The key weapon behind a profitable occasion isn’t simply nice audio system, a cool venue, or sold-out tickets. It’s additionally the sponsors who usher in vital income whereas including credibility to your occasion.
When big-name sponsors put their brand in your occasion supplies, they’re primarily saying: “This occasion issues.”
We all know this firsthand as a result of occasion sponsorships have been a giant a part of our advertising technique. We’ve spent an estimated $500,000 on them, sponsoring the whole lot from intimate trade meetups to large worldwide conferences.
Our sales space at Chiang Mai search engine marketing 2024
Tl;dr: If you happen to’re operating occasions, you completely need sponsors like us.
However how do you persuade corporations like ours to open their wallets in your occasion? I spoke with Elysa Han, our occasions advertising supervisor, to study what we glance out for in occasion sponsorships.
Take into account this your insider’s information to successful occasion sponsors.
For sponsors, each greenback spent on sponsorships is an funding that should ship returns. Right here’s what’s driving our sponsorship choices:
- Looking for our preferrred prospects — We need to meet potential patrons face-to-face. More and more, we’re in search of the large fish: enterprise-level decision-makers who can log off on vital contracts. In case your occasion attracts our goal demographic, you’ve already received half the battle.
- Creating in-person connections — We crave the qualitative insights that may solely come from somebody’s eyes lighting up throughout a demo or listening to their ache factors immediately. Human connections inform us issues that digital analytics by no means might.
- Construct a more in-depth relationship with our current prospects — Typically our purchasers are within the trade they usually run occasions too. Supporting their occasions brings us nearer.
- Planting strategic model flags — We’re in search of visibility that makes an impression, not simply large logos plastered on partitions that nobody remembers.
We’re not robotically selecting the largest or most prestigious occasions. The dimensions of your occasion issues far lower than the way it aligns with our objectives.
Right here’s how we consider occasions to sponsor:
- Viewers alignment — We assess each measurement and high quality. Who precisely can be within the room? What decision-making energy do they wield? Which industries do they characterize? Nonetheless, measurement isn’t the whole lot. A smaller occasion with 90% perfect-fit attendees will beat an enormous occasion with 10% relevance each time.
- Lead technology potential — Much like the above, we’re trying on the high quality of alternatives on the occasion. How doubtless are these attendees to turn out to be our prospects? Are they representing an enterprise-level buyer or are they simply inexperienced persons to search engine marketing (and even digital advertising?)
- Actual suggestions — Elysa digs by way of Reddit threads, LinkedIn feedback, and conversations on X in regards to the occasion’s earlier editions to seek out unfiltered suggestions in regards to the occasion. Previous attendees (and even sponsors!) are your most credible or damaging advertising software.
- Organizer’s vibe verify — Your response to our questions reveals volumes about the way you’ll deal with the precise occasion. Are you clear about attendance numbers? Do you dodge questions on previous sponsor experiences? Typically the deciding issue is in that second when our occasions crew says, “One thing feels off about these organizers.” In these circumstances, we comply with our intestine.
By the best way, these usually are not set in stone. There are occasions once we break our personal guidelines too.
For instance, we lately sponsored Nas Summit in Singapore. Whereas it was a large convention, it was an occasion for each present and aspiring content material creators who, on paper, are miles away from our preferrred buyer profile.
In actual fact, by our personal calculations, 62% of occasion attendees have been unfamiliar with our model.
So, why did we write the verify?
The principle motive was that the worth proposition was too extraordinary. For a modest funding, we obtained the identical worth as what would have price 5X in different occasions. We had a sales space, social media shoutouts, seen branding (e.g., on the media wall), and even occasion tickets.
Despite the fact that it didn’t match our standards, we couldn’t go up an distinctive provide. So, we turned it right into a model consciousness play as a substitute.
The quickest option to lose our curiosity is to cover behind imprecise claims like “well-attended” or “trade professionals”. We need to see the whole lot laid naked, so inform us:
- Actual attendance numbers from earlier occasions
- Detailed demographic breakdowns that transcend job titles and embrace issues like seniority ranges, firm measurement, and extra
- Candid recaps of what occurred in earlier editions
- Clear and complete sponsorship info that spells out precisely what we get for our funding
Elysa additionally likes to hop on discovery calls with the occasion organizers to study extra info and get a really feel for the folks concerned.
What sort of sponsorship info can we need to see? Listed below are the packages we’ve seen to this point (which may inform yours):
- $2,000 – $3,000 — Solely visible branding (e.g., logos on stage and web site)
- $5,000 — Visible branding + small on-site sales space
- $10,000 – $20,000 — Visible branding, larger sales space area, and full attendee registration record
- >$20,000 — The entire above, however with a good larger sales space area. Additionally features a talking slot. You may additionally get to incorporate your swag within the convention’s goodie luggage.
One factor’s for sure: each sponsorship bundle is simply a place to begin for negotiation. We’ve by no means accepted a sponsorship bundle precisely as offered, and neither will most sponsors.
Because the organizer, you must count on that and be versatile. Simply since you’ve structured a sponsorship bundle that manner doesn’t imply it must be fastened that manner. Sponsors might have finances constraints and might want branding alternatives which are completely different from what you’ve considered.
For instance, they might not simply need visible branding but additionally shoutouts in your owned media channels, like the web site, social media, and e mail e-newsletter. Or they might need their standees to be on stage, along with an enormous brand.
Or they might need further shoutouts on stage for his or her model or for attendees to take a look at their cubicles.
If you happen to’re operating your occasion greater than as soon as, the hot button is getting the sponsors to return. That manner, you don’t need to continually take into consideration buying new sponsors.
However how can we resolve if we need to sponsor the identical occasion repeatedly?
Crucial issue we take a look at is our crew’s autopsy. Inside days of the top of your occasion, the on-site crew conducts a brutally sincere evaluation that covers:
- Whether or not the attendees matched who we have been in search of
- Who we talked to and whether or not they have been potential enterprise leads
- (If we had a sales space) Whether or not the sales space was positioned the place you mentioned it could be, whether or not we obtained the promised foot visitors, or have been you caught in a nook the place no person got here
- Whether or not our swag was widespread or everybody ignored it
- Whether or not the occasion ran easily or had tons of logistical nightmares
Right here’s an instance of a report achieved by my colleague:
If we do not need an on-site crew, i.e. we sponsored just for model consciousness, then we’ll verify suggestions on social media.
We additionally give a lot of bonus factors to occasion organizers who’re proactive. The most effective organizers we’ve labored with:
- Ship common e mail updates — They replace in regards to the progress of their occasions, the audio system they’ve secured, different manufacturers which have sponsored, and so on.
- Assist us maximize worth — They help with branding, logistics, and different alternatives to extend our ROI.
- Take full possession — We’ve had occasion organizers willingly provide us reductions for the following version as a result of they have been personally disillusioned they didn’t get us the outcomes they thought we would.
Finally, sponsorships—not only for occasions however for creators too—are all about relationships.
Don’t be shocked once I say this however generally we sponsor an occasion as a result of the organizer is an enterprise-level prospect or buyer. And generally occasions give sponsors reductions as a result of they see them as a long-term companion and need them to return repeatedly for all future editions.
Ensuring your occasion is worthwhile is vital. However don’t overlook that relationships run the world. Count on to be versatile and negotiate in direction of a win-win for each you and the sponsor.
Remaining ideas
Securing occasion sponsorships is all about creating mutual worth.
Essentially the most profitable occasion organizers perceive what sponsors are in search of and construct packages that ship actual outcomes. By being clear together with your knowledge, versatile together with your choices, and proactive in your communications, you’ll construct relationships with sponsors that final past a single occasion.
Keep in mind: sponsors like us are in search of ROI, however we’re additionally in search of companions who perceive our objectives and are dedicated to serving to us obtain them.
Attempting to arrange an occasion as a substitute? We additionally organized our personal convention and wrote up how we did it:
