The sponsorship package

1. For anyone contemplating sponsorship – either selling a proposition or investing in one – the important aspect is to see it in terms of a package.

2. In isolation, sponsorship can often be seen to be a waste of resources. Its benefits are sometimes slow in coming and, especially in today’s fiercely competitive environment, less obvious to outside observers. Even sponsors themselves often see sponsorship as the ‘soft’ form of media communication and one that is the easiest thing to drop when times are hard in the commercial world.

3. But as part of a strong, integrated communications programme, sponsorship helps to create the ideal climate for successful business and consumer acceptance. This means that sponsorship needs to be packaged from the outset in order to project the added value it provides beyond the initial requirements.

4. On the face of it, sponsoring a national bowling tournament when the sport was played almost exclusively by pensioners with little disposable income seemed like a poor investment on the part of an insurance company. Several major companies had spurned the chance to support the event because, although it offered a televised spot, there was little prospect of substantial branded coverage and the image profile appeared outdated. But within a year, the new company had realized the potential to be derived from the hundreds of bowling clubs around the UK if the club secretaries could be incentivised to enroll new policy holders. The secretaries, accustomed to the thankless task of club management for scant reward, were only too pleased to earn some cash and help the sponsor who saved their national event in the process. The result was that the original sponsorship outlay was covered by new policies within months and a long-term commitment secured for the benefit of both parties.

5. This was a classic example of how sponsorship can operate successfully at different levels. The sport – namely the thousands of people who played it – was delighted to support the commercial objectives of the sponsor who had taken a risk in sponsoring an event that had little attraction for most companies. Ironically, the small amount of television exposure in the first year also blossomed as the television producers saw a decline in viewing figures for snooker and an opportunity to project another sport cheaply. So the bonus of publicity went hand in hand with genuine business gains, and the sport itself saw a growth in income and participation thanks to the extra exposure it enjoyed.

6. However, the sport could have benefited more from the outset, had it identified the best package available to a sponsor. Put simply, the price of entry could have been much higher.

7. That is why packaging is the key factor in any sponsorship discussion. Of course, it is not easy to look at the proposition from the vantage point of a potential sponsor; or, for that matter, for a potential sponsor to see all the benefits to be obtained from the relationship. But the investment of time by both parties at an early stage pays off handsomely in the longer term and invariably leads to a better working relationship. It also helps to define the true value of the sponsorship, something people find very difficult to determine, especially if the exercise is new.