After years of working behind the scenes at music festivals and events, there are some essentials I absolutely won’t leave home without. Sponsorship means dealing with everything from finicky artists to making sure an activation tent doesn’t blow away. A little preparedness makes the chaos way more manageable! I get asked a lot “where did you get that?” or “those are perfect for on-site, where can I find them?” For the first time ever I’m sharing my best kept secret – my ultimate gear list and where you can find these items!
Pelican Case
My Pelican 1615 Air Case is a lifesaver. It’s pricey, but worth every penny. I can check this baby with luggage, ship it, and it keeps our gear totally safe. You can even customize the inside to perfectly fit all your essentials.
Sometimes the site build calls for steel-toe shoes, but who says you have to sacrifice style? These are the perfect blend of safety and a little bit of “ugly-cute” (and comfy too!).
Casely Power Pods are my go-to for on-site power. They’re MagSafe for iPhones, come in tons of cool designs, and mean no more dead phones or tangled cords.
Dust, sweat, sun – you name it, a bandana’s got your back. I always keep a pair of tall socks handy too. Learned my lesson about blisters and bug bites the hard way, and these make site life much more bearable.
My obsession with Beis luggage is real, but their Sport Pack is the ideal crossbody for events. Enough room for your stuff and a radio, without being bulky. I even found a cheap radio holster that attaches perfectly.
Bring your favorite water bottle, but travel cutlery is a game-changer! Imagine ordering Uber Eats to the room and realizing they didn’t provide utensils, or getting to staff catering late and finding they only have plastic knives. Check out my favorite travel cutlery set that is chic and useful.
Dry climates are brutal on your hands. Bloody Knuckles is my go-to for its thick, scent-free moisture. Beekman 1802 makes the best chapstick around in my option! I usually pack at least three whenever I’m on the road for fear of losing one! Lavender is my favorite, but it comes in a wide range of flavors and scents.
This $7 pill organizer is my on-the-go medicine cabinet. I label each compartment, so I’ve always got pain meds, allergy relief, etc., without carrying a ton of bottles.
These are my tried-and-true essentials for keeping me sane and successful during event season. With a little prep work, you can handle anything that comes your way!
Do you have any event must-haves I didn’t mention? Please shoot us an email at [email protected]! I want to know.
Event professionals know the gut-wrenching feeling when you watch the weather forecast take a nasty turn in the days leading up to your meticulously planned event. Wild weather can throw everything into disarray, but amidst the chaos, you can’t forget about your lifeline – your sponsors.
Tales from the Weather-Weary Frontlines
Remember these infamous weather-related incidents?
Coachella’s Sandstorm Surprise: Winds whipped up an apocalyptic dust cloud, obscuring visibility and potentially damaging sponsor displays and activations.
Lollapalooza’s Lightning Retreat: Just as a headliner reached the stage, a massive thunderstorm forced a full evacuation, cutting sponsor exposure short.
Fyre Fest…Enough Said: The surprise rainstorm was another nail in the coffin for this disaster, making it near impossible for sponsors to salvage any kind of brand presence or positive association.
Weatherproofing Your Event (and Your Sponsor Relationships)
We reached out to our favorite safety and risk mitigation expert, Dan Clark, CEO of Tellus Management and Consulting, who has gotten the GC team through a few weather evacs of our own, for some tips on how to be prepared for inclement weather.
Intel is Everything: Invest in a hyper-local weather monitoring service for real-time alerts, giving you and your sponsors as much notice as possible. NOAA support, both onsite and offsite, is available to get intel from. This service is free only if you coordinate your event through your local municipal emergency management center.
Draft an Ironclad Plan: Your weather contingency plan should include clear evacuation routes, designated shelter-in-place locations, a clear chain of communication, and how you’ll handle sponsor assets and activations.
Rig Your Tech for the Worst: Ensure your AV partners use weatherproof gear. Explore protecting valuable sponsor displays or having backup plans for branded experiences. Anchor all tents and equipment in case of wind, before it gets windy.
Your App is Your Megaphone: Make sure your event app has push notifications enabled and pre-draft messages for weather-related delays and evacuations. Coordinate with your event security to relay consistent messaging to staff, sponsors and attendees.
Train Your Team: Drills aren’t just for fire safety. Run your staff through weather scenarios, ensuring they understand sponsor protection protocols. Daily on-site safety and security briefs should not be optional. Hoping everyone knows what to do is not a real plan.
Weathering the Sponsorship Storm
Proactive Communication is Paramount: Keep sponsors informed with frequent weather updates in the lead-up to the event. Discuss contingency plans with them in advance.
Adapt, Adapt, Adapt: Can sponsor activations move indoors? Can digital experiences be substituted? Brainstorm creative ways to give sponsors value even with a disrupted event.
If Evacuation Hits: Prioritize the safety of attendees and sponsor assets. Document any damage thoroughly for potential insurance claims.
The Aftermath: Turning Lemons into Lemonade
Own It: Be transparent with sponsors about what went wrong. Open and honest communication will build trust for the long term.
Offer Solutions: Could you extend digital sponsor visibility post-event? Offer discounts on future partnerships? Get creative to show you’re invested.
Learn and Adapt: Debrief with your team AND your sponsors. What can you improve next time to mitigate the impact of weather better?
Remember, a Little Rain Never Hurt a Strong Partnership
Event professionals and sponsors are in this together. By preparing diligently, communicating openly, and prioritizing sponsor value even during disruptions, you can weather any storm and maintain strong, lasting relationships.
If your event needs help developing its risk and safety plan, you can reach out to Dan and his team at [email protected]
Sponsorships are often the backbone of many events, providing vital support and resources to help organizers bring their visions to life. However, managing a sponsorship program effectively can be quite the challenge, especially for events working with limited budgets. While there are programs and tools available to assist with prospecting and sponsorship management, they often come with hefty price tags.
