Sponsorships can be a fantastic way to drive awareness of your brand, promote a new product or reward your staff. They can also get stuck as business strategies change, people move on or new sponsorships come along.
After years managing partnerships, I’ve been able to demonstrate value by creating programs that think outside the box. From delivering high-performance training for the executive leadership team to connecting with employee culture programs through health and well-being initiatives.
Partnerships are often made with organisations full of people at the ‘top of their game’. Tapping into this talent can help unlock your business potential.
If you think a sponsorship might be right for your business or have some existing partnerships that aren't hitting the mark, here are some quick tips:
Be clear on your business goals
Are you a new business that needs to build its brand? Have you launched a new product and need to attract different customers? Are you coming up to your peak season and want to capitalise? Whatever your business goals are, your sponsorship should be able to align with these.
Remember, sponsorship is a marketing channel
Sponsorships are a marketing channel, just like media, social and events are marketing channels. Therefore, your marketing program should include how your campaigns will be executed through the partnership. The activity should be tailored for the sponsorship but it shouldn't be vastly different. Consider how you can appeal to the interests of the membership base and audience.
Partnership agreements should be co-created
While most sponsorship agreements outline a range of things you will receive, these should just be a starting point. Sit down with your potential partner and share what your goals are. In turn, they can share what they may benefit from your business. It may be your expertise, services or access to your supply-chain buying power. Sponsorship can and should be much more than your logo on a sign.
Nurture the relationship
Inevitably partnerships will hit bumpy roads. I’ve had plenty of fantastic experiences and ‘character building’ moments too. It’s vital to develop a good working relationship so when things get tough, you can create a solution together. Business strategies change, sporting teams lose and budgets can be cut. A trusted working relationship can navigate issues and minimise negative impacts.
I’ve worked on large and small sponsorships in various sporting codes, major events, film festivals and social causes. They are a fantastic vehicle to reach new audiences and be creative. The trick is to set them up to succeed.
But, if your partnership has lost its way, it’s never too late to assess how it could be improved. Nobody wants to be in a partnership that isn’t working for both parties.
If you would like help assessing a potential sponsorship or reviewing your current program, please get in touch. We would love to set you up for success.
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