Identifying the right contact person to discuss a potential sponsorship can be time consuming. Once you have a list of potential sponsors that are well aligned with your community (the attendees at your event or activities), you are ready to research and approach these potential sponsors. Here are a few tips we have for identifying the decision maker approving your sponsorship offering
1. Your existing contact base
Look at your existing contact base. Do they have your potential sponsors in their network? Can they help you determine the right person to approach, and can they provide an introduction for you? This is the most trusted way to get someone’s attention; it also comes at a price. If you don’t treat this referral with respect, and show appreciation to those making the introduction and those you are being introduced too, you won’t get another one. Therefore we recommend you set up a referral/thank you program, as you want these contacts to refer people again and again. It certainly cuts down on your time spent trying to find the right person.
When you reach out, always confirm you have approached the right person and if not, ask them who would be the best person to follow up with.
2. LinkedIn and other social media sites
This is a great resource for identifying and confirming the best contact person. It is also a great place to do some research on roles, projects and history.
3. Corporate website
Websites are great for researching and identifying a corporation’s focus and goals, as well as determining the right contact. Sections to look under for this information include: Board Members, Meet the Team, Mission Statements, etc.
Non-profit organisations looking for funding may want to check out the corporation’s community pages.
EXTRA TIP: Don’t forget to look at the media section for press releases. They will have news on products and services they are focusing on. You will normally also find information on goals they are looking to achieve. At the end of most press releases will be a media contact. They are also a great place to start if you focus on how you can support their key goals, e.g. women in business, women with lifestyle changes, etc.
4. Receptionist/Marketing Department
From time to time, we just have to call the receptionist and navigate your way around the organisation. The best person to contact about sponsorship is not always obvious, so we like to start with the marketing department, offering an opportunity to market to their target audience, i.e. your community. Again, always confirm they are the right person before booking a discovery call/meeting.
5. Top down
Whether we are approaching a larger organisation or a local business for sponsorship, we always prefer to go top down rather than bottom up on the organisation chart. Start with the highest contact you can find, and build the relationship.
We hope you find these tips useful and would love to hear which tips work best for you. Please feel free to share this post with others. For more advice and tips, check out our other blog posts or sign up for our monthly emails http://eepurl.com/cdnyk5
1. Your existing contact base
Look at your existing contact base. Do they have your potential sponsors in their network? Can they help you determine the right person to approach, and can they provide an introduction for you? This is the most trusted way to get someone’s attention; it also comes at a price. If you don’t treat this referral with respect, and show appreciation to those making the introduction and those you are being introduced too, you won’t get another one. Therefore we recommend you set up a referral/thank you program, as you want these contacts to refer people again and again. It certainly cuts down on your time spent trying to find the right person.
When you reach out, always confirm you have approached the right person and if not, ask them who would be the best person to follow up with.
2. LinkedIn and other social media sites
This is a great resource for identifying and confirming the best contact person. It is also a great place to do some research on roles, projects and history.
3. Corporate website
Websites are great for researching and identifying a corporation’s focus and goals, as well as determining the right contact. Sections to look under for this information include: Board Members, Meet the Team, Mission Statements, etc.
Non-profit organisations looking for funding may want to check out the corporation’s community pages.
EXTRA TIP: Don’t forget to look at the media section for press releases. They will have news on products and services they are focusing on. You will normally also find information on goals they are looking to achieve. At the end of most press releases will be a media contact. They are also a great place to start if you focus on how you can support their key goals, e.g. women in business, women with lifestyle changes, etc.
4. Receptionist/Marketing Department
From time to time, we just have to call the receptionist and navigate your way around the organisation. The best person to contact about sponsorship is not always obvious, so we like to start with the marketing department, offering an opportunity to market to their target audience, i.e. your community. Again, always confirm they are the right person before booking a discovery call/meeting.
5. Top down
Whether we are approaching a larger organisation or a local business for sponsorship, we always prefer to go top down rather than bottom up on the organisation chart. Start with the highest contact you can find, and build the relationship.
We hope you find these tips useful and would love to hear which tips work best for you. Please feel free to share this post with others. For more advice and tips, check out our other blog posts or sign up for our monthly emails http://eepurl.com/cdnyk5
RSS Feed