As an agency, we’ve had the opportunity to utilize some of these tools, which I promise to delve into more detail about in a future post. However, when I first began working in sponsorships, I didn’t have the luxury or budget for expensive professional tools, so I had to get creative. Growing and managing a sponsorship program is no small feat—it involves a lot of detail work, follow-ups, and time.
Fortunately, there are ways for event organizers to streamline the fulfillment process and ensure sponsors receive the value they expect without breaking the bank. In this blog post, we’ll explore some cost-effective approaches to managing sponsorship fulfillment.
Clear Communication from the Start: The foundation of successful sponsorship fulfillment lies in clear and transparent communication from the outset. When negotiating sponsorship agreements, ensure that both parties have a mutual understanding of expectations, deliverables, and timelines. Document all terms and conditions in writing to avoid misunderstandings later on. Having a due date sheet with deliverables specs sent to sponsors within a timely manner is essential to setting up a sponsor to be successful with your event.
Google Sheets: Google Sheets is a versatile and free spreadsheet tool that can serve as a central hub for managing sponsorship agreements and tracking deliverables. Event organizers can create customized spreadsheets to document sponsorship details, including sponsor contact information, agreement terms, and fulfillment progress. Use different tabs or sheets to categorize sponsors, track deadlines, and monitor completed tasks. Google Sheets also allows for real-time collaboration, enabling team members to update and share information seamlessly. Learn more here.
Trello: Trello is a popular project management tool that offers a free tier with basic features ideal for managing sponsorship fulfillment tasks. Organize sponsorship agreements, deliverables, and deadlines using Trello’s customizable boards, lists, and cards. Create separate boards for each sponsor or sponsorship level to keep information organized and easily accessible. Assign tasks to team members, set due dates, and track progress as tasks move through different stages of completion. Trello’s collaboration features facilitate communication and ensure accountability among team members. Learn more here.
Google Drive: Google Drive provides free cloud storage and collaboration tools that are invaluable for managing sponsorship assets and documents. Event organizers can create dedicated folders for each sponsor to store logos, branding guidelines, and promotional materials. Share access to these folders with sponsors and team members to facilitate collaboration and file sharing. Use Google Docs or Google Slides to create sponsorship proposals, contracts, and post-event reports collaboratively. Google Drive’s version history feature allows organizers to track changes and revert to previous versions if needed. Learn more here.
Airtable: Airtable is a flexible and collaborative spreadsheet/database tool that offers a free tier suitable for organizing sponsorship agreements and tracking fulfillment tasks. Event organizers can use Airtable to create customized databases to store sponsorship details, including sponsor information, agreement terms, and fulfillment progress. Utilize different views, such as grid, calendar, or gallery, to visualize sponsorship data and track deadlines effectively. Airtable’s collaboration features enable team members to collaborate in real-time, assign tasks, and communicate seamlessly within the platform. With its user-friendly interface and customizable features, Airtable is an excellent tool for managing sponsorship fulfillment without incurring additional costs. Learn more here.
Canva: Canva is a user-friendly design tool with a free version that enables event organizers to create visually stunning sponsorship materials and assets. Use Canva’s customizable templates to design sponsorship proposals, social media graphics, and promotional materials that showcase sponsors’ branding effectively. Incorporate sponsor logos, colors, and messaging to create cohesive and professional-looking collateral. Canva’s drag-and-drop interface and extensive library of design elements make it easy to create eye-catching visuals without the need for graphic design expertise. Learn more here.
Effective sponsorship fulfillment doesn’t have to be cost-prohibitive for event organizers. By leveraging free or low-cost tools like Google Sheets, Airtable, Trello, Google Drive, and Canva, organizers can streamline the management of sponsorship agreements and assets while delivering value to sponsors. With careful planning, organization, and creativity, events of all sizes can cultivate successful and mutually beneficial sponsorship partnerships.
Events that go the extra mile to show love and appreciation to their sponsors can experience a substantial positive impact on their bottom line.
Beyond the immediate financial support, expressing genuine gratitude builds a strong foundation for long-term partnerships. Sponsors, feeling valued and recognized, are more likely to increase their investment and commitment to the event. This can result in additional financial contributions, exclusive sponsorships, and heightened brand visibility. As sponsors align themselves more closely with the event, it often leads to increased attendance and participant engagement. Attendees, appreciating the support from sponsors, are more likely to become loyal patrons, positively influencing ticket sales and overall event revenue.
In essence, the relationship between events and sponsors is symbiotic, and demonstrating love and appreciation creates a positive cycle that not only benefits the sponsors but significantly contributes to the event’s financial success and sustainability.
We reached out to a few of the national and regional brands we work with and asked decision-makers about memorable ways they have received “love” from events they have sponsored.
Check out the below five ideas of how to show love to those very important stakeholders!
1. Commemorative Event Posters
Creating commemorative posters adds a unique touch to events by offering mementos for their attendees. The visual appeal and artistic nature of the posters make them stand out, ensuring they become cherished items. Event posters as sponsor gifts not only serve as memorable keepsakes but also represent a tangible gesture of gratitude, especially when personalized or signed by artists.
“I personally love the event posters (specifically music ones if they’re signed by some of the artists!) but know that isn’t for everyone.”
– Tito’s Vodka Representative
2. Speciality Experiences
Offering exclusive experiences, such as VIP access and meet-and-greets, provides sponsors with a tangible benefit that goes beyond traditional sponsorship perks. This personalized approach not only elevates the sponsor’s experience but also creates lasting memories. Sponsors value the opportunity to connect with key individuals and showcase their brand in an intimate setting. Tailoring these experiences to align with sponsor interests enhances the overall impact.
“Special VIP pass to a private clean bathroom [or a special area] during a concert would be awesome.”
