companies sponsor events to engage with niche audiences and build their brand, not just for logo placement. Bayliss outlines a strategic approach to event sponsorship that includes audience analysis, prospecting, valuation, and activation. He advises creating unique experiences for sponsors and attendees that add value, rather than focusing solely on traditional sponsorship models like gold, silver, and bronze tiers. The video concludes with tips on crafting a compelling sponsorship proposal and securing sponsor commitments post-event.

Takeaways

• 💼 Companies sponsor events for customer engagement, profit, and brand building, not just for logo placement.
• 🎉 Events are opportunities for sponsors to engage with niche audiences in ways that are meaningful and enjoyable.
• 🤝 The role of an event sponsorship salesperson is to create experiences that both sponsors and attendees love and find valuable.
• 💰 There are various types of sponsors, including experiential, promotional partners, media sponsors, and in-kind sponsors.
• 🔍 Understanding your audience in detail is crucial for successful sponsorship sales and event improvement.
• 📊 Audience data helps in prospecting by pointing you towards companies that prioritize your target market.
• 💡 Valuation is key in determining how much to charge for sponsorship opportunities based on the fair market value.
• 🚀 Knowing your audience allows you to build activations that address their concerns and enhance their event experience.
• 📈 Start with audience understanding, then valuation, prospecting, and finally, building a customized activation plan.
• 📋 A successful sponsorship proposal should focus at least 50% on audience data to appeal to marketers.
• 🗓️ The two-week window after the event is critical for providing sponsors with a fulfillment report and securing their commitment for the next year.

Q & A

What is the common misconception about event sponsorship according to the video?

The common misconception is that companies sponsor events just to put their logos on signs with gold, silver, or bronze above it. However, the real reason companies sponsor events is to engage with niche audiences in ways that are meaningful and add value.

Why do companies sponsor events instead of just buying ad space or doing internet marketing?

Companies sponsor events to engage niche audiences in specific ways that the audience loves and that connects them to the sponsor in meaningful ways, which is not typically possible with simple ad space or internet marketing.

What is the role of an event sponsorship sales person according to the video?

The role of an event sponsorship sales person is to build opportunities that sponsors love and that the audience loves, bringing both together in a way that adds value.

What are the different types of sponsors mentioned in the video?

The different types of sponsors mentioned are experiential sponsors, promotional partners, media sponsors, and in-kind or contra sponsors.

Why is it important to understand the audience for successful event sponsorship?

Understanding the audience is crucial because it allows the event organizer to know their demographic and psychographic details, preferred brands, and purchasing behaviors, which in turn helps in prospecting, valuation, and building activations that appeal to both the audience and potential sponsors.

What is the significance of the two-week window following an event in terms of sponsorship?

The two-week window following an event is significant because it is the time when sponsors are provided with a fulfillment report, proving the delivery of promised sponsorship benefits and return on investment. It's also the time to gather feedback and secure commitments for the next year.

What should be the focus of a sponsorship proposal according to the video?

At least 50% of a sponsorship proposal should focus on audience data, presenting the audience in a way that marketers find appealing rather than just focusing on gold, silver, bronze grids.

How does audience data help in the sponsorship sales process?

Audience data helps in sponsorship sales by guiding the organizer to the companies that should be approached, as it points to the brands and products the audience prefers and identifies companies that consider the audience as their ideal customer.

What is the recommended approach to building a sponsorship proposal?

The recommended approach is to start with understanding the audience, determine their value in the marketplace, develop customized activations for the audience, and build a prospect pipeline of companies that prioritize the audience before creating the sponsorship proposal.

Why is it important to challenge the traditional gold, silver, bronze logo placement model at events?

Challenging the traditional model is important because it encourages creative thinking and reaching out to prospects to build customized opportunities that provide real value to both the audience and the sponsors, rather than just focusing on logo placement.

What is the key to knowing how many sponsors will return for the next year's event?

The key is to provide a fulfillment report within two weeks of the event ending, gather feedback, and ask sponsors directly how to ensure their return for the next year, which helps in understanding the commitment level for the following year.

Outlines

00:00

🎟️ Understanding Event Sponsorship

In this paragraph, Chris Bayliss, president and CEO of the Sponsorship Collective, introduces the topic of event sponsorship. He clarifies the misconception that companies sponsor events just to display their logos. Instead, he explains that companies sponsor events to engage with niche audiences in meaningful ways, aiming to increase customer base, retain existing customers, and build their brand. The paragraph emphasizes the importance of creating sponsorship opportunities that both the sponsor and the audience will love, which involves understanding the audience's preferences and needs. It also outlines different types of sponsors, including experiential sponsors, promotional partners, media sponsors, and in-kind sponsors, and stresses the need for a strategic approach to event sponsorship.

