How To Start Customer Cultivation With Strategic Sponsorships

Billions of dollars are spent globally on sponsorships each year. According to IEG, global sponsorship spending topped $65 billion last year, with the majority of the money going toward sports partnerships, followed by entertainment, causes, festival events and association organizations. Sponsorships offer a targeted opportunity to reach current and prospective clients on the consumer or business to business (B2B) side (or both). If you are new to leveraging sponsorships as an engagement tool, here are a few tips on crafting a strategic plan that I learned over the course of 25 years in sponsorship sales and activation with sports and entertainment properties. Think of a sponsorship as a marketing asset that will drive your business objectives. Do you want to sell more stock keeping units (SKUs), engage prospective clients with VIP entertainment or increase awareness through media? These are a few of the goals that can result from a successful sponsorship