– Ford Motors Representative
3. Handwritten Thank You Cards
Hand-written thank-you notes add a personal touch that resonates with sponsors. To maximize their effectiveness, customize each note to acknowledge specific contributions or aspects of the sponsor’s brand. Ensure that the message is sincere and genuine, expressing gratitude for their unique role in the event’s success. Individualizing the notes demonstrates a thoughtful appreciation that stands out from mass-produced acknowledgments.
“Thank you notes are great and I keep them if I feel they are personally addressed to me or [our brand] and are hand-signed. Anything that is mass-signed and clearly sent to all sponsors isn’t worth keeping. I would rather the event use those funds for something worthwhile. If they acknowledge or recognize something specific about what we do then it feels more sincere.”
– Coors Representative
4. Public Recognition
Publicly acknowledging sponsors beyond the event itself enhances their visibility and credibility. Consider innovative ways to recognize sponsors within their industry or community, such as awards or press releases. This not only amplifies the sponsor’s brand exposure but also positions them as integral contributors to the event’s success. Public recognition fosters a positive image and strengthens the sponsor’s association with the event.
5. Be A Good Partner
Being a good partner throughout the sponsorship process is foundational to effective appreciation. Beyond formal thank you gestures, maintaining clear communication, delivering on promises, and demonstrating flexibility are key elements. A positive and collaborative partnership experience contributes significantly to sponsors feeling valued. Actions that show reliability and commitment speak volumes, reinforcing the idea that the event is not just transactional but a true partnership.
“Most importantly the best way to show appreciation is to be a good partner throughout the process. If an event is difficult to work with then Thank you’s are worthless. Like any relationship actions speak more than words.”
– Coors Representative
Events showering some love on their sponsors isn’t just a polite gesture; it’s like cultivating a friendship. It’s a strategic move that goes beyond a simple thank you – it’s an investment in building lasting partnerships. The ripple effect of this love and appreciation extends to creating an amazing event experience and ensuring a path of success for future endeavors.
When event organizers truly value and acknowledge their sponsors, it’s like laying down the groundwork for a thriving and mutually beneficial relationship that puts smiles on everyone’s faces. It’s a win-win for all the awesome folks involved!
As we step into a new year, businesses and organizations are presented with a golden opportunity to revitalize their brand through strategic partnerships and sponsorships. Selling sponsorships isn’t just about finding takers for your offerings; it’s about creating compelling opportunities that align with the goals of potential sponsors. In this blog post, we’ll delve into the art of selling sponsorships, focusing on the importance of a reset and review to elevate your brand in the year ahead.
1)Evaluate Past Performance:
The first step in resetting your sponsorship program is to evaluate its past performance. Take a close look at the partnerships and sponsorships you engaged in throughout the previous year. Identify the initiatives that yielded positive results, and equally important, those that fell short of expectations. Ask yourself questions like, did your sponsorships make you more money than they cost you? Did they elevate your patron experience? Were we able to deliver what we promised? Where did we have trouble with our program? Where did we succeed? This assessment lays the foundation for informed decision-making moving forward.
2) Define Your Objectives:
Clearly define your sponsorship objectives for the new year. What are you looking to achieve? Whether it’s earning more sponsorship dollars, community engagement, or elevating the patron experience at your event, having specific, measurable, and achievable goals will guide your decision-making process. Align these objectives with your overall business strategy to ensure a cohesive approach.
3) Know Your Audience:
Understanding your event audience is crucial when reviewing your sponsorship program. Analyze the demographics, interests, and behaviors of your audience to tailor your partnerships accordingly. Consider conducting surveys or gathering feedback to gain insights into the preferences of your audience. This knowledge will help you choose sponsorships that resonate with your target market. Equip potential sponsors with a thorough understanding of your demographic, their preferences, and engagement patterns. This data-driven approach not only demonstrates your commitment to a targeted audience but also provides sponsors with the confidence that their brand will resonate with the right consumers.
4) Forge Meaningful Partnerships:
Quality over quantity should be the mantra when it comes to sponsorship partnerships. Look for opportunities to forge meaningful and long-lasting relationships. Seek partners who share your values and can contribute to a mutually beneficial collaboration. Strong partnerships not only enhance your brand image but also create lasting impressions with your audience.
5) Craft Irresistible Opportunities:
Take the time to reset and review your sponsorship offerings. Are they truly irresistible? Consider the unique value propositions that set your sponsorships apart. Whether it’s exclusive access to a niche audience, innovative marketing activations, or personalized branding opportunities, ensure that your offerings are tailored to meet the diverse needs of potential sponsors.
6) Understand Sponsor Objectives:
To sell sponsorships effectively, it’s crucial to understand the objectives of your potential sponsors. Engage in conversations to identify their marketing goals, target audience, and key performance metrics. Tailor your sponsorship proposals to align with these objectives, showcasing how your offerings can be a strategic fit for their brand.
7) Flexible and Customizable Packages:
Offer flexibility in your sponsorship assets to accommodate the diverse needs of potential sponsors. Provide customizable options that allow sponsors to tailor their involvement based on their marketing objectives and budget constraints. This approach fosters a sense of partnership and ensures that sponsors feel their investment is well-aligned with their specific goals.
8) Proactive Communication and Follow-up:
Effective communication is key to selling sponsorships. Proactively reach out to potential sponsors, providing them with comprehensive information about your offerings. Follow up with personalized proposals and be responsive to any queries or concerns they may have. Building a strong rapport with sponsors is essential for securing long-term partnerships.
9) Monitor and Adapt:
After implementing changes to your sponsorship program, regularly monitor its performance. Keep a close eye on key performance indicators (KPIs) and be prepared to adapt to changing circumstances. The ability to pivot and adjust your strategy in real-time is a valuable asset in the ever-evolving world of sponsorship marketing.
In Conclusion….
Selling sponsorships is an art that requires a strategic and customer-centric approach. By resetting and reviewing your sponsorship offerings for the new year, you position your brand as an attractive and valuable partner. Craft compelling opportunities, understand sponsor objectives, and stay attuned to industry trends to elevate your brand through strategic partnerships. As you embark on this journey of selling sponsorships, remember that a well-curated and mutually beneficial sponsorship program is not just a transaction but a pathway to shared success in the upcoming year and beyond.
