Sponsorship is an effective yet commonly overlooked marketing strategy for local businesses. Many small businesses view sponsorship as the purview of big businesses, especially for major sporting events. Sponsorships offer unlimited opportunities to broaden your competitive advantage by increasing your credibility, image, and prestige in sponsoring events that attract your target market.
There are several opportunities for small businesses to do sponsorships. Your business can sponsor a local soccer or lacrosse team, art exhibition, ice skating club, school project, or recycling initiative. Some trade show promotional opportunities include sponsorship of the press room, an international lounge, a speaker or VIP room, an awards reception, educational programs, banners, badge holders, audiovisual equipment, display computers, tote bags, shuttle buses, napkins, and drink cups. For example, the insurance company AllState is co-sponsoring a community shred program with the news network NBC4 in Washington DC, giving the company unlimited media exposure.
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So, why should your company be interested in sponsorship? When done well, it offers significant opportunities for distinct marketing and competitive advantages, as well as showing support for the event.
What is Sponsorship?
Sponsorship is the financial or in-kind support of an activity, used primarily to reach specified business goals. According to IEG’s Complete Guide to Sponsorship, “Sponsorship should not be confused with advertising. Advertising is considered a quantitative medium, whereas sponsorship is considered a qualitative medium. It promotes a company in association with the sponsee.”
Many events these days use sponsorship support to offer more exciting programs and help defray rising costs. Sponsorship allows you to reach specifically targeted niche markets without any waste. It is also a powerful complement to other marketing programs and has a dramatic influence on customer relations.
Why Sponsor?
Sponsorship offers the possibility of achieving several goals at once. According to Schmader and Jackson in their book Special Events: Inside and Out, a company can benefit from sponsorship in many ways, such as:
1. Enhancing Image/Shaping Consumer Attitudes
Often, companies are looking to improve how they are perceived by their target audience. Sponsoring events that appeal to their market is likely to shape buying attitudes and help generate a positive reaction. Coca-Cola, for example, is always looking to generate a positive influence of its products in the minds of its consumers and, as such, regularly supports events it feels can influence consumer opinions.
2. Driving Sales
Sponsorship geared to driving sales can be an extremely potent promotional tool. This objective allows sponsors to showcase their product attributes. Food and beverage companies often use sponsorship to encourage samplings and sales.
IEG’s Complete Guide to Sponsorship cites Visa’s fundraising effort for its sponsorship of the Olympic Games and the U.S. Olympic Team. They promoted their association by offering to donate to the team each time consumers charge a purchase to their card. American Express used a similar strategy by donating to needy causes with their “Charge Against Hunger” campaign. As a result, both companies experienced a significant rise in sales volume.
3. Creating positive publicity/heightening visibility
Every sponsor is seeking wide exposure in both electronic and print media. Positive publicity helps create heightened visibility of products/services. Various media covering the event may include sponsors’ names and/or photos. In addition, the kind of media coverage a sponsor may get is often unaffordable if the company were to think of purchasing it, and if it were available. To maximize this objective, the sponsoring company needs to have a comprehensive media campaign to augment the regular media coverage promoted by the organizers. Sponsorship can often generate media coverage that might otherwise not have been available.
4. Differentiating from competitors
Sporing an event, especially an exclusive sponsorship, is a significant way to create competitor differentiation. Your company name has the opportunity to stand out head and shoulders above the competition. This is particularly helpful if your company wants to combat a competitor with a larger ad budget. Sponsorship allows smaller companies to compete with their industry giants.
Target audiences often positively perceive sponsorship. They see you as making a greater effort to support the event, often allowing more or better activities to take place due to your sponsorship.
5. Helping with good “Corporate Citizen” role
Another powerful sponsorship objective allows companies to be viewed as a “good neighbor.” To be seen supporting the community and contributing to its economic development is extremely powerful and creates enormous goodwill.
6. Enhancing business, consumer and VIP relations
Sponsorship that offers hospitality opportunities is always very attractive to companies. Perks may include special exclusive networking settings such as VIP receptions or golf tournaments opportunities to meet key customers and solidify business relationships. It is important to evaluate each opportunity and look for ways it could tie into your marketing objectives.
Recommended Books on Sponsorship Marketing:
- Event Sponsorship (The Wiley Event Management Series)
- Made Possible By: Succeeding with Sponsorship
- Relationships Raise Money: A Guide to Corporate Sponsorship
- The Event Marketing Handbook: Beyond Logistics & Planning
- The Sponsorship Handbook: Essential Tools, Tips and Techniques for Sponsors and Sponsorship Seekers
