Conclusion

You’ve made it to the end of The Sponsorship Seeker’s Toolkit, Fourth Edition. We’re guessing that you’re experiencing some combination of being overwhelmed with the amount of effort that goes into seeking sponsorship and excited by the possibilities.

Don’t worry; that’s all normal. And the first time you build a sponsorship proposal, it’s going to feel like a herculean task. All we can say is that once you’ve done one best-practice proposal, it gets a lot easier. You will look at your work and see how it all flows and fits together and suddenly, the prospect of putting it in front of a sponsor will seem much less daunting. And we guarantee, the first time you get positive feedback from a prospective sponsor about the quality and professionalism of your offer, you’ll know it’s all been worth it.

We have developed and refined our approach over our combined 50-odd years in sponsorship. The results enjoyed by the thousands of participants in our workshops, keynotes, and webinars and by readers of previous editions who have raved nonstop since the book was first published in 1999 prove without a shadow of doubt that this approach works exceedingly well across a wide range of sponsorship seekers—from sport to culture to government, large organizations to small, beginners to seasoned professionals.

We understand that asking for money is never easy. What we have provided you with are the theory, tools, and inspiring examples so that you can create successful partnerships and you can do it with confidence. Our premise is simple and based on three key principles:

1. Understanding your brand, your target markets, and what you have to offer are the foundation stones of outstanding sponsorship.

2. Great sponsorship offers are anchored in great leverage ideas. Do your homework, get creative, and tell the sponsors how they can use the opportunity they’re considering to achieve the brand and business objectives they need.

3. Sponsorship must be win-win-win throughout the relationship, or nobody wins.

There is no magic wand for sponsorship. Success revolves around good research and hard work. Consider the sales process as 75 percent preparation, 10 percent sales, and 15 percent follow through, and you will be pretty close to the mark. Most organizations barely prepare, approach sales as a simple transaction, and don’t follow up at all. It’s no wonder that most sponsorship efforts fail.

No one can guarantee that every proposal you create will be successful. What we can guarantee you is that if you follow the process we’ve outlined in this book, your offers will have a much greater rate of success.

It is important that all of us as practitioners recognize that sponsorship marketing is a rapidly evolving marketing tool. We need to work together—sharing ideas, evaluation techniques, and case studies—if we are to continue to succeed in creating win-win-win partnerships. Use the networks you have and that social media has created for us. Share case studies, advice, and insights whenever you can. Remember, what goes around comes around.

In the same vein, we would love to hear how this approach to sponsorship works for you and welcome your feedback. Our contact details can be found at the back of the book.

It has been our pleasure to bring you this Fourth Edition. The wealth of new case studies we’ve had to choose from is testament to the huge strides our industry has made since the last edition. It’s an exciting time for all of us, and we wish you all the best with your sponsorship program!

Kim and Anne-Marie