Answering
Some Questions
A
college student recently wrote:
My
project is a marketing plan for a theoretical race team. I have to present all
of the information of why a "company" should consider this team for a
sponsorship opportunity.
What
are the first steps you take as a marketing agent when first talking with a team
and a corporation? I assume determining the goals for both organizations?
How do
you convince or show the company that sponsorship will benefit them
specifically? Are there ways to measure exposure and the results of that
corporate exposure?
The
answer:
The
first step is to get in the door and to do that you have to get their
attention. Find out who the decision maker is and learn as much as you can
about the company’s marketing activities, then look for a niche to exploit, an
idea or program that you could offer to get this person’s attention. Then find
a way to pitch it.
It may
start with an email or a voice mail. If you have a friend or associate who can
introduce you, so much the better. But be ready to pitch something new or
exciting that will get the decision maker to listen. Then give them some killer
copy to prove your quality. Yes, that’s right, killer copy. You have to have a
great, professional presentation, sponsorship proposal, etc. so they have
something concrete to look at after you leave.
What
does your great idea consist of? It can be anything new or outrageous but it
has to be dependent on making a business case for sponsorship and it should be
based upon ROI. What will the sponsor earn beyond the investment? This gets
you back to learning what the sponsor needs, what markets are his targets, what
ideas can be developed to address those markets, how can they leverage their
relationship with the team in order to appeal to people in those markets? It is
a problem solving issue for you…not just putting a logo on a car and a few
signs.
It is a
negotiation but you should be the one asking the questions: “Tell me about your
marketing plan, what markets do you care about, what are you doing in those
markets, if there is one thing I can do to help you achieve those goals, what
would it be? Can I create a proposal on how I can do it for you?” Don’t ask
for money during the negotiation, ask for information about their needs and
indicate a desire to bring solutions to the table. Get inside their head and
get them to start thinking about you as a solution provider, a “go-to” person
whenever they need a new idea.
Regarding Metrics
If you
are competing in televised events, you can measure results by counting the time
that your sponsor’s logo was seen on television and measuring the advertising
cost against the sponsorship cost. In motorsports, Joyce Julius and Associates
has some excellent reports that measure the dollar value of all sponsorship
exposure in this way. In other cases, you have to work out a metric and assign
someone to do the counting and reporting to the sponsor.
You and
the sponsor can determine a relevant measurement for them and how that measure
converts to sales. You can count the fans at a given race and multiply that
number against the times your run around the track. You can count people in the
pits that see the car. You can count cars that pass you on the highway that see
the logos on the side of the hauler. Each impression can be compared to the
cost of a magazine add or television ad. The number of people that subscribe to
the magazine or the Neilsen rating of people that watch the television ad can be
compared to the cost of signage on your car and equipment.
If you
do hospitality, the customer can measure the amount growth in business from
customers entertained against the amount of business growth from those not
entertained. Sometimes you have to be creative, but believe me, measuring the
value of sponsorship is critical for the sponsor and you have to be able to show
that you are worth the money. Otherwise, you will suffer from the proverbial
“failure to communicate.”
The
Science of the Sponsor Search Volumes 1 and 2.
http://ncmc.blogspot.com/
Sponsor
Bank. Check it out at
Sponsor Bank
Check out how to get a
digital logo car for your proposal:
http://www.insmkt.com/money8.htm
Thanks
Robert Villegas
New Century Marketing
Concepts
http://www.insmkt.com/fund.htm
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