05:02

📊 The Importance of Audience Data in Sponsorship Sales

This paragraph delves into the significance of knowing your audience in detail for successful sponsorship sales. It discusses the necessity of having at least 30 data points on the audience, including demographics, psychographics, preferred brands, and purchasing behaviors. The paragraph also highlights the importance of understanding the audience's decision-making authority and their potential to influence buying decisions. With this knowledge, event organizers can effectively prospect for sponsors, determine the right valuation for sponsorship opportunities, and build activations that cater to the audience's interests and needs. The paragraph further explains how audience data can guide the selection of potential sponsors and help in crafting sponsorship proposals that are appealing to marketers.

10:02

🚀 Maximizing Sponsorship Opportunities and Post-Event Engagement

The final paragraph focuses on the strategic approach to maximizing sponsorship opportunities and ensuring sponsor retention for future events. It advises against starting with a generic sponsorship package and instead suggests beginning with a deep understanding of the audience and the market value it represents. The paragraph emphasizes the importance of developing customized activations that provide value to the audience and can be sold at a premium to sponsors. It also discusses the critical two-week window following the event, during which organizers should provide sponsors with a fulfillment report, gather feedback, and secure commitments for the next year's event. The paragraph concludes with a call to action for event organizers to think creatively and build unique, customized opportunities that go beyond traditional logo placements and generic sponsorship packages.

Keywords

💡Event Sponsorship

Event Sponsorship refers to the financial or in-kind support that companies provide to events in exchange for various forms of recognition and the opportunity to engage with the event's audience. In the video, it is the central theme, with the speaker discussing the misconceptions and strategies for securing sponsorships for events. The script emphasizes that sponsorship is not just about logo placement but about creating meaningful engagement.

💡Sponsorship Collective

The Sponsorship Collective is mentioned as the organization represented by the speaker, Chris Bayliss, who is its president and CEO. It likely serves as a platform or community for discussing and facilitating sponsorship opportunities, though the script does not provide further details about its operations or services.

💡Engagement

Engagement in the context of the video refers to the interactive experiences and connections that sponsors aim to create with the event attendees. The speaker explains that companies sponsor events to engage niche audiences in ways that are enjoyable and meaningful, rather than just for logo exposure.

💡Experiential Sponsor

An experiential sponsor is a type of sponsor that provides an experience or opportunity to the event attendees, adding value beyond mere logo placement. The video script uses this term to illustrate the kind of sponsorship that can enhance the event experience and create a more profound connection with the audience.

💡Promotional Partners

Promotional partners are companies that collaborate with event organizers to target and market to a specific audience. The script mentions them as one type of sponsor that can help build the event's brand and that of the cash sponsors, thus driving up the overall value of the event.

💡Media Sponsors

Media sponsors are organizations that provide sponsorship in the form of media coverage or advertising space. They are highlighted in the script as a way to amplify the event's message and brand, as well as to increase the visibility and value of cash sponsors.

💡In-Kind Sponsors

In-kind sponsors provide non-cash support, such as goods or services, which the event organizers can use to offset expenses or enhance the attendee experience. The script refers to them as an alternative to cash sponsorships, offering another way for companies to contribute to and benefit from the event.

💡Audience Data

Audience data encompasses demographic and psychographic information about the event attendees. The video emphasizes the importance of knowing audience data in-depth to tailor sponsorship opportunities and activations that appeal to both the sponsors and the attendees.

💡Activation

Activation in the context of event sponsorship refers to the strategies and experiences created to engage the audience and provide value to sponsors. The script discusses the need to develop customized activations that address the audience's needs and interests, which can then be sold to sponsors at a premium.

💡Valuation

Valuation in the video pertains to determining the fair market value of sponsorship opportunities. It is a critical step before selling sponsorships, as it helps event organizers understand what they can offer to sponsors and how much they should charge for different sponsorship levels.

💡Fulfillment Report

A fulfillment report is a document provided to sponsors after the event, detailing the delivery of promised sponsorship benefits and demonstrating the value and return on investment. The script highlights the importance of this report in proving to sponsors that their sponsorship was successful and in securing their commitment for future events.

