Tips to Find Local Sponsors for your Sporting Event

By: Lori Wagner, Regional Director – Fuel Sports

The bid to host that large sports event that your team has been working on for months has finally been approved. The press release has gone out with the exciting news and everyone is ready to jump in and get started…now it is time to begin planning! It can be overwhelming in the initial stages as you establish your local committees, start organizing the logistics and begin reaching out to potential sponsors.

Sponsorship is a key component to the success of any event and getting your foot in the door of potential sponsors can often be a challenge. Companies are regularly contacted to sponsor sports, charitable and other local events and need to be selective in the ones that they choose to support. The economic climate has had an impact on sponsorship dollars over the past couple of years which has caused some further challenges in uncovering essential sponsorship dollars. As someone who has been on both the corporate side receiving sponsorship requests as well as requesting sponsorship, here are some key points that I’d recommend to consider when reaching out to potential sponsors.

1. Be creative in your approach

Companies consistently receive emailed sponsorship decks requesting financial support for upcoming events. With this approach, the majority of these requests will most likely end up being deleted or passed along to someone who will respond with a “no.” For many sporting events, a personal connection to that particular sport is what may help in starting a conversation. Reach out to the athletes and family members who are involved in the sport and may have connections with local corporations or organizations. Encourage them to get them involved in your local organizing committee. Consider organizations that will benefit from getting involved as a sponsor for your event that may not be your “typical” sponsor like some of the smaller family run businesses located in the destination. The personal connections will allow those conversations to begin and lead to the potential of working with a new sponsor partner.

2. Do Your Research and Know Your Audience

Before meeting with a potential new sponsor, find out as much as you can about the organization. Which other sports events have they sponsored, what is important to them as an organization, how can involvement with your event benefit them? The initial conversation with the potential sponsor should be a fact-finding mission, not a slideshow deck presentation about the benefits that you will provide. It’s important to listen to their goals and determine who they want to reach. Gone are the days of the “cookie cutter” approach, sponsors want to have the flexibility to be creative with their sponsorship activations. Be prepared with the demographics of your event and your audience so that you can provide an in-depth overview of who they will be reaching with their messaging. Once you have a better understanding of the direction that they wish to take, a customized package can be created to specifically address their needs.

 3. Create a Flexible Sponsorship Package

In the past, sponsorship decks were prepared with a variety of structured levels that sponsors could take that offered specific benefits. It’s important to provide tiered levels that are realistic and accessible for all potential sponsors. A headline sponsor at a higher cost may not be the best option for your sports event, however a number of sponsorships at a lower price point can add up quickly and still allow you to achieve your budgeted sponsorship revenue goal. In-kind sponsorship can also be as valuable as the cash sponsors. Many transportation companies will offer discounts or tickets as part of their sponsorship of sports events which helps to save on costly travel expenses for your organization. One of my most memorable activations was with a celebrity skating fundraiser where all attendees paid for a key to open a door that was branded with the company’s logo. The person with the key that opened the door won the two round trip tickets. It was a fun activation for the attendees, raised a lot of money for the organization and made the sponsor very satisfied with the exposure. Flexibility and creativity are extremely important key factors to always keep in mind when working with potential sponsors.  

4. Develop a Relationship with your Sponsors

Once the sponsor has been confirmed, developing a relationship and keeping that sponsor on for future years is easier than trying to get new sponsors on an annual basis. Following up to ensure that you are providing them with the benefits that were outlined in the contract on a regular basis is an important step in keeping the partnership in place. Looking for other opportunities or add-ons to help promote your sponsor to your audience should also be considered. One of my clients is consistently looking at opportunities to enhance their sponsors’ visibility and is a great example of the true meaning of partnership.

We are in a challenging time with the current environment, however as things start to slowly re-open, there will be opportunities to look at new sponsor engagements. Again, creativity and flexibility are going to be more important than ever before as we move forward and the team at FUEL Sports is here to help make connections and assist with innovative and creative ideas.

Email us at info@fuelsports.com if you need any assistance and follow us on LinkedIn