How to raise organization funds through sponsorship.

Sponsorship is an activity that creates a direct association between your organization,what it has to offer, and another organization.There must be benefits for both parties for the sponsorship to work.Sponsors can provide cash, goods and services known as value in kind(VIK) or a combination of these.

Company logo displayed in a club stadium

What do you have to sell?

Sponsorship is only possible if your organization has something to promote to a sponsor and if the benefits of this can be made clear to a sponsor.The following could be benefits that might attract sponsorship, consider each one carefully in terms of value to a sponsor and the cost to yourself and then look for others.

• Use of emblem-Can a sponsor use the emblem of your organization or event? You will need to make sure you have the legal right to offer this.
• Official sponsor status-Can they be given title of official sponsor?
• Exclusivity-Will there be a limited number of sponsors, thereby making it more exclusive? Can they each be assigned an exclusive product category?
• Publications-Do you have any publications in which a sponsor can advertise?Can they put their logo in a prominent location?
• Television-Can you acquire good advertising rates on television?Do you have any of your own television programs through which they can get exposure?
• Athletes-Athletes are always a good benefit to sponsors who like to have them appear at company functions and corporate events.It is good practice to guarantee a certain number of appearances per annum.
• VIPs-Do you have access to VIPs and high ranking personalities? Would they host a dinner or appear at certain events organised by your sponsors.
• Internet-Do you have your own website?Can you offer sponsors exposure on your website?
• Event tickets-Can sponsors have access to purchase tickets to the Olympic games or other events of regional or national significance? Will you provide tickets free of charge?
• Hospitality-Do you stage events in your country at which you can offer hospitality?
• Other activities-Look carefully at all the activities you run particularly high-profile events, such as Olympic day celebrations.Could any be an opportunity to a sponsor?

The above should provide some ideas from which you can develop a package of benefits and opportunities.This should be developed into a written proposal, outlining each benefit and how it can be used.This proposal then usually forms the basis of a contractual agreement.Need help drafting a proposal?here we have got you covered,reach out and we shall be happy to write for you just the right proposal. Watch out for articles on how to get and retain a sponsor? & how to make a presentation to sponsors?

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How to get and retain sponsors for your organization.

Having established what benefits and opportunities are available, it’s then necessary to identify key companies to approach.A criterion for deciding whom to approach could be alignment between what you have to offer and what the sponsor might want and/or the acceptability of this match to both parties for example,it may not be acceptable to your organization to be sponsored by a tobacco company.

Look at companies that have similar values with the Olympic movement and choose them carefully.Financial institutions,car manufacturers, airlines, and telecommunication companies are all good targets, although there are many others.For example,the Amateur Swimming Association in England has received substantial sponsorship from British Gas,a utility company.

Sponsor names and logos on display in a

The process

This is the most difficult aspect.A personal introduction is best,the aim being to meet with key decision makers to present your proposal directly to them.If a personal introduction is not possible,a letter requesting a presentation should be sent.It must be worded carefully to be attractive and also interesting enough to make the recipient want to hear more.Ensure the letter is addressed to the correct person and follow it up with a phone call.When approaching potential corporations for sponsorship you should do the following:

• Ensure that your marks and symbols are registered and otherwise legally protected so that you can control their use.
• Identify the product (emblem, statements such as “official team sponsor” or programmes (e.g competitions, athletes, coaches, special events).
• Draw up a complete list of products or programmes “for sale”sponsors should have no doubt as to what they can purchase.
• Determine the market value of each product category or programme.
• Assign your rights (e.g your emblem)to only one company in a particular product category e.g airline, bank, sports shoe firm) in order to develop as much exclusivity as possible.A sponsor of your organization should be sure that no rival ,by acquiring the same symbol,can mount a competitive promotion.
• Package the products or programmes to meet the perceived needs of the potential sponsor.Ask yourself why a corporate sponsor would be interested in this particular project.
• Advertise, promote and sell the products to corporations by emphasizing that;
  • Sport is universal and easy to understand
  • Sport attracts media attention/exposure; and
  • Sport has talented young individuals who not only bring pride to your country but who are worthy of support in their own right.
  • Arrange a meeting with a prospective client to make a presentation.
  • Ensure sponsorship agreements guarantee you a specific sum of money, regardless of the success of the company’s promotion.