Highlights

Event sponsorship is not just about presenting logos but about engaging niche audiences in meaningful ways.

Companies sponsor events for customer acquisition, retention, and brand building, not just for logo exposure.

Events offer unique opportunities for sponsors to engage with specific audiences unlike traditional advertising.

The role of an event sponsorship salesperson is to create experiences that both sponsors and attendees love.

Experiential sponsors aim to add value to attendees' experience rather than just displaying logos.

Promotional partners and media sponsors can help target and market to a specific audience, increasing event value.

In-kind or contra sponsors provide goods or services that can offset event expenses or enhance attendee experience.

Understanding your audience in detail is crucial for successful event sponsorship and improvement.

Having at least 30 data points on your audience can guide sponsorship sales and event enhancements.

Audience data helps in prospecting by identifying companies that consider your audience as their ideal customer.

Valuation of sponsorship opportunities is essential and should be based on a fair market value understanding.

Building activations or experiences for the audience is key to selling sponsorships at a premium.

Avoid focusing solely on gold, silver, bronze logo placement as it doesn't add value to the audience.

Audience data is vital for creating a compelling sponsorship proposal that appeals to marketers.

The two-week window after an event is crucial for providing sponsors with a fulfillment report and securing future partnerships.

Post-event feedback and engagement are critical for understanding how to improve and retain sponsors.

Changing the mindset towards event sponsorship to focus on creating unique, customized opportunities is essential.

Transcripts

you're running an event a festival a

conference a fundraising event big event

small event and you're looking for

sponsorship I know what you're thinking

all I have to do is Senate a sponsorship

package and money will just come

flooding into my bank account

well you've either tried that and found

it didn't work or you're about to try

that and this video is going to save you

months of work and disappointment in

today's video we're gonna talk all

things event sponsorship check it out

[Music]

hi there my name's Chris Bayliss

president and CEO of the sponsorship

collective and before we dive in make

sure you hit the subscribe button and

click the bell icon to get updates every

time we send out a video before we can

talk about how to get event sponsorship

we need to talk about why companies

sponsor events in the first place well

I've got good news for you the reason

companies sponsor events is because they

want to put their logos on a sign with

the word gold silver or bronze above it

unfortunately nothing could be further

from the truth and if that is your plan

for seeking event sponsorship or worse

yet you've been practicing sponsorship

in this way you're in for a big surprise

why do companies sponsor events for the

same reason companies do anything more

customers profit keeping current

customers finding staff building their

brand if all a company wanted was to get

their logo in front of people they would

just buy ad space or do some internet

marketing they wouldn't bother with

events events are an opportunity to

engage niche audiences in specific ways

that the audience loves and that

connects them to the sponsor in

meaningful ways in other words your job

as the event sponsorship sales person is

to build opportunities

sponsors love and that your audience

loves that brings them both together in

a way that adds value if a company is

looking to sample new product sure you

could just put the samples out on a

table and hope people pick them up or

you could come up with new unique

interesting ways to incent people to try

the sample to take the sample and in

that way you're proving to your sponsor

that you're better than just a direct

mail campaign or handing out free

product on a street corner event

sponsorship is an opportunity for you to

take a captive niche audience and a

sponsor and bring them together so what

type of sponsors exist what kind of

sponsorship opportunities exist for

events cash right you want cash then

you'll have cash you'll put their logo

on a sign and away they go

well okay some people do that but you're

missing out on a really significant

opportunity if that's all you're doing

at your events cash sponsors of course

are part of sponsorship and really that

huge part of sponsorship but how you

activate that sponsorship how you

leverage that sponsorship will determine

how much cash you can get so the first

type of sponsor at an event is the

experiential sponsor the company wants

to bring an experience or an opportunity

to your audience not just put a logo on

something but actually add value to your

attendees make them feel better have a

better time make them feel more engaged

give them more of what they want and

overcome things that they don't want at

your event you can have promotional

partners that will help you target and

market to your niche audience your

target customer you have media sponsors

that can help you get your message that

helped you build your brand but also

help you build the brand of your cash

sponsors driving up the value of your

event overall and of course you have

in-kind sponsors right or contra those

companies that give you free stuff that

you then use to offset expenses or that

you give to your audience to help them

a better time no matter what type of

sponsorship you're looking for event

sponsorship follows really the same

process it's fairly formulaic but it's

not easy and that's we're gonna talk

about next so if you are running an

event you have to know your audience in

great detail not just how many people

come but you really should have at least

30 data points on your audience

demographic of course psychographic

absolutely preferred brands without

question coming purchases most certainly

if it's a business-to-business event or

a conference you also want to know level

of decision making Authority you want

titles you want industries and you want

to know whether or not you can even

influence or contribute to a buying

decision if you are running an event and

you don't have audiences that you are

missing a major opportunity for

sponsorship but also a major opportunity

to improve your event the more you know

about your audience and what they're

after the more you can offer them to

make sure they come back year after year

once you know who your audience is you

can do the next three things which are

critical to sponsorship sales

prospecting valuation and building

activations those experiential

opportunities that make your audience

happy and make sure they come back again

and again

how does audience data help you prospect

well once you know exactly who your

audience is what kind of products they

want to purchase what kind of brands

they prefer it points you to exactly the

companies you should be talking to but

then you can also look at what companies

consider your target market your

audience their ideal customer so your

audience may not have identified that

they plan to buy a particular type of

car but you're able to do some market

research to determine which companies in

fact prioritize your audience once you

know who your audience is prospecting is

a breeze the next step in building your

sponsorship opportunities knowing how

much to charge otherwise known as

valuation I'll link below in the show

notes to a blog post and a video all

about valuation we're not going to cover

it in

a detail here but you must know what

your opportunities are you cannot sell

sponsorship proof return on investment

and negotiate with your sponsors without

an understanding of the fair market

value and so we have a number of

resources that can take you through that

process but your value is highly

dependent on your audience without

knowing who your audience is you can't

know what the market value of your

assets are and third in order to build

activations in order to build

experiences for your audience that you

can sell at a premium to sponsors you

have to know who they are what they want

the inconvenience is you can help them

overcome and then you build things

specifically to address their concerns

believe me no audience member no event

attendee said I wish there were more

signs with logos on them that is not

what your audience is after no one sat

down to a gala or showed up at a at a

race and said boy I wish there were at

least 10 more speeches before we got to

enjoy our dinner before the event

actually began these things do not add

value to your audience and the reason

you're struggling to come up with ideas

to make your event better ideas to sell

the sponsors that actually add value

versus just another eblasts because you

don't know who your audience is you're

not asking the right questions once you

know who your audience is

once you've built activations just for

your audience once you've done your

valuation and once you've done your

prospect research then and only then can

you move to building a sponsorship

proposal and reaching out to your

prospects now I know most people start

with the sponsorship package and they

send it out to called prospects in hopes

that money will come in and it doesn't

so instead turn your sponsorship process

upside down

start with your audience then determine

what value they have in the marketplace

develop your experience your customized

activations for your audience and build

a prospect pipeline of companies who you

know prioritize your audience

customers then you can move to building

your sponsorship proposal I'll link to a

video all about the sponsorship package

below but very quickly I will share a

tip with you when you're building a

sponsorship package no less than 50% of

that package should focus on audience

data it's not about gold silver bronze

grids it's not about making the sale to

a prospect you've never spoken to it's

about presenting your audience in a way

that marketers find appealing the most

important time frame in event

sponsorship is the two-week window

immediately following your event after

your event is the most important time

frame for you and your sponsors why

because within two weeks of your event

ending you're going to provide your

sponsors with a fulfillment report

proving that you delivered everything

you said you would showing the value of

the things you promised them the value

of the things you actually gave them and

proving return on investment when you

deliver your fulfillment report you're

going to invite feedback from your

prospect from your sponsor they're gonna

ask them how you could do better and

then you're going to ask them the most

important question how can I ensure that

you will be back next year what do I

have to do right now to make this your

number one priority your top priority

for your next year's marketing plans

I've been using this approach for years

and it always puts me in a position

within two weeks of my event ending to

know exactly how many sponsors I have

coming back next year so within a couple

of weeks I already know how much work I

have ahead of me to bring in new

sponsors if any so when it comes to

event sponsorship we need to change our

mindset events are not just another

place to put logos events are important

in the sponsorship space because it

brings in a niche audience it brings in

an audience that you can create

opportunities for and then you can reach

out to sponsors and create unique

customized opportunities don't let

yourself fall under the trap of gold

silver bronze logo placement at your

events and maybe putting an insert in

the in the bag of free stuff you give

away to everybody really challenge

yourself to think creatively to reach

out to your prospects and build

customized opportunities and remember

the sponsorship proposal doesn't make

the sale you do good luck out there

[Music]