Your Guide to Finding & Securing Sponsors for Your Next Event
Looking to secure sponsors to support your next meeting or event? We’re here to help!
Meeting and event sponsors are often important and necessary contributors to event budgets, therefore playing a large role in attendee experience and the success rate of an event. Finding, pitching and keeping event sponsors is a process that meeting planners need to carefully prepare for. Sponsors need to feel like they can trust planners to deliver on their promises and meet all the objectives of the relationship.
Finding the Right Sponsors
Take note of sponsors who already work with events in or related to your industry. These brands already understand the value of event sponsorship and are likely to keep investing in this type of marketing because it benefits them as well. Plus, they already know their audience will align with yours, which makes pitching them much easier. Think about your attendees. Who are they and which brands would they like to see as event sponsors? Choose brands whose core values align with your audience.
Pitching to Sponsors
Be specific in your sponsorship proposal. Outline the benefits for the event sponsor. What can you offer in return for sponsorship? Is it increased brand exposure, lead generation, same-day sales or data insights into your audience? Study what your potential sponsors have been up to lately. Take advantage of these moments by noting these things in your proposal and weaving them into the event. And finally, the timing of when to approach them is key. Studies show that May, June and September are the best months since sales will likely be at a high. December, November, July and August, on the other hand, are generally not the best time of year to pitch sponsors. Of course, we all know sometimes even the best timelines do not align.
Keeping Your Sponsor
Once you successfully obtain sponsors for your event, let your attendees know who they are and what role they will play at your event, and even highlight them before the meeting by giving them shoutouts on social media. Event sponsors who are represented well before and during events are more likely to sponsor future events. After your event, it’s time to do a follow-up. Compile key metrics that show the value your event provided them and be sure to include data about the future potential sponsorship reach if your relationship continues.
For more tips on planning your next meeting, reach out to our team. We’re here to help every step of the way. See you on the beach!
