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(Previously published January 29th, 2003)

How to Make the Most of
Your Sponsorships
Pick the right opportunity,
leverage your exposure,
and aim for 8 to 1 ROI.

By Rodger Roeser, APR

Sponsorship is notorious for being a gray area within the public relations discipline, fraught with curious and unstandardized measurement techniques, and the need for significant return on investment that advances a given public relations objective. Sponsorship is a multimillion-dollar business, and for some it has been a multimillion-dollar mistake. Big or small, opportunities for sponsorship abound and tactically superior public relations professionals are able to take advantage of these opportunities and properly recommend them as part of their arsenal.

Building a brand through sponsorship alone and expecting quick results is flawed thinking. But with time and the right merchandising, sponsorships can be a powerfull tool. Keep the following points in mind to ensure a successful sponsorship program.

Seek many opportunities
Whether you are serving a client for a firm or as the professional within a corporation or organization, you must carefully weigh sponsorships for return on investment. Look carefully at your objectives and see how a properly aligned sponsorship can assist in the achievement of a given goal. The first step is to seek many opportunities and see what is available.

Some groups do the same sponsorship over and over again because that’s how it has always been done, as opposed to seeking fresh and exciting opportunities that may be a better fit and provide a more powerful return on investment. Look at the core objectives and mission statement of your organization, understand the target audience implicitly, go in with a clear understanding of what you hope to accomplish, then seek those opportunities that fit. Based on those basic ideas, you may be surprised at the current return, either pleasantly or otherwise.

What’s in them for you?
As a former corporate public relations executive, I never had a shortage of sponsorship opportunities. Rarely a day went by that some organization, professional sport or cause did not solicit sponsorship dollars. These solicitors tend to be quick to ask for sponsorship dollars and offer promises, but rarely do they take the time to understand how your cause may be a solid “marketing partner” with their cause—but that is the key. Although I would typically listen at least to the opening pitch, it is best for everyone considered to cut right to the chase: What is in it for my organization?

If you clearly state your objectives to the solicitor, a good sponsorship professional will be able to work with you to tailor some ideas to your objectives, as well as presenting a variety of options. Unless something is grossly off the wall, let them know what you need and have them draw up a proposal. It surely cannot hurt to check it out and keep it in your files. If, after looking through the proposal, it is not a fit, do not “string” the solicitor along; use professional courtesy and tell them so, if for no other reason than they stop calling you.

Leverage that logo: Spend twice as much on leverage
When proposals come in, even if it’s with an existing relationship that is up for renewal, understand how this sponsorship can be leveraged. Again, I’ll draw on some personal experience. As the former public relations director for the #88 NASCAR team, one of my tasks was indeed to showcase to potential sponsors how their involvement, their “marketing partnership,” could work. Slapping stickers on a 200 mph car going around in circles for three hours may not be the best investment in the world; it is how it is leveraged that is most salient. In this specific case, logo and signage are simply the keys that open other doors. Sponsorships are leveraged through contests and promotions, point of purchase displays, event tickets and the like. It is recommended that for each dollar spent in sponsorship, the sponsor spend twice that much to leverage the sponsorship, and that is true no matter how large or small the project.

ROI: The 8 to 1 rule of thumb
When it comes to return on investment, another good rule of thumb is the 8:1 ratio, which also holds true to good public relations in general. For each dollar spent, a solid sponsorship (or PR program) should yield at least $8 for each $1 invested. And this is where things can get tricky. PR folks will tend to look at the biggest number they can come up with, as evidenced by everyone (we’ve all done it) turning in Neilsen/Arbitron numbers and print circulation statistics to show return. And, when it comes to ad equivalency data, pick your voodoo.

The important thing to keep in mind is to make sure you understand how the numbers are arrived at, and that you are working from the same platform as the number provider. Companies like Joyce Julius, VMS and PRTrak all provide event sponsorship data, but each works from different data computing platforms. I’m not sure a glimpse of Tide or UPS on a racetrack televised on ESPN is worth $30,000, although that is likely the figure you would see and would thus report. Take some of the figures with a grain of salt, use some common sense, and see how a given sponsorship is moving your mountain and what is important to the organization you represent. Again, some are in it for TV time and branding, some are in it for client relations and some are in it for fun and goodwill. A successful sponsorship accomplishes the correct goal, with a strong return.

Local goodwill sponsorships: Use them wisely
With simple goodwill sponsorships—like sponsoring the local chapter of an organization, a local charity or academic program—be sure that there are indeed leveragable activities that can be undertaken from these programs. Getting your business involved to build camaraderie, positioning your organization strategically and being able to capitalize on that position—each is a realistic goal of such programs. Although these tend to be “lighter fare,” the rules still apply. Be sure these sponsorships fit within the corporate objective and that larger opportunities may result from this partnership.

Lastly, when you have made your decision(s) on what program(s) to become involved in, iron everything out in advance. Oftentimes, several programs can be leveraged together and in concert. Agree on a reporting method and whose responsibility it is to provide it, ask who prints and positions logos and signage and what leveraging and merchandising opportunities you have—from client/employee entertainment and official status with use of their logo, to personal appearances and presenting/article opportunities. There is a host of leveragables, so ask for everything.

Rodger Roeser, APR, is the president of Eisen Management Group, an integrated marketing and communications firm specializing in business-to-business, non-profit, and entertainment clients. Roeser is the former senior public relations consultant with HSR Business To Business, general manager of VMS Ohio and public relations director of ERA Franchise Systems. He is a Cincinnati PRSA Board Member and Chairman of the Sponsorship Committee.

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