Event organizers need to do a better job at measuring and reporting the results of programs to their business sponsors. In the Sponsorship Confidence Survey we carried out (CF, October 11, November 23, November 30, and December 13, 2000), business people cited measurement 40% of the time as a key point of confidence during a sponsorship relationship, while event organizers only mentioned measurement 20% of the time. Here’s a check-list to help you ensure that you’re keeping track of the right factors:
1. We measured what matters most to sponsors and their key stakeholders.
Align your measurement activities, both qualitative and quantitative, to your stated objectives. Remember, measurement is not only a process of justifying what you did, it is also an important way to validate that you are doing the right things to delight your customers. So, measure all of the time – not just after everything is said and done, because then it is too late to change something for the better.
2. We explained to our event audience what our sponsor’s role meant to their enjoyment.
Show your sponsor that you made every possible effort to explain why their involvement was important your event audience, volunteers and other participants and you will build trust and confidence.
3. We often asked sponsors if they were pleased with value received so far.
Ask your sponsor throughout the agreement, implementation and measurement stages how they feel about things and if they are happy with progress and results so far. Continuous reaffirmation will not only build trust and confidence with a sponsor, but also within yourself and your organizing team. It also gives you a chance to alter misunderstandings or disappointments as they happen, not when it is too late to do anything about it.
4. We thanked the sponsor publicly and one-to-one for making a difference for our event.
“Thank you” are two simple words that are well received by everyone. Say thanks to your sponsor one-to-one, and show your gratitude for their contribution with others as often as possible. Importantly, when you say “thank you,” mean it. Remember, people might forget what said and they might forget what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel.
5. We produced a summary of benefits (media, audience, logo recognition, value-added).
Create a scrapbook that captures the results of your work to help a sponsor generate high visibility and appreciation for their involvement. Make a copy of the scrapbook and present it to your sponsor; walk through every wonderful page and give your sponsor a chance to say “wow!” at every opportunity. Share the scrapbook with volunteers and event organizers to build pride and confidence too.
6. We optimized promotional investment and publicity effort, keeping within budget.
Show your sponsor how you applied your promotional budget. Make sure you keep within the budget and show the value derived from each expenditure. A sponsor needs to be confident that they will not be asked to contribute more than agreed up front. Trust and confidence is at stake here too.
7. We appreciated the value of our sponsor’s total contribution (money, time and more).
Show your business partners that your team sees their role as much more than funding. In fact, delighted sponsors are more likely to contribute additional promotional support through their own advertising budgets and bring expertise and staff enthusiasm to the planning and implementation stages of your event. Sometimes that is worth much more than the sponsorship fee to the success of your event.
8. We shared feedback from audience, volunteers, employees and customers.
Capture the feelings and appreciation of all stakeholders in your event õ and share that feedback with all of the players, especially your sponsor. Sometimes a personal letter of appreciation from a consumer can be the single-most memorable impression that a sponsor representative takes away from the experience and it might have a major impact on future decisions surrounding the sponsor’s involvement!
9. We celebrated success and recognized important personal and team contributions.
Have a post-event wrap-up party to celebrate success and say “thanks” to each and every contributor to your team’s work. This event will go far toward reinforcing pride, trust and confidence among all of the players, including you event sponsor. It can also lay a positive tone of reference for future sponsorship agreement discussions and negotiations.
10. Our sponsor is delighted with results generated and will return next year.
The time that you know your sponsor is returning again is a terrific point of confidence for everyone. It makes all of the effort to delight your sponsor and deliver on all promises well worth the effort. It takes a lot of time and effort to build trust and confidence in any relationship. A continued positive sponsorship relationship is preferred to starting all over again!
For a copy of the PBK Event Organizer’s Taking A.I.M. Checklist, or further information about the PBK Sponsorship Confidence Survey, contact Pat Kahnert, president, PBK + Associates, at 905/337-7933, or e-mail pbk@cogeco.ca. PBK provides corporate marketing and public relations services specializing in building community partnership programs that help business, government and voluntary sector customers build stronger relations with their key stakeholders.
