Planners with experience offer their advice on key areas involved in developing and managing successful sponsorship programs.
On perceived conflicts of interest:
“Our leadership was reluctant to engage in sponsorship for many years because they were feeling that we might somehow be compromised in some fashion. To keep that from happening, we make very clear what the benefits are in our materials. We do offer exhibit space and face-to-face opportunities with our members, and it’s completely up to them whether or not they take advantage of it. We survey our members continually, and we have been pleased that our members welcome the opportunity to visit with sponsors, because not all of our members are enormous corporations, many are from medium-sized corporations, and our sponsors might not necessarily seek them out. Now, they get to interact, without being forced.” –Deborah Gaffney, director of conference planning, Tax Executives Institute, Washington, DC
On pricing:
“Every year, we review the brochures’ [price] levels. We take a look at the previous year’s feedback and we consider where were we with our budgets, what everyone else in town is doing, and what is the perceived value. If all the other nonprofits sell tickets and sponsorships for x-amount, we want to be in the middle of the pack, so we collect a lot of information to make sure we know what’s going on.” –Amy Beaulieu, special events manger, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Nevada.
On finding the right mix of sponsorships:
“A lot of people suffer from what I call either Nascar or Monastery syndrome. They either want to put a sticker on every inch of the floor--like Nascar: if there’s a spot on that car, we’re slapping a logo on it--or they have a very minimalist view, and go with a tiered sponsorship. If you sell everything, milk everything you can, so many of these people are going to end up purchasing that you reach a point of diminishing return. There’s a difference between practical sponsorship and what they will buy. You don’t want to tell them how to spend their money, but you do want to have a practical conversation about whether or not what they’re doing will really work.” –Jeanne Eury, managing partner, Flying Flamingo Sales & Marketing Group, Raleigh, NC