Unless you live in a cave, it is sure that you have heard of Coca-Cola’s association with the FIFA World Cup (since 1950) or Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC)’s corporate sponsorship deal with our very-own National Football League (NFL). Another powerful but slightly off-beat association is between processor technology giant Qualcomm and Premier League Soccer Club Manchester United (MAN UTD). These are just three examples of direct corporate sponsorship of the best global/team events in sports.
How were such partnerships of global business leaders and platforms of sporting excellence stitched together?
The answer for this comes from your frequent television or radio commercials that create a buzz around global events, creating extensive recall for business corporations as well. In the examples we have given, brand names linked with FWC, NFL, and MAN UTD are called ‘sponsors.’ These corporations paid a hefty amount to get their name associated with these events/teams; the deal itself is referred to as sponsorship.
What is Sponsorship?
Sponsorships are of two types. Event sponsorship (find more here) is where a company or organization sponsors an event to increase awareness of their brand or product. Another is corporate sponsorship (this blog post is about this topic), when a corporation supports an organization/event/cause.
Over the past few years, corporate sponsorship has been growing in popularity. In 2015, global sponsorship spending amounted to $57.5 billion, which rose to $62.7 billion in 2017. The continent of North America totaled $22.3 billion in 2016.
The robust and growing numbers reflect the fact that corporate sponsorship helps build relationships and creates new business opportunities.
What Are the Benefits of Corporate Sponsorship?
- Monetary benefits: Organizing a public event like an exhibition, music fest, sporting event, and especially fundraisers need money. It’s the first and direct benefit you can expect from a corporate sponsor. Even if your event is ticketed, more financial freedom is always welcome.
- In-lieu benefits: These benefits can be (but are not limited) to food, goodies, services like charging stations or water coolers, and infrastructure.
- Coverage: Associating your brand, product, or event with a corporate sponsor will provide good coverage and credibility. A loyal customer base of the brand will boost the event’s reach and engagement.
- Branding: Brand is the most important thing for an organization as it defines your market identity, value, and customer point of view. Associating your brand with a high-value and recognizable (corporate) organization will give you a positive image with no cost of advertising and public relations (PR).
What Is in It for Corporations?
Statistics show that corporates sponsor 7/10 events to increase brand awareness, generate leads, and expand their customer base. Sponsoring events provides excellent media exposure and sales opportunities.
How Do You Win Corporate Sponsors?
Winning corporate sponsors for your event is not easy. The first step is finding companies aligned with your values and a high brand image. The next nerve-wracking task is to contact their management. The journey to this alliance is not easy, but you can always start with a neat and descriptive corporate sponsorship proposal.
What should a corporate sponsorship proposal always include?
A corporate sponsorship proposal is a document submitted to a corporation to secure financial support for an event or project. It should outline the benefits of the sponsorship and outline in a clear and concise manner what you want and can offer. The proposal also needs to include a detailed budget and timeline of the project.
How to Write a Corporate Sponsorship Proposal?
Let’s draft a client-winning sponsorship proposal that you can present in the best possible manner with the help of our cogent and visually-hypnotic corporate sponsorship proposal presentation deck. Download this corporate sponsorship proposal complete deck now from given link!
The significant attributes of a corporate sponsorship proposal presentation are as follows:
Template 1: Cover Slide (Well Begun is Half Done)
A cover slide is a ‘first impression’ for the corporate sponsorship proposal pitch deck and helps the audience know where you are taking them. According to the learning principle of primacy, people will remember best what they see or hear first. Showcase your proposal in the first slide and choose a suitable, eye-catching title slide.
Template 2: Outline (The Story In Brief)
A well-organized and neat outline design will help you convey the elements (problem, solution, statements) you will discuss. It might be presented as the first or second slide in the presentation, but prepared at last. An outline is an index to help navigate investors and presenters find the content that they are looking for. When presenting massive data, it becomes necessary to have an outline slide in your presentation.
Template 3: About Us (How What We Do Helps All Achieve Win-win)
Introducing yourself to the investors is necessary to gain their confidence. ‘About us’ slide works as a short and quick introduction to your organization. You can flaunt your achievements, values, connections, and specialties by adding these to the ‘who we are’ template. These slides show the corporates that your organization is well-aligned with their values.
Template 4: About the Event (What Good Is About to Happen)
Let the investors know what you are going to cover by adding an ‘About the Event’ slide. Don’t forget to add the unique features, cause, target audience, and event goal(s).
Download About The Event Template
Template 5: Sponsorship Opportunities (The X Factor)
Incorporating the sponsorship opportunities slide will help you put forward your terms and conditions. With this, you can help corporates find a choice for investment, how much they want to invest, and what sponsorship role they find suitable for their association.
Download Sponsorship Opportunities Template
Template 6: Special Benefits for Sponsors (What’s More In It)
Corporates will not invest in your brand until they get some benefits. These may include getting a positive brand image, increasing their product reach, or maybe a launchpad for their new product. Highlighting the unique benefits that sponsors will get is critical to mission success.
Download The Special Benefits for Sponsors Template
Template 7: Sponsorship Form
Electronic forms (e-forms) in your corporate sponsorship proposals will serve multiple purposes. They are an agreement between you and the sponsors about the benefits. These save a lot of paper and paperwork and are indications of corporations’ interest. You can also use these forms as a database for future sponsorship references.
Download the Sponsorship Form Template
Template 8: Statistics With Pie Chart
Pie charts are an effective visual communication tool, making data comparison easy. Even the uninformed audience quickly reads and understands the data with a pie chart representation. In a corporate sponsorship proposal, pie charts are helpful to define the shares of multiple sponsors or the use of funding across events/projects/products.
Template 9: Comparison With Bar Chart
A bar chart give you the advantage of holistically presenting chronological and fragmented data. These also help you analyze (growth) trends and reassure investors about the success of the brand/product. You can use a bar chart template to support your sponsorship proposal with competitor and market analysis data.
Download The Bar Chart Template
Template 10: Thank You
It happens that you start the presentation with high energy, and towards the end, it diminishes. For a lasting impression, an energetic presentation must be paired with dynamic closing. Do not underestimate the value of an informative and aesthetic thank you slide in closing investors. Besides, you can use the space of thank you slide to share contact information like email, phone number, address, and more with the sponsors.
Corporate sponsorship proposals can be the key to unlocking new opportunities for your company. A well-crafted proposal will help you secure financial support you need to put on a successful event. The corporate sponsorship proposal templates we’ve provided above can be a starting point for your document.
So, what are you waiting for? Start drafting yours today!