Guest post by Andrew Meader, President & Promoter, Applause Factory, Inc.

Event sponsorship is a marketing investment, not charity.

We’ve all read about the legendary costs of Superbowl™ ad space or witnessed the preponderance of product placement in movies and cross-promotion leading up to events. It’s easy to write these things off as something available only to those with multi-million dollar budgets. The truth is high profile and even higher impact opportunities are available at affordable rates for small businesses on a local or regional level.

My experience with event production and promotion has run the gamut from theatrical productions featuring Gwyneth Paltrow and Roger Rees to touring, one-night gigs with Last Comic Standing, the Texas Tenors  and more. Are you murmuring that I just name-dropped? It’s true, but the intent here is to demonstrate that the formula is the same. For every act there is an audience, the more effectively the audience is targeted and courted, the more potent the dollars invested in the show will be. My success is in sales, which benefits the performer, the agency behind them, the venue, the community and the sponsors.

Sponsorship is an integral part of event promotion. As I see it, it is vastly more rooted in marketing than philanthropy, which is why as I explore sponsorship partnerships I turn to Directors of Marketing. These individuals are trained to identify opportunities that offer the greatest return on investment for their company. Today’s media landscape makes standing out and stretching ad dollars more complicated than ever.

 

Companies big and small are trying to get found—online, on shelves and in conversation, but how do you do it? Companies that connect the dots in event sponsorship value are reaping the rewards (and returning to the stage time after time.) All you have to do is turn on a Nascar event for 10 seconds to see how many companies are doing this. If it didn’t work, would they still be investing there? It isn’t as different as you might think when compared to event sponsorship at a local level. 

The specificity of target demographics for events can be very strong. While some events may draw a diverse audience, others have beautifully narrow demos. I call it beautifully narrow because if a small business can match their target demographic with an event, the association garnered from a sponsorship will far exceed the return from a traditional advertising source.

 

Sponsorships have the potential to greatly affect a geographic area surrounding the event. 1. A company sponsors a concert, enabling the organizers to make the event a reality. 2. The event is promoted drawing people to the area (and advertising title sponsors). 3. Patrons of the event fill local area restaurants and shops (including the sponsor’s) before and after the event. 4. The area is busy as a result of the event. 5. Investment in the area follows to leverage all that traffic and attention. 6. The successes are tied to the events, and in turn, tied to your company as a sponsor of the event. Trampoline Design has supported the efforts of the Adirondack Theatre Festival for the past several years, in fact, these photos, taken by Jim McLaughlin are of ATF audiences, enjoying a performance, and spending in nearby downtown establishments.

The crux of the impact is in emotion. Entertainment is something that is intended to trigger a response from the audience‑ make them think, make them cry, or make them laugh. Associating your brand with the emotional impact of an event is an incredibly effective way to shape the way a group thinks of your company,

The approach to sponsorship is similar to advertising in that you want to put yourself in front of the right people and, once you have their attention, you need to craft the message so that it achieves the desired result—sales, buzz, loyalty. You can’t just slap a name on top of an event and wait for customers to start flooding in. Leverage your sponsorship to gain the most ROI. 

• > Promote your association with the event. Let your current customers know that you are involved
     with the event. Use your social media outlets to inform your customers, followers and friends.
     The more successful the event is, the greater return. 
•  
• > Get involved. Use those sponsor tickets as sales incentives for employees, client incentives
     or to show your gratitude for doing business with your top clients. 
•  
• > Display your products or services and give samples or demonstrations at the event.
     This is like having your own trade show, and you are the only booth! 
•  
• > Allow their tickets to serve as a coupon or special offer. 
•  
• > Do not be afraid to try and negotiate with sponsorship, if you have an idea, pitch it to them.
     They just may say yes.

 

Investment shows strength in a company. Sponsorships are marketing investments that have a trackable rate of return and provide valuable benefits that far exceed the cost of the investment. 

It would seem that if played well, sponsorships, no matter the event, are really a sponsorship of your company.

Aren't you worth it?