| Overview
When you are seeking sponsorships for an event, it
really is all about who you know (or who your board,
volunteers, staff and donors know); but you also want
to make a good impression and professionally convey
to potential sponsors who you are, what you are doing
and why they should sponsor you. A sponsorship package
will help you do this.
The goal of the sponsorship package is to make it
as easy as possible for prospective sponsors to make
a “buying” decision. Whether you mail
the package to the prospective sponsor (after talking
with them) or bring it with you, you should include
a cover letter, a flyer about the event, a listing
of the sponsorship levels and benefits received at
each level and a Sponsorship Reply form. Samples of
each of these are included below; the samples are
in pre-design format (before hitting the graphic design
dept. for the actual event logo, etc.); you can keep
yours simple or liven them up with graphics and color.
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Cover Letter
The cover letter is like the executive summary of a grant application
or business plan. You need to mention the event title and date
and how it is benefiting your organization / your constituents;
this can be done briefly because you have more details in the
event flyer. You will also want to briefly mention the overall
benefit to their company if they sponsor the event (no need
to list all the details because you have that in the Sponsorship
Levels & Benefits) and what amount you are asking for. And
don’t forget to tell them exactly what you are enclosing
with the cover letter.
See
Sample Cover Letter |
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Event Flyer
We made this event flyer a little different from the general
event flyer to address the sponsors specifically; your general
flyer may suffice by itself. Just make sure it has all the pertinent
event info; we utilized the flyer to give the sponsors a brief
step by step of what we wanted them to do (choose a level, pick
a team, etc.) It’s not a good idea to put EVERY detail
on the flyer not only because it clutters up the page but the
print flyer really should be used to draw people back to your
website to get additional information and sign up (if you are
set up to do that online). Drawing them to the website allows
them to learn more about you and may inspire them to do even
more. If the event is unusual or being done differently –
play up those differences and explain them if you need to. Don’t
forget to show WHY people should attend the event and briefly
explain why the event is being held.
See
Sample Flyer |
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Sponsorship Levels
The most important thing here is to offer benefits
that will appeal to the company’s marketing
department. Sponsorship is traditionally a marketing
activity not a corporate giving activity. Every company
will be different, however, so it’s great to
cover all your bases. You are already used to focusing
on your good works in the community, now it’s
time to throw in other benefits as well. You also
need to make the benefits offered at each level different
enough that a company can see a clear advantage in
choosing one category over another, making it easier
for them to choose.
One note of caution: we know you want to make big bucks from
sponsors, but it’s a good idea to limit the number of
sponsors you have at each level. You need to make the top
sponsors feel special – it’s unusual to see more
than 1 or 2 top sponsors at that level because of that. Offering
lots of sponsorships, especially at the top level, devalues
that level.
See
Sample Sponsorship Levels |
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Sponsorship Reply Form
Try to include everything you need from the sponsor on one page
to make it as easy as possible for them to sign up, purchase
extra tickets, send in payment and give permissions. This is
the most important page to have your tax i.d. number on as well
as your statement about tax deductions. You don’t want
to make a blanket statement like “All Donations are tax
deductible” because it’s simply misleading; A better
statement would be ”Contributions are tax-deductible to
the extent allowed by law.” Check with your accountant
to determine the exact wording you need to use.
See
Sample Sponsorship Reply Form |
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Sponsorship Plan of Action
We recommend putting together an exact plan of action similar
to a capital campaign plan where you designate which potential
sponsors you will approach at each level – this is a great
sales technique to not only visualize the exact goal but also
to determine exactly what amount you will be asking from each
company rather than just leaving it up to the company to choose
a level.
See
Sample Sponsorship Plan |
