Sponsorship is increasingly popular among businesses that want to grow their profile and reach with new audiences.
Why? Sponsorships help businesses to increase credibility via partnering with known respected brands, improving public profiles, and building credibility.
Like any form of marketing, it should be managed strategically.
As budgets tighten, the recent trend is for organisations to refocus some of their marketing spend away from traditional advertising and marketing and into sponsorship and leveraging via great PR, and here we explain why.
Strategic sponsorships can help businesses meet multiple marketing goals at once. Sponsors are likely to be working towards one or many of the following goals:
· Build relationships and engage with the community
The benefits of community building and community engagement are endless. For starters, it’ll drive more leads, improve brand loyalty and increase user retention. Also, let’s not forget that having an active and engaged community is way more cost-effective than having to invest heavily into paid advertising. Sponsoring local sports teams, charity campaigns, or public organisations puts the sponsor in a good light. Customers are more likely to view the organisation as contributing to their community, which creates goodwill and positive associations with the brand.
· Corporate social responsibility (CSR)
CSR is, we believe, a necessity for all organisations to be involved in – it helps an organisation stay socially accountable and give back. By practicing CSR, companies can be conscious of the kind of impact they are having on all aspects of society, including economic, social, and environmental.
· Increased awareness around a product launch
Brand awareness goes hand in hand with driving sales and many sponsorship opportunities can introduce consumers to a product and business in a way that encourages them to make a purchase.
· Increased brand awareness with an existing audience
Sponsorships with in-kind products are more cost effective than traditional advertising. A selected event can target a specific audience comparatively to mass advertising.
· Reach out to a new target audience/s
Strategic sponsorship encourages word-of-mouth. Ideally, people who attend an event that is sponsored will have a positive interaction with a brand and continue to talk about the service or product long after the event. If an organisation's name is on the event's promotional materials, including emails, social media, PR and advertisements, there is an additional opportunity to reach more customers.
· Rehabilitate or reposition a struggling brand
Sponsoring events that customers care about creates goodwill about a brand. If customers feel the business cares about the same things as their community, they are more likely to have a positive attitude toward the organisation, and consider them when making purchase decisions.
The Profiler PR team can develop a strategy to connect you with events and brands that can grow your profile and your reach into new audiences. We can also help you retain current sponsors or attract new ones.
Contact us at hello@profilerpr.com.au to see how we can help you audit your current sponsorships, and explore new opportunities for growth.