BowerPower Papers | Generic sponsorship is out. Value is in.

BowerPower Papers, a quarterly digital newsletter from Bower & Co. Consulting LLC, aims to inspire non-profit, business, and event/festival leaders to think creatively about marketing, corporate sponsorship, events, and strategy.

Volume 5 Issue 4

Fall 2010

Dear ,

If you had a leak in your house, would you buy some new brooms? Or would you call a plumber?

If you found out that one of your operations was causing you to leave money on the table (the leak), what would your next steps be? Brooms? Or plumber?

Take a look at the lead article in this issue of BowerPower Papers, entitled "Why the Gold-Silver-Bronze Package is Outdated and What You Can Do About It." Then, minimally, send me an email to receive a complimentary copy of a brief self-test to see whether you've got a leak. Also, take a look at the upcoming teleseminars.

Know someone else with a leak? Please feel free to forward this newsletter to him or her. You could make that person's day.

Warm regards,

Gail S. Bower
President

WHY THE GOLD-SILVER-BRONZE PACKAGE IS OUTDATED AND WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT by Gail S. Bower
In your work with the corporate sector, are you frustrated when most corporations select the least expensive level of support for your event? Do you struggle to engage corporations at higher levels? Corporate Giving Has Changed Once upon a time, corporations would write a check for your program or project, and you'd go off, launch the initiative, and report back on results. In the last decade, however, more than 60 percent of corporations began asking for "benefits" in exchange for their "gifts," changing the dynamic entirely. Nonprofit development leaders responded with generic packages of benefits, typically Gold-Silver-Bronze levels, institutionalizing a hybrid form of support. The problem is Gold-Silver-Bronze packages are of very little value to corporations. They also lack value to your organization. And they're priced accordingly. Yes, they're easy for you to deliver and execute, and they're perfect for businesses, especially smaller ones, that simply want to make a donation and receive a modicum of name recognition. But Gold-Silver-Bronze or other similar generic packages are not going to generate real dollars for your organization. What Does Work Marketing-driven corporate sponsorship, on the other hand, is the model you need. Think Olympics, rock 'n roll, your region's sports' arenas. Sound preposterous and out of your league? Well, meet your competition. Corporate sponsorship is what the hybrid nonprofit packages emulate but fall far short. Why? Because Gold-Silver-Bronze is all about generating quick cash for the nonprofit instead of focusing on corporations, their business or marketing objectives, and mutually beneficial partnerships. For most business leaders, Gold-Silver-Bronze packages offer no real ROI. Gold-Silver-Bronze: No Benefit Consider comments by Boutros Boutros, Divisional Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications for Emirates airlines, in an Emirates Business 24/7 article and blog post on Sponsorpitch: We have been receiving proposals for sponsorships with designations of sponsors' categories such as gold, silver and bronze. As a sponsor, I am not gratified by such offers, because at the end of the day my intention is to stand out and have a voice. Seeing my logo, however, along with 50 other logos of brands and companies does not serve my strategy to distinguish the name of my brand. I don't see any benefit. Nonprofit leaders who continue to remain in denial about this fact are missing opportunities that marketing-driven corporate sponsorship provides to generate revenue, to leverage partnerships with the corporate sector in bold ways, and to engage corporations meaningfully. They'll remain in the role of beggars. Paradigm Shift Time after time in my work - and even when I speak - with nonprofit leaders around marketing-driven corporate sponsorship, an "aha moment" occurs. One participant in a recent workshop for members of the Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations noted having "a paradigm shift in how I think about soliciting corporate dollars." That same paradigm shift occurs regularly for my clients. The most exciting change I hear is the language they use to articulate their organizations' value and create new ideas - big ideas - that further their organizations' missions and build their brands. Clients adopt new mindsets, recognizing their value differently and therefore engaging in more powerful conversations with prospective partners, co-creating ideas and ways to execute the sponsorship. Results It's not uncommon for my clients to experience dramatic income gains. One client, for example, quadrupled corporate revenue. Another saw a 300 percent increase in one event. Another landed a 5-figure sponsor before we completed our work together. Another secured a five-figure deal with the industry heavyweight, a commitment that my client anticipated would demonstrate credibility among other corporations they targeted. Now is the Time Research shows that now is an excellent time for nonprofits to engage corporations. A February 2009 study that I cited in my guidebook, How to Jump-start Your Sponsorship Strategy in Tough Times, shows that because of the Great Recession, the aftermath of bailouts and bankruptcies, and the political and media frenzy, consumer perceptions of the corporate sector had dropped precipitously: 69 percent had a "lower approval" of corporations. When researchers asked whether marketing driven corporate sponsorship would improve their confidence levels, consumers said that if the corporation sponsored sports, their perceptions would decline. If it sponsored an arts & cultural event, it would stay the same. However, if it sponsored a nonprofit event or cause, confidence levels would increase by 41 percent. Not surprisingly, more and more corporations seem to be getting the message. Pepsi pulled its $20 million ad spending of the SuperBowl and instead is Refreshing communities. Disney, KFC, Seventh Generation, and many other companies are deploying similar strategies. A January 2010 Fast Company blog post asked whether philanthropy is the new marketing? What will you do? Will you continue doing what you know derives poor results, that puts you in the role of beggar? Or explore a way that empowers your staff, that positions you as a partner and that yields both financial and brand-building results for your organizations?
Not sure how to evaluate your program? Why not take a brief self-test, only 5 questions, to help you gauge your sponsorship effort? Simply send me an email at Gail@GailBower.com (or by hitting "reply" to this email) and write "self-test" in the subject line. Or contact me personally at 215/922-6937. I'll forward the PDF which will provide an indicator of where you could improve.

NEW ON

Check out these new posts on Gail's blog, SponsorshipStrategist.com:

You may subscribe by email or RSS and participate in a discussion by commenting. As always, feel free to send me suggestions of topics you'd like to learn more about.

UPCOMING TELESEMINARS

The Process Revealed: How to Sell Corporate Sponsorship

Thurs., October 28, 2010 | 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. EST

The single most frequently asked question nonprofit and event/festival leaders want to know about sponsorship is, "How do I best approach a corporation?" Participate in this teleseminar and learn what you need to know to be ready for that approach, what to say and do when you contact the corporation, and where to go next. You'll learn:

The best methods for cultivating corporate sponsors;
How to prepare for the cultivation process;
The mindset you need to make the approach as a partner and not a begger;
How to take the driver's seat in the process.

10 Ways to Make Your Sponsorship Program More Valuable

Thurs., November 18, 2010 | 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. EST

Most sponsorship offerings are generic, boring, and of little value to sponsors - and to your organization or event. If yours fits this description, it needs a make-over fast to compete for real dollars. You'll learn:

How to know if your sponsorship program has value or not;
10 techniques to dramatically improve the value your sponsorship program has to offer;
How these ideas will benefit your organization, too

Designing Your Eventgoers' Experience

Thurs., December 16, 2010 | 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. EST

If you've ever produced an event, you know that you can't control every detail. Why, then, do some events feel so special, "like magic," as some guests will often say, while others feel so . . . well, dull?

Learn how to make the "magic." In fact, it's not magic but solid strategy that allows everything to come together and have just the impact you'd planned. You'll learn:

Why your event needs a strategy;
How to plan for the intended outcomes;
What contributes and what distracts from that strategy;
How to design an event experience that memorable and remarkable.

NEW REVIEW OF HOW TO JUMP-START YOUR SPONSORSHIP STRATEGY IN TOUGH TIMES

About.com nonprofit writer Joanne Fritz recently reviewed How to Jump-start Your Sponorship Strategy in Tough Times.

She writes: "Gail Bower, astute specialist in corporate sponsorship, published a book more than a year ago titled, How to Jump-Start Your Sponsorship Strategy in Tough Times.

"Well, tough times continue, and Bower's advice in this small, jam-packed book remains as relevant as it was a year ago."

Fritz goes on to describe the book and seven key "take-aways" for her. She concludes with, "There is much more in Bower's useful book. You've likely acquired a small collection of materials about operating in a recessionary climate. Be sure to add this book to it."

Read the rest of the review.