A year ago, I was at my computer writing this column as a sort of “state of the sponsorship industry.” As a sponsorship agency, we were fielding an abundance of questions about what to do when it came to sponsors, events, and COVID-19 shutdowns.
Now here we are a year later. As venues begin reopening across the country and events start reworking their structures to accommodate mass gathering mandates, the questions about sponsorships and what to expect are surfacing yet again. I thought this would be a good time to give an overview of what our agency, Green Cactus, is seeing in the sponsorship world and how to approach sponsors in this complicated landscape.
Here are five key things to know and expect when reapproaching past sponsors or reaching out to new prospects during the pandemic: 1. Many brands and companies are still hesitant to get involved with events, even as many states are reopening. Your event may be housed in an “open” state, but their company may not be. Plus, their priority will most likely be their own employees. We are seeing lots of brands willing to talk sponsorship and look at proposals, but when it comes to onsite activations, they aren’t willing to send their teams out yet. Our suggestion is to try and create a sponsorship proposal that meets their needs. This may require your team helping with any onsite activations, or you may have to get creative and come up with ways to involve brands without the requirement of onsite activations. 2. Budgets have been severely altered this year. With the uncertainty of the pandemic’s impact on 2021 and the economic hit that many brands saw last year, sponsorship and marketing budgets have been cut this year. We have talked to brands who had to let go of their entire field marketing teams and have cut events completely out of their 2021 budgets. Although this can be discouraging, don’t let it define your sponsorship program. These budgets will come back and so will the field teams; it is just going to take some time. Use this year to keep in contact with those brands you want to sponsor your event. This could also be a way to incorporate a brand in a smaller way that could grow into something bigger later. For example, maybe the brand sponsors a live stream for your hybrid event for this year, but you can cultivate them into a full blown onsite activation for next year. Finally, you do not want to wait when it comes to prospecting. Because these budgets are smaller, there will be a lot more competition vying for those sponsorships. 3. The beverage category is actively seeking event sponsorships. I regularly get asked who wants to sponsor events, and right now the beverage category has been our number one sponsorship buyer for 2021 events. I believe that it’s because although they were financially impacted on the event and restaurant/bar side of things during the pandemic, what they lost on that side they made up for in retail. Beer, hard seltzer, spirits, and energy drinks have all been looking for events to sponsor that also give them pouring rights. Make sure you are developing this category because they are currently spending in 2021 and are ready to get back to events.
4. You need to know what your event is going to look like before you reach out to new sponsors. This is another topic that comes up a lot with my clients. Right now, some of the events we work with don’t know from week to week if their event is going to happen or not in 2021. Some of our events know they are going to have an event, but they will have to structure it differently or they are required to reduce their capacity. So if you fall into one of these situations, you may be wondering how to approach sponsors.
First, if you are in the category of not knowing whether you will be able to have an event yet, I suggest you continue to approach sponsors as if you were. The sponsorship process takes time. If you have the event, you will be in a much better position than if you are trying to approach them last minute. If you must cancel the event, then you address that situation with each sponsor at the time it happens.
Now, if you are one of the lucky events that knows it is happening but must make adjustments, be clear with your sponsors on how the event will look, then and adjust the price accordingly. Sponsors are very aware that reduced capacity means reduced engagement and sales. It is not responsible to ask for the same sponsorship fee that you normally would when this is a non-normal year. 5. Some of your faithful sponsors may not come back this year. I know this is not good news, but it’s the nature of the economic hardships that many businesses faced over the past year. Don’t just assume your recurring sponsors will be back this year. Several of our clients saw sponsors who have been with them for years have to step away due to budget cuts. Knowing this now will give you more time to find other sponsors. Because we are a capitalist society, when one business steps away there is usually a competitor ready to step in. This can be great for open sponsorship vacancies but remember to respect those long- standing partnerships and have an open dialog with them.
The sponsorship landscape is a little rocky right now, but it isn’t a drought. Sponsorships are out there, and they are ready to jump in as events begin to happen again! My biggest piece of advice is to start early. Decisions are taking a lot longer than usual, so last-minute or quick answers are harder to come by. Don’t get discouraged. Instead, use this time to open conversations with brands now. Even if they don’t come to fruition this year, they may be ready in 2022!
This article was written by Teresa Stas and was originally published in the International Festivals & Events Association “i.e.: the business of international events” quarterly magazine May 2021. The premiere association supporting and enabling festivals and events worldwide. For more information on the IFEA, go to www.ifea.com.
The following is an excerpt from “Sell Your Event! The Easy to Follow Practical Guide to Getting Sponsors”
A few years back, I got a call from an event producer who reached out to me to ask if I would take her on as a brokering client, which meant we’d represent their event and generate sponsorships. She began to explain this awesome dog festival concept where people could bring their dogs to a concert, and there would be pet-centric vendors and activities. As I listened to her, I was getting excited. It sounded great.
Then I started asking my usual questions: “What are the dates? Where is it taking place? How many expected attendees?” You know, the general questions anyone would ask when you tell them about a cool event. My fears were realized when I learned she actually didn’t have definitive answers for any of my questions.
As much as I hate to say it, this is pretty common. People have great ideas all the time, but unless you have the details figured out, it’s nearly impossible to sell them to sponsors. I try to explain this to my clients by asking this question: “Would you want to invest your own money in an event that hasn’t figured out its details?”
For a brand or company to be interested in looking at your event, you need to make sure it has moved from concept to reality. You need to make sure it’s dialed in. Most sponsors want to buy into a fully formed event. Just an idea or concept is not enough. They want to know the people putting on the event are professionals who will produce what they promised.
So, before we get too deep into the sales side of things, let’s make sure you have the information you need to get started. Before you can approach your prospects or start creating your introduction deck, you have to have the details.
