Community sponsorship can be a great way to promote your business while supporting something that matters to the people around you.
But not every sponsorship is a good marketing opportunity.
A logo on a banner might look impressive, but if nobody who sees it is likely to become a customer, you could be spending money without getting much in return.
The best community sponsorships do more than put your business name in front of people. They connect your business with the right audience, in the right place, for the right reasons.
Here’s how to choose one.
Start with your customers
The first question should be simple:
Who do you want to reach?
Think about your existing customers and the people you want to attract. Where do they live? What activities do they take part in? What schools do their children attend? What sports do they follow? What community organisations do they support?
A local real estate agency, for example, might get more value from sponsoring a local school or junior sports club than from sponsoring an event that attracts people from across the state.
A café might benefit from sponsoring a nearby sporting club because players, parents and spectators live and spend money in the same area.
A business-to-business company might look for a community organisation whose members overlap with its target market.
The closer the connection between the sponsorship audience and your ideal customer, the more useful the sponsorship is likely to be.
Choose a community that makes sense for your business
Location matters.
If you run a business that relies on local customers, a sponsorship in your local area can be particularly valuable.
You don’t necessarily need the biggest audience. You need the right audience.
A sponsorship that puts your business in front of 500 local families could be more valuable than one that puts your logo in front of 5,000 people who live hours away.
Look at the community the organisation serves. Consider whether those people live close enough to become customers and whether the organisation has a strong presence in the area.
Look beyond the logo
Many sponsorship packages focus heavily on branding.
You might get your logo on a sign, website or uniform. That’s useful, but don’t stop there.
Look at everything included in the package.
Could you receive tickets to an event? A mention in a newsletter? Social media promotion? An opportunity to speak to members? A stall at an event? Naming rights? Exclusive access to a particular audience?
These opportunities can give you something much more valuable than passive exposure.
For example, a local accountant sponsoring a community event might be able to offer free financial check-ups or a useful guide to attendees. That creates an opportunity to start conversations rather than simply display a logo.
When comparing sponsorships, ask:
“What can I actually do with this sponsorship?”
The answer could be more important than how large the logo is.
Think about the story your sponsorship tells
People don’t necessarily remember every business logo they see.
They do remember stories.
A business that supports a local junior football club, helps a school put on an event or backs a community initiative has an opportunity to tell people why it got involved.
That can make the sponsorship feel more genuine.
Think about whether the organisation and your business have a natural connection. Would you be comfortable telling your customers that you support this organisation?
If the answer is yes, you have the beginnings of a good marketing story.
Consider the reputation of the organisation
Your business becomes associated with the organisation you sponsor.
That’s why it’s important to do some basic research before committing.
Look at its website and social media accounts. Search for recent news about the organisation. Understand what it does and who runs it.
You want to be confident that it is well regarded and that its activities align with your business values.
A cheap sponsorship isn’t a bargain if it creates a reputational problem for your business.
Work out what success looks like
Don’t sponsor something simply because it sounds like a good opportunity.
Decide what you want the sponsorship to achieve.
It might be:
- Getting your business known in a new suburb
- Generating leads
- Increasing foot traffic
- Building relationships with local families
- Supporting your existing customers
- Creating social media content
- Strengthening your local reputation
- Building relationships with other businesses
Different sponsorships will be better suited to different goals.
If your goal is brand awareness, a highly visible sponsorship might make sense.
If your goal is generating leads, look for opportunities where you can interact directly with people.
If your goal is building relationships, look for sponsorships that give you opportunities to attend events and meet members of the community.
Don’t judge a sponsorship by price alone
A $500 sponsorship isn’t necessarily better than a $5,000 sponsorship.
And the $5,000 sponsorship isn’t necessarily better than the $500 one.
The question is what you get for the money.
Consider the potential audience, the relevance of that audience, the promotional opportunities, the amount of exposure and the opportunities to engage directly with people.
You should also consider how much effort the sponsorship will require.
A sponsorship that costs $1,000 but gives you plenty of opportunities to generate business could be more valuable than a $500 sponsorship that requires almost no involvement but produces little response.
Think about value, not just cost.
Ask how the organisation promotes its sponsors
Before agreeing to a sponsorship, ask what the organisation actually does to promote its sponsors.
Don’t rely only on the sponsorship proposal.
Look at what they have done for existing sponsors.
Check their social media accounts. Look at their website. See whether sponsors are regularly mentioned or whether their logos simply sit on a sponsor page.
You can also ask for examples of how they have promoted sponsors in the past.
This gives you a much better idea of what you can realistically expect.
Talk to other sponsors
One of the easiest ways to evaluate a sponsorship is to talk to businesses that have already done it.
Ask them:
- Why did you choose this sponsorship?
- What have you received in return?
- Have you generated any business from it?
- How responsive is the organisation?
- Would you sponsor it again?
You don’t need every sponsor to say it generated immediate sales. Community sponsorship can deliver benefits that take time to measure.
But you should be looking for evidence that the organisation delivers what it promises.
Make sure the sponsorship fits your brand
Your sponsorship should feel natural.
A family-focused business might fit well with a school, junior sports club or community event.
A fitness business might have an obvious connection with a sporting organisation.
A building company might find opportunities with local community projects, clubs or organisations connected to property and development.
There are no hard rules. But the stronger the connection, the easier it is to explain the sponsorship to your customers.
Have a plan before you sign
A sponsorship shouldn’t start when you hand over the cheque.
Decide how you are going to use it.
If you’re getting social media promotion, prepare content.
If you’re attending an event, work out what you want to achieve.
If you’re allowed to offer something to members, create the offer.
If you’re receiving tickets, consider inviting existing customers or potential clients.
The organisation can provide the opportunity, but your business needs to make something of it.
The best sponsorship is one that makes sense
There is no single “best” community sponsorship.
The right sponsorship depends on your business, your customers and what you’re trying to achieve.
A good sponsorship should pass a simple test:
Is this an organisation and an audience that I genuinely want my business to be associated with?
If the answer is yes, look at what the sponsorship gives you and how you can use it.
If the answer is no, a large audience or impressive sponsorship package probably won’t change that.
Community sponsorship works best when the business and the community both get something valuable from the relationship.
You’re not just buying advertising.
You’re becoming part of the community you’re trying to reach.
Find a community sponsorship that fits your business
Finding the right sponsorship can take time. You need to find opportunities, compare what they offer and work out which ones are actually relevant to your business.
That’s why we created Sponsor Exchange.
Sponsor Exchange helps businesses discover community sponsorship opportunities from schools, sporting clubs and other organisations.
Instead of searching for sponsorship opportunities one organisation at a time, you can browse opportunities and find sponsorships that could make sense for your business.