THE BAIT WELL

The Maturation of Sponsorship

I recently had the privilege of speaking to the sponsors of NFL Canada and focused my remarks on how the sponsorship industry has matured and ways properties and corporate sponsors alike have to change their approaches to sponsorship. I've attached a link to the slides from that presentation to the bottom of this page.

Today, I'd like to focus on two elements of changes needed for effective sponsorship programs.

Firstly, sponsorship has evolved from primarily the point of view of the Property (sponsorship as a means to provide the Corporate Sponsor with access to the assets of the property, like signage, tickets, hospitality, etc.) to a Partnership between the Property and the Corporate Sponsor where both cooperatively achieve business objectives.

This is no longer enough. The new paradigm requires the focus to be on neither the Property nor the Corporate Sponsor, but rather on the CONSUMER.

The critical question becomes “what must the Property and the Corporate Sponsor do collectively to add value to the consumer's experience with the event?” And, more importantly, “can the corporate sponsor get the credit by the consumer for delivering this added value component?”

An example of this would be a shuttle bus or golf carts that carry fans from the parking lot directly to the front door of the stadium or arena. The transportation service could be sponsored by Geico, who reminds the consumer that the fifteen minute drive to the entrance is all the time they need to go to www.geico.com to save money on their car insurance. The free shuttle service links car insurance to the consumer, is appreciated by the consumer and the message resonates in a meaningful and appropriate way.

All sponsorship programs must provide this type of focus on the consumer and his or her experience with the event.

Secondly, the corporate sponsor must understand that the targeted consumer sees brands and brand messages HORIZONTALLY. This means all points of contact to the consumer and related messages must be consistent and work seamlessly in concert. These include signage, packaging, point of sale, interactive activities, advertising, media, public relations, charitable/cause-related activities, hospitality, promotion, you name it!

Keep in mind that consumers are both RATIONALE and EMOTIONAL and the special added-value should appeal to both sides.

So, how does one determine what adds value to the consumer experience? On one hand, you should ask them what they'd like to see at your event or through your sponsorship. The again, keep in mind what Henry Ford said. If he had asked the consumer what he wanted, he would have said a faster horse!

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