A lot of people come to me with great ideas for events, because they want help with finding sponsors. However, they want sponsorship money before they even have an event built. What they are really looking for is for an investor to fund the creation of the event. This is not the same as a sponsor. Finding capital for an event is different than finding sponsorships for an event. In this book, we will focus on finding sponsors for events that have moved out of the concept phase. These events are already established or are going to happen regardless of sponsorship revenue.
Before you can create your Introduction Deck or start prospecting sponsors, you need to make sure you have the following information figured out.
Event Date and Timeline
I work with a couple of events where their timelines can change year to year. Sometimes they know the month but not the exact date just yet. They still want to get it in front of prospects as soon as possible. You really need to have your date and timeline locked in. Even if you do not have the exact date, at least have it narrowed down to the month and the year. The more specific you can get, the better response you are going to get from prospects. Sponsors build out their marketing calendar around events, and it’s important they are aware if they are doubling up events during certain months or days.
Event Location
Where are you having this event? If you are still working on that, you at least need to know the city and the state. If you have an exact location, fantastic! If you have an exact date and location, you are doing even better.
Event Name and Category
What are you calling this event? What type of event will it be? Is it a concert, a festival, a race, or a foodie event? It is critical to know what category your event is. I assume this is the easiest question I have asked so far. If you do not know your category, you need to figure it out before you do anything else. When it comes to the event name, make sure you have one. It’s really hard to sell an event when you don’t know what to call it.
Audience Numbers
How many people are coming to your event? If you have never had your event, then what is your expectation? Be reasonable! You must be fair and honest when it comes to expectations. If you are going to sell based on attendance numbers, then you need to make sure it’s close to the actual attendance. You will have a lot of trouble with sponsors returning the next year if they feel like they can’t trust you to tell the truth. You are better off going in and pitching lower attendance numbers and having more patrons show up then pitching high numbers and having significantly less show up. It is better to under-promise and over-deliver when it comes to attendance numbers for sponsorships.
Advanced Details
Now that you have the basics down, it is time to start collecting some more advanced details. These are the items you will have to start collecting to make some serious sales.
Photographs
If you have never had an event before, you might not have photos. You might have to pull some stock or generic photos to spice up your introduction deck. If you have had the event, then you need to find your best photos.
Every year make sure someone is taking good photos. In particular, you want to get some of the crowds and the overall event. Be sure to also make past sponsors a priority. I always tell my clients photos sell more than words do. And it’s true. Humans are naturally visual beings, and the more you can appeal to that sense, the better chance you have.
During the event, I would suggest even creating a shot list for your photographer. A shot list is an inventory of all of the various types of photos you want. For example, shots of the crowd from above, photos of patrons visiting a sponsor’s booth, and so on.
It’s also important your event looks into investing in a professional photographer if possible. A good photographer can make even the most mundane and non-exciting booth look awesome! Many photographers like the chance to shoot events and would even do it for tickets or VIP. Just make sure whether you trade or pay your photographer, you have the rights to use the photos.
Asset List
We will cover this in detail in a later chapter, so we won’t go into too much detail here. The asset list is the general list of items you must sell. It’s like an inventory list. If you are an established event, you probably already have one of these, and if you don’t, we will go over how to create one in chapter three.
Demographics
Demographics are the lifeblood of sponsorships. You would be surprised at how many events I come across that do not have demographic information. You cannot sell significant dollars if you do not have this information. In chapter four, we will cover ways you can collect audience data and how you can use it to your advantage.
Marketing Plan
You do not necessarily have to have a marketing plan to get sponsorship sales, but it does make a difference, especially when you are targeting your title or presenting sponsors. Those are the ones that are going to benefit the most from your marketing plan. If you know what your marketing plan is, then it is so much easier to sell to those larger sponsors, because you can show them how they will be included in your marketing efforts. If you don’t really know your marketing plan or just kind of wing it, then I suggest you take the time to lay out a plan. At the very least, get a basic understanding of what your goals are and what you can offer a title or presenting sponsor. If you are lost on how to develop your marketing plan, take a look at the companion workbook for an easy-to-follow template on building your marketing plan.
The above is an excerpt from the book Sell Your Event! The Easy to Follow Practical Guide to Getting Sponsors by Teresa Stas. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means without written permission from the author.
Recently a report was released by EventMB called The Virtual Event Tech Guide about the state of virtual events as well as giving information about virtual tech. Two very noticeable stats that came to light for me is that only 32% of live events pivoted to virtual this year and only 2% of event professionals were able to recover 100% of their annual revenue and “70% of event professionals were unable to recover more than 25% of their annual revenue using virtual.” These stats just verified what my agency and myself had been experiencing firsthand. That Virtual events aren’t replace live event revenue and part of that is sponsorships. The following is an excerpt from my new book, “Sell Your Event! The Easy to Follow Practical Guide to Getting Sponsors.”
“How do I sell my virtual event?” This is the question I was asked the most in the early months of 2020. As events tried to create virtual events that would make up for the lost income of their canceled live events, they often expected to pull in their same sponsors. My answer to them was sell your virtual events with the same principles as you sell your live events. You follow the same steps, and you provide the same information.
The one thing I ask my clients when they are considering a virtual event is “What is the ultimate goal?” Are they creating this virtual event for marketing purposes to help keep their event top of mind and their patrons engaged? Are they creating this virtual event to make up the lost revenue? Or are they creating this virtual event to replace their live event for the year? Knowing what you are ultimately trying to accomplish will help you understand the reality of the situation and set your expectations.
Although I do not believe virtual will replace the live event experience, it is not going anywhere, so we need to adjust for this popular form of event. To do this, you want to keep a few things in mind when it comes to sponsorships:
1) Audience data is the lifeblood of your sponsorships. You don’t have to be Coachella to sell sponsorships, but you do have to understand you are selling access to your audience.