Once a sponsor has expressed an interest,the major hurdle is to get them to sign a contract between you and them.The contract must be legally binding on both sides and should be drafted by legal advisors.As an organization,do not commit to anything you cannot deliver.

The cost of sponsorship will vary greatly from country to country.It may be an idea to talk to some friendly companies and ask them whether they think the sponsorship is pitched at the right level.Try to identify the cost of other sponsorship in your country and be aware of what your competitors could offer the sponsor.

When negotiating the value of the sponsorship, you should take into account how much you can receive as cash and the amount contributed as VIK.Although cash is always useful, it is often easier for sponsors to provide equipment and services.Also remember to consider what the actual cost of running each sponsorship is likely to be.

Retaining a sponsor

Having signed a sponsor, Your aims must be to develop a long term relationship with them.This servicing of the sponsor is crucial and poor servicing is the main reason why many sponsorship faill.Maintain communication with the sponsor, and provide new initiatives and opportunities for them to exploit their sponsorship.Update them regularly on all your activities and give them exposure whenever you can demonstrate to the sponsor how the sponsorship has benefitted them.

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How to make a presentation to sponsors

A successful organization sponsorship bidding processing will always require a well planned way of laying down your proposals to the prospective sponsors.Once the benefits and opportunities have been defined,it is essential to prepare yourself to present these to sponsors.How will you present these benefits to a company?Will you do it yourself or through an agency?These must be carefully considered,as an agency would claim commission or a fee.Always read the small print and never sign away your rights.For the presentation,there are numerous options, such as:

• A written proposal
• A projector presentation
• A flip chart presentation
• A computer-based(multimedia) presentation.

A presentation underway

Much will depend on the budget available.However whichever route is taken,it must be done professionally and be well set out.Rehearse it.Write a script and test it on companies with whom you have dealt with in the past.Keep it concise and no more than 30 minutes long so that the audience does not lose interest.The content of a presentation to sponsors could include the following:

• Introduction to your organization-What is the role of the organization and the work?
• The sponsorship package-What are the benefits and opportunities available?
• How it benefits the sponsor-What will they get from it?
• Summary-Reinforce the key points and outline the benefits again.Then,lead into “investment”, i.e the amount of money required.Focus on partnership and being part of a team.

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How to manage risks in your organization.

In order to determine the degree of risk, you apply the formula:

Risk = Likelihood of something happening × Impact.

• Each risk then needs to be quantified.
• Managing the risk then involves selecting tools from the risk management armoury to prevent or minimise the risk by reducing the likelihood of it happening or it’s impact.
• Insurance is one tool to reduce the impact of a risk.You can always explore from those offered by different insurance service providers and choose the package that most minimises the risk.
• Another option is to accept the risk.This decision should be taken after careful assessment of the risk and the possible consequences of accepting it.
• Although risk management is a responsibility of the Board,every organization should appoint a risk officer to take the lead in risk management.The risk officer should be responsible for preparing and updating a risk register.
• The risk register will form the basis of the risk management strategy that is necessary for good governance.

A sample risk register

Risk	Likelihood of risk	Potential impact	Control procedure	Monitoring process	Ownership	Further action	Date of review
Reduction in funding from government.	Low	High	Setting and achieving required performance.	Using performance indicators.	You,Board	Report on performance to the Board every month.	Every 3 months

Risk register

Finding out risks

Ways of reducing the risks that affect an organization

• Having a risk management process to avoid some risks and to manage others properly.
• Change the way the organization is governed to mitigate potential risks.When an organization is governed in a transparent and accountable way,many risks associated with public image, funding and stakeholder satisfaction can be avoided.
• Change the strategic direction of the organization if necessary.
• Reduce or expand services and change the way of operating to reduce risks e.g introducing the evaluation and control procedures can assist greatly with the management risk.
• If there are significant risks facing the organization,it may be possible to take out insurance to cover the risk.For example insuring the officials and athletes in a sports organization against injury.

