#163: Tips for Finding Sponsors

May 7, 2023 | Office Operations

When you think of a sponsor or sponsorship, you may think of big companies with huge budgets. But don’t think that your event couldn’t benefit from having sponsors. Sponsorship is when an organization provides financial assistance to an event to achieve promotional advantages.

Getting sponsors for your event (whether it be digital or in person) can be a great way to offset some of the costs that come along with hosting an event. In fact, for many events, sponsorships are what make the difference between making a profit and taking a loss. But how do you get sponsors for your event? Where do you find them? What do you offer them?

In this episode, I give some tips for finding sponsors for your event.

Welcome to Systems Sunday. When you think of a sponsor or sponsorship, you may think of big companies with huge budgets. But don’t think that your event couldn’t benefit from having sponsors. Sponsorship is when an organization provides financial assistance to an event to achieve promotional advantages.

Getting sponsors for your event (whether it be digital or in person) can be a great way to offset some of the costs that come along with hosting an event. In fact, for many events, sponsorships are what make the difference between making a profit and taking a loss.

But how do you get sponsors for your event? Where do you find them? What do you offer them? Whether you’re new to hosting events or you’ve got a few under your belt, I’m breaking it all down for you this month as we master the sponsorship proposal process.

I am Lisa Wells, your Virtual Assistant Trainer.

Organizing an event can be a daunting task, particularly when it comes to financing the event. For onsite events, you have venue rentals to catering, marketing, and staffing. And for online events, you may have backend administration costs, your team, perhaps recording and editing videos or audios. Regardless of the medium, the costs of hosting an event can quickly add up. Sponsorship can be a crucial source of funding that can make the difference between a successful event and a flop. In this episode, I give some tips for finding sponsors for your event.

1. Identify Potential Sponsors
The first step in securing sponsors for your event is to identify potential partners. Start by considering the target audience and theme of your event. Think about companies that align with your vision and whose products or services would appeal to your attendees. Research the companies in your niche and make a list of potential sponsors.

Take a look at similar events that have taken place over the past couple of years and see who sponsored each of them. If some of them are missing from your list, be sure to add them! Prioritize them based on their likelihood of supporting your event.

2. Develop a Clear and Compelling Message
Once you have identified potential sponsors, it is essential to develop a clear and compelling message that communicates the benefits of sponsoring your event. Your message should highlight the value that your event can offer to potential sponsors, such as exposure to a new audience, access to a targeted customer base, and opportunities for networking.

Be sure to make your message visually appealing and easy to read, and communicate your event’s date, location, and target audience.

3. Offer Creative Sponsorship Opportunities
Companies are always looking for innovative ways to promote their brand, and your event can provide unique sponsorship opportunities that other advertising channels cannot. Consider offering customized sponsorship packages that include opportunities such as naming rights, product sampling, or VIP experiences. Be creative and think outside the box to provide unique and valuable opportunities for potential sponsors.

4. Leverage Your Network
Networking is essential in the events industry, and your existing connections can be a valuable resource for finding sponsors. Reach out to your network, including colleagues, industry associations, and business partners, and let them know about your event and sponsorship opportunities. These partners may be interested in sponsoring your event to increase their own exposure to your target audience.

Depending on the event, reach out to local businesses in your area that align with your event’s theme or audience, such as sports equipment stores for a charity run, or restaurants for a food festival. If your event is online and your topic is about money mindset or wealth consciousness, you can reach out to wealth managers, financial coaches, or investment advisors.

If you have hosted events in the past, reach out to previous sponsors to see if they would be interested in sponsoring your upcoming event. If they had a positive experience with your previous event, they may be willing to sponsor again. Don’t overlook your personal and professional networks. Reach out to colleagues, friends, and family members to see if they know of any potential sponsors or can make introductions for you.

Attend industry events and conferences and use social media to connect with potential sponsors and industry influencers. Use social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook to search for potential sponsors. Follow companies that align with your event’s theme or audience, and engage with them to build a relationship. You can also use social media to promote your event and attract potential sponsors.

Finally, one of the best networking groups is if you’re in a mastermind or coaching group. There may be experts, influencers, and even your own coach may be someone you can interview or have speak at the event, don’t be afraid to ask.

5. Follow Up
Following up is essential when seeking sponsorship. Once you have sent out your proposal, be sure to follow up with potential sponsors to ensure they received it and answer any questions they may have. Be persistent but polite and always thank sponsors for their time and consideration, even if they decline your offer.

6. Make Use of Sponsorship Platforms
There are many sponsorship platforms available online that can help you connect with potential sponsors. These platforms allow you to create a profile for your event, list sponsorship opportunities, and reach out to potential sponsors directly. Some popular sponsorship platforms include SponsorMyEvent, which costs nothing to register and post events in the SponsorMyEvent Marketplace. When you successfully sell a sponsorship, the secure transaction happens within the platform and both parties are protected. They deduct a 15% platform fee from the transaction. SponsorPitch helps make quick, smart connections between sponsoring brands and sponsorship opportunities. Their pricing follows a monthly subscription model starting at $59 per month.

Securing sponsors for your event can be a challenging task, but by following these tips, you can increase your chances of success. By casting a wide net and being strategic in your outreach, you can increase your chances of finding sponsors that align with your event’s goals and audience.

Identifying potential sponsors, developing a clear and compelling message, offering creative opportunities, leveraging your network, and following up, you can make your event a success and provide valuable opportunities for your sponsors. Remember to be persistent, creative, and always communicate the value of sponsoring your event.

If you enjoyed this episode check out my new Sponsorship Proposal Template Bundle. You’ll get a complete bundle of templates to help you with the sponsorship proposal process so that you can grow your business with events. Includes an insider’s guide chock full of information, tips, and best practices, worksheets to help you research potential sponsors and structure your packages and sponsorship levels, sample reports, terms and conditions contract, proposal outline template, sample post-event fulfillment report, and much more.

You can find the product below or head over to my VA Business Builder Boutique by clicking on Shop by Type in the menu bar and you’ll see a link for Template Bundles.

Join me next week as we go over “How to Structure Your Sponsorship Proposal for Success.”

See you then!

Catch up on other Mastering the Sponsorship Proposal Process episodes + resources mentioned in the video:

Did you enjoy this episode and want to put it into action? Grab this template bundle!

Sponsorship Proposal Templates

$20.00

Sponsorship Proposal Templates

Getting sponsors for your event (whether it be digital or in person) can be a great way to offset some of the costs that come along with hosting an event. In fact, for many events, sponsorships are what make the difference between making a profit and taking a loss.

But how do you get sponsors for your event? Where do you find them? What do you offer them? Whether you’re new to hosting events or you’ve got a few under your belt, this template bundle will be super helpful.

My goal is to make things simpler for you…to make quicker work of getting better RESULTS from your sponsorship proposal process. With that in mind, let’s look at what is included in this bundle:

Here’s what you get:

  • Insider’s Guide to the sponsorship proposals chock full of information, tips, and best practices
  • Potential Sponsor Research Worksheet – Use the worksheet to list out all the relevant information you find about each sponsor. This will help you narrow the list and also better understand how to structure each individual sponsorship proposal. And because following up is super important, I include a communications log to keep you organized.
  • “What do you have to offer a sponsor” Worksheet – Before you can approach a potential sponsor with a proposal, you must understand what you have to offer. After all, if you don’t understand, how can you explain and sell to potential sponsors? Use this worksheet to gain insight into what you and your team can offer for a successful partnership.
  • Packages Worksheet, Sponsorship Level Worksheet, and Example Sponsorship Level Table – Use these worksheets to flesh out your packages’ benefits to sponsors, I also include an example table showing the different levels so you can get an idea of what could be included in the different levels.
  • Cold Email, Terms and Conditions, and Proposal Outline Templates (Editable) – Sometimes getting started is the hardest part. I’ve got you covered! Included in these templates are a sample cold email template, sample sponsorship terms of agreement that you can edit, and an outline of what you should include in your proposal.
  • Sponsorship Implementation Checklist – Ensure that you have everything you need to properly promote your sponsors, and that they have everything they need to promote themselves to your attendees as well.
  • Sample Post-Event Fulfillment Report (Editable) – Following your event, it’s always good to provide your sponsors with a fulfillment report that provides proof that you delivered on your end of the sponsorship contract. I include a sample report, complete with what to include and sample verbiage.

As you can see, all of the templates included in the Sponsorship Proposal Template bundle will help you with the sponsorship proposal process so that you can grow your business with events.

#163: Tips for Finding Sponsors
#163: Tips for Finding Sponsors

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