2) The principles for selling live event sponsorships are the same for virtual or hybrid events. You must understand what the sponsor is trying to get out of the sponsorship. Just like in a live event, you need to know what the sponsor is trying to achieve. You need to know if you can help them meet that goal no matter what type of event you are doing. Just taking a sponsor who had a major activation at your live event and offering them a logo on a Facebook stream will most likely not generate excitement or sponsorship dollars.
3) If this is the first time you have taken your event virtual or hybrid then you are up against unproven results. Keep this in mind when you consider how you price your sponsorships. Perhaps you charge less than you normally would, but the event gets more sponsorship dollars based on impressions, clicks, or marketplace visits (if you are doing a virtual marketplace). You cannot just take the price of your live event and slap it on the virtual or hybrid event.
4) In the case of virtual or hybrid, make sure your production and your technology are good. When virtual events first took shape during the pandemic, it was okay to host in your living room, but things have changed. As virtual events become more commonplace, the audience is demanding more. Good production and professionalism are required for success.
5) You need to upgrade your marketing and make sure you message how your virtual event will work and how a patron can be a part of it. I have seen several events create great virtual events but did a bad job of marketing them or explaining how they work. This leads to low attendance numbers and low sponsorship dollars.
Virtual Event Assets
Digital assets can still be utilized for a virtual event. In fact, the value of these may become higher, since all you have is your online presence to connect with your audience, but again, this all depends on how much of your audience is actually seeing these assets. Traditional assets such as naming rights can also be integrated into a virtual event. Depending on the setup of your main entertainment, multiple stages could be named after sponsors.
In addition, a virtual event could also host a presenting or title sponsor. Shaq’s Fun House vs Gronk Beach, Presented by The General® Insurance found many ways to involve sponsors. As you can see, in the name they hosted a presenting sponsor for their event. They also hosted multiple “challenges” that integrated sponsors into on-screen activities. These challenges included a Lip Sync Battle, presented by The General Insurance, where Shaq and Gronk faced off. The McCormick Grill Mates Steak Challenge had Shaq and Gronk grill, with Shaq taking home the title of top chef. Fortunately for Gronk, he won the jousting competition, presented by Monster Energy. Rocket Mortgage Sports Showdown involved a photo finish to see who won the final obstacle, an egg and spoon race. It ended with Gronk defeating Shaq in the Buffalo Wild Wings Blazin’ Challenge. As you can see, each activity involved the sponsor in a unique way. It also provided fans with hilarious entertainment to see two major athlete-celebrities go head to head in fun and light-hearted challenges.
Sampling can still be done with some virtual events through welcome packs or swag bags. Our client, Hood to Coast, teamed up with their sponsor, ONE Bar, to include bars in all of their “Finisher Packs.” When a runner completed their mileage, they would log on to the event website and enter their time. Hood to Coast would then ship them a package which included their medal, a t-shirt (depending on the race), and a ONE Bar. This met the sponsor’s goal to get their product into the hands of their target consumer, and it did it when there were no events happening.
Mailing a racing package to a registrant is a great opportunity to involve sponsors in a virtual race. This is a way for the event organizers to connect with their fans and engage with sponsors in a way that feels like how a normal in-person event would. It also gives races a chance to keep their most staple sponsor asset, the event t-shirt, along with the opportunity to include unique products. However, make sure you factor in shipping and production costs when adding items to the package.
Coupons or free sample cards have the best return on investment. By using a tracking code, you can also see the usage from those bounce-back coupons. As an event organizer, you will want to limit the number of sponsors you include in any type of package and make sure you include items of value. You don’t want to be shipping junk mail. Not only will it drive up shipping costs, but it dilutes the value of the sponsorship. Limiting how many can be involved in the direct-mail assets will help keep the costs down and the value high.
Virtual Expos and Conferences
A virtual expo might also be the way to go. It provides another gateway for an online event to connect partners and viewers. A virtual expo allows organizers to incorporate vendors and sponsors into one portal. EventHub created a platform that allows for meaningful and high-quality interactions. Event partners can engage with attendees in real time through virtual booths. Each virtual booth allows for video conferencing between the attendee and booth host. Sponsors and vendors are organized in a grid format and can be sorted and searched by category.
A Toronto marathon found through the virtual expo, they could showcase their sponsors, vendors, and even the charities they support. They even added programming to attract attendees to the platform. Throughout the virtual event, they hosted a speaker series that featured informational sessions for runners of all abilities hosted by celebrities and elite athletes.
A virtual expo does not just have to be for race events. Organizers of all kinds of events can integrate this platform into their live streams. Music festivals, pride events, state fairs, wellness expos, and more can benefit by adding this outlet for interaction between attendees and partners. The portal can even be organized by priority, allowing for sponsors to pay more for a premium spot.
Hybrid Events
Live streaming a music festival is nothing new. Major festivals like Coachella and Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas have been live streaming their events for years. Coachella historically has received millions of views and broke viewership records when it hosted Beyoncé as a headliner. These would be considered hybrid events, where there is an in-person and virtual experience for the same event. But not all hybrid events are six-figured attendance numbers.
I just spoke at a conference in Florida where there was a small, socially distanced summit with 100 people over two days. It was recorded and streamed to a much larger virtual conference audience of event professionals. The combination of both the live and virtual is the direction that many events are headed as we wait for the reopening of the event industry. Hybrid sponsorships tend to lend themselves to higher sponsorship dollars than just virtual, because they allow for some element of the in-person connection that is so important to virtual events.
My biggest piece of advice that I can offer in the virtual/hybrid event space is just like your live event: Audience data is the lifeblood of your sponsorships. If you know your audience, then target those prospects who want access to them. These are unprecedented times, but I have seen such innovation from the event world this year that I know firsthand you can sell sponsorships to virtual and hybrid events if you use the same principles and techniques used to sell successful live event sponsorships. Don’t wait! Get out there because now is the time to make it happen!
This article was written by Teresa Stas and was originally published in the International Festivals & Events Association’s “i.e.: the business of international events” quarterly magazine November 2020.The premiere association supporting and enabling festivals and events worldwide. For more information on the IFEA, go to www.ifea.com.
A lot of small and mid-size events make the mistake of mass calling or emailing any and all businesses in their area looking for sponsorships. They typically have no real rhyme or reason when doing so. They are playing it like it is a numbers game. The more people I ask, the better results I will get. This theoretically can be true, but it is by no means the most effective and efficient way to go about sponsorships.
The most efficient and effective way to go is starting with prospects that are a fit for your event. Now you may be asking, “How do I know what’s a good fit?” You know by looking at your audience data. This data derives from these questions: Who is your audience? Where are they coming from? What are their interests? What are they looking to purchase in the next year?
Letting your audience data lead, you to your prospects will ensure that you find sponsorships that are a good match for your audience. When you match potential sponsors with your audience, you will not only experience greater success in signing sponsors, but your sponsorships will be more successful. Trying to squeeze a sponsorship into an event for the sake of the money almost never leads to successful results for the sponsor and in turn, doesn’t lead to the sponsor resigning for the next year.
I bring up audience data and patron demographics a lot. These are essential for building your patron profile so that your event and your sponsors know who you are targeting. It’s what defines your attendees and your fan population. Knowing your patron data is the lifeblood of selling sponsorships. I will say this again. Knowing your patron data is the lifeblood of selling sponsorships. It’s a very important component that many small and mid-size events ignore. In this day and age where data is so readily available to sponsors those who don’t take this aspect seriously will be left behind.
Difference Between Audience Data and Demographics
Oftentimes the terms audience data and demographics are used interchangeably. I even catch myself doing this on a regular basis but there is a slight difference between the two.
Demographics refers to age, race, ethnicity, gender, marital status, income, education, and employment. They are characteristics that define a population segment but do not usually include so-called lifestyle characteristics. Whereas audience data refers to demographics and anything else you have on your audiences such as their favorite vehicle companies or the movies they are watching. For the sake of this article, they can be used interchangeably but it can be important to know the difference.
How to Obtain Audience Data for your Event
I’m hoping that you have already collected your audience data for your event. If you have then this metaphorical is for you! If you haven’t, then don’t stress I’m going to walk you through some ways to start the process!
1) You can use past ticket sales for zip code information to determine where your patrons are coming from.
2) Pull demographics from social media. This is not full proof but will give you a good sense of who is at least interested in your event and who is following your branding message. It may not tell you who is showing up at your event, but it will give you a good idea of your audience and their interests. If you do not have any data, this is a great place to start. You can go to your Facebook or Instagram insights and pull analytics of your fans instantly. There are many tutorials on how to do this online.
3) Ticketing platforms have become increasingly better at being able to collect audience data upon purchasing. Ask your ticketing platform what kinds of data you can collect. Many of them are able to integrate with patron’s social media and pull even more data like age, gender, job, and other important info. Some can even allow you to ask a couple of questions upon purchase of tickets.
4) Conducting a survey is one of the easier ways to get the information that is most important to you or your sponsors. You can do this either online or on-site. To get the best results we suggest providing an incentive. Maybe it’s a free gift like a hat or t-shirt. You could also give a chance to win experience upgrades, ticket packages, or a discount code prior to the event.
5) Finally, you can invest in a third party to poll demographics for you. For example, you can hire a company to come out to your event and collect this information for you. If you do not know what to do or need more in-depth information, then I would suggest having professionals come out and implement it for you. This is helpful to get a really good understanding of what your patron demographics are even if you only do it every few years.
The more audience data you can collect the better your prospects will be. Sponsors love audience data and making it essential to sponsorship goals will prove to be so much more successful for your event than mass emails and cold calls!
This article was written by Teresa Stas and was originally published in the International Festivals & Events Association’s “i.e.: the business of international events” quarterly magazine August 2020.
The premiere association supporting and enabling festivals and events worldwide. For more information on the IFEA, go to www.ifea.com.
GUEST AUTHOR: Dennis Freeman, Risk Mitigation Director at Freeman Enterprises
I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to get back to event work. I’m ready to start building budgets, creating timelines, talking to vendors and getting back out on the event site! As we start to plan for that blessed day, there are new details and concerns to ponder. Assessing risk and putting practical guidance into place is always a necessary component to responsible event planning. With the addition of COVID-19, these plans have moved from important to vital for the health, safety and well-being of your patrons and staff. Working through a detailed Risk Analysis and Risk Mitigation plan could mean the difference between success and failure.
What Is Risk Analysis?
Risk Analysis is a process that helps you identify and manage potential problems that could undermine the success of your event. To carry out a Risk Analysis, you must first identify the possible threats that you face, and then estimate the likelihood that these threats will materialize. Risk Analysis can be complex, as you’ll need to draw on detailed information such as local health department rules and regulations, security protocols, cleaning and sanitizing protocol, etc.
Start with an Impact Analysis
This technique is a useful brainstorming exercise that helps you identify potential risks and think through the full impact of each risk. This practice also sets the stage for creating and implementing a Risk Mitigation plan.
1. Prepare
The first step is to gather the players; key staff, important sub-contractors, board members, etc. Make sure everyone understands the parameters of the analysis and the intended goal.
2. Brainstorm Major Areas of Concern
Consider and notate all areas that would be considered unsafe or need to be adjusted/modified in order to become safer. Consider each step of the patron experience as well as the back of house areas. At this point, just focus on problem areas, not solutions. Stick to “big picture” areas during this step.
3. Dig Deeper
For each area identified during step #2, begin to tease out details. At this point, get as granular as necessary in order to create a detailed, deep dive look at all areas of concern.
4. “What If” Analysis
In this portion of the exercise, you ask a series of “what if” questions to further research potential areas of impact. Take each element of the risk list you created in Steps #2 and #3 and begin to ask, “What If this happens?”, “What if that happens?”. Make sure to keep a detailed list of each scenario for use during Section 4 of this process.
Develop a Risk Impact/Probability Chart
Now that you and your team have created a detailed list of concerns, the next step will be to prioritize those risks. If you do this effectively, you can focus the majority of your time and effort on the most important risks. The Risk Impact/Probability Chart provides a useful framework that helps you decide which risks need your attention.
The Risk Impact/Probability Chart is based on the principle that a risk has two primary dimensions:
1) Impact – A risk, by its very nature, always has a negative impact. However, the size of the impact varies in terms of cost and impact on health, human life, or some other critical factor.
2) Probability – A risk is an event that “may” occur. The probability of it occurring can range anywhere from just above 0 percent to just below 100 percent. (Note: It can’t be exactly 100 percent, because then it would be a certainty, not a risk. And it can’t be exactly 0 percent, or it wouldn’t be a risk.)
The chart allows you to rate potential risks on these two dimensions. The probability that a risk will occur is represented on one axis of the chart – and the impact of the risk, if it occurs, on the other.
You use these two measures to plot each risk on the chart. This gives you a quick, clear view of the priority that you need to give to each risk. You can then decide what resources you will allocate to managing that particular risk.
Below is a basic form of the Risk Impact/Probability Chart.
The corners of the chart have these characteristics:
Low impact/low probability – Risks in the bottom left corner are low level, and you can often ignore them.
Low impact/high probability – Risks in the top left corner are of moderate importance – if these things happen, you can cope with them and move on. However, you should try to reduce the likelihood that they’ll occur.
High impact/low probability – Risks in the bottom right corner are of high importance if they do occur, but they’re very unlikely to happen.
High impact/high probability – Risks towards the top right corner are of critical importance. These are your top priorities and are risks that you must pay close attention to.
For most live events, you also need to look closely at high impact/low probability risks that could result in injury or loss of human life. There are far too many recent examples of events where low probability risks became high impact realities.
Build your Risk Mitigation Plan
Once you’ve identified the value of the risks you face, you can start to look at ways of managing them.
Avoid the Risk
In some cases, you may want to avoid the risk altogether. This could mean postponing or cancelling your event. This is a wise option when taking the risk involves no advantage to your organization, or when the cost of addressing the effects is not worthwhile, the negatives far outweigh the positives.
Share the Risk
While this may be an option for risks unrelated to COVID-19, it will more than likely not be viable under those conditions. An example of when this might make sense would be related to financial risk. Rather than charge a food vendor a flat fee for his booth space, share the risk by offering vendors a percentage deal. In this situation, both you and the vendor share the risk but also share the spoils.
Control the Risk
This is your key area of concern and where you should spend the majority of your time and effort. Work with your team as well as local officials to strategize how to control or at least minimize the impact of each risk that can’t be avoided or is too risky to accept. From your Impact/Probability chart, these risks would be those in the high impact/high probability zone. However, especially during these times, it is wise to work through this process for the high impact/low probability risks as well.
Controlling risk during the time of COVID-19 will require diligent research and study in order to understand the probability of each risk, as well as keeping up with the latest scientific guidelines and government recommendations for having safe mass gatherings.
Accept the Risk
This option is reserved for situations when the potential impact of a risk is less than the cost of insuring against the risk, or when the potential gain is worth accepting the risk. These risks would fall in the Low impact/low probability zone.
Work with your Local Authorities
Under “normal” circumstances, working with local authorities can be as simple as completing permit applications and fulfilling the usual permit requirements. Now with COVID-19 added to the equation, relationships with local authorities will be vital to the success of your event. Not only will local authorities decide if and when it is safe to hold any sort of mass gathering, they will also expect you to provide a detailed health and safety plan before approving your event. It is more important than ever to maintain open honest communications with all local authorities and to build upon past positive relationships with those authorities.
All of the steps outlined above should be used to create a detailed health and safety plan to submit to the following entities:
Special Event Permitting officials
City or County Health Department
State Health Department
Local Law Enforcement
The Go-No Go Decision
Now that you have all the data and a plan for risk mitigation, it’s decision time. Here are a few items to consider as you work through the decision-making process:
What key concerns were highlighted by your Risk Analysis? Do you have a plan for mitigating those risks?
What are the costs (financial and otherwise) of mitigating those risks?
Are there risks that aren’t worth the cost? Deal Breakers (for example, __% of new cases due to your event)
If the risks can be mitigated or minimized to the point of having very low impact, are there any other factors that would impact your decision to go – no go? Ethics, morality, local authorities, negative impact on other shareholders (board, funders, etc.)
Conclusion
A decision to move forward with your event should hinge on confidence that the plans and procedures put in place through the risk mitigation process will:
Maintain the health of staff, vendors, artists
Maintain the health of patrons
Not have a negative financial impact on your event (or the future of your event)
Not negatively impact your relationships with local authorities, sponsors, etc.
Not negatively impact the reputation of your event
Dennis Freeman
Dennis Freeman is the founder and Special Event Producer for Freeman Enterprises. With over twenty years of experience Dennis has handled production and logistics for clients such as CMA Music Fest, KAABOO and Luke Bryan’s Farm Tour to name a few. He was also a recent contributor to the Event Safety Alliance’s Reopening Guide. For more information or help with reopening your event, please reach out to Dennis Freeman at [email protected].
Freeman Enterprises can help you put together a customized reopening plan for your event and help you work with the right vendors to get your new protocols in place.
This article was written by Teresa Stas and was originally published in the International Festivals & Events Association “i.e.: the business of international events” quarterly magazine May 2021.
This article was written by Teresa Stas and was originally published in the International Festivals & Events Association’s “i.e.: the business of international events” quarterly magazine November 2020.
The premiere association supporting and enabling festivals and events worldwide. For more information on the IFEA, go to 