As with governance,the process of risk management should be transparent and communicated throughout the organization.The annual report should include an acknowledgement of the Board responsibilities,the process followed and a confirmation of the systems in place to control areas of major risk.In this we all stakeholders become comfortable with risk management of the organization.

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How to raise organization funds through public relations.

Public relations (PR) comprises a number of methods which you can use to communicate messages about the services you offer and the overall image of your organization to stakeholders and other interested members of the community.Public relations are not just about publicity,they are primarily concerned with creating a good image of the organization and ,if necessary, overcoming any negative information.

As part of your marketing activities, you should create a public relations strategy in order to improve or enhance your organization’s image in the eyes of your key stakeholders.The point of public relations is to make the public think favourably about your organization and what it does.It requires two way communication between your organization and your stakeholders in order to understand their behavior and attitude towards you.

A public relations drive

Public relations has three main goals;

• To create, maintain and protect the organization’s reputation, enhance it’s prestige and present a favourable image.
• To create good will for the organization.
• To educate certain audiences about the organization.

Carrying out a public relations campaign

An effective public relations has six steps:

1. It starts with analysis and research to identify all the relevant aspects of the situation in order to understand stakeholders and the key factors that influence their perceptions of your organization.
2. An overall policy with respect to the campaign needs to be established in order to develop and subsequently evaluate the campaign.This involves defining goals and desired outcomes as well as the constraints, such as finance, under which the campaign will operate.
3. Following this, you need to set out PR strategies and tactics.These need to be tailored to specific stakeholder groups.Commonly used public relations tools include online social media,news releases, media conferences, speaking engagements and community service programmes.
4. The PR campaign is then put in place and communication begins with identified stakeholders.
5. Following the campaign, you need to seek feedback from the targets of your campaign.How have they reacted to the public relations campaign?Are there some unexpected developments?
6. In the final step, you should assess the programme and make any necessary adjustments.

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How to raise funds for your organization through promotions.

Promoting is a marketing technique that is used to communicate what our organizations do.The purpose of promotion is to sell the features and benefits of our organizations to those who might be interested.Promotion has three main objectives:

1. To create awareness that an organization,a sport , team or players exist,and explain what is being offered, for example ,to increase knowledge of your sport so as to increase participation.
2. To create a favourable attitude to encourage support, for example , promoting the healthy nature of your company products, or sports to sponsors and funding agencies.
3. To reinforce support and to build loyalty, for example, promoting the benefits of membership to members and existing sponsors.

A lady promoting a company products

Promotional activities include:

• Advertising-This is when you pay to promote your organization or sport.Advertising channels include printed and electronic media,cinema, radio, billboards and bronchures.This is often costly and other ways of promoting should therefore be considered first.
• Merchandising-Products such as t-shirts,key rings, USB keys and caps can be used to spread your message.The name or logo of your organization is placed on the merchandise, which is either sold or given away to promote your organization, sport or event.
• Events-Events can be used to develop and build relationships with stakeholders.They can also be used to create media and public interest.
• Direct mail-This is the delivery of promotional material to recipients of electronic and postal mail.It could be a letter about the value of your sport or a bronchure about your organization products or an event.It could be sent to specific individuals or sent unnamed to an entire stakeholder database.Again this is often expensive, particularly postal mail.You also need to be aware of the data protection legislation that exists within your country.
• Public relations-comprises a number of methods which you can use to communicate messages about the services you offer and the overall image of your organization to stakeholders and other interested members of the community.

Watch out for upcoming articles on public relations (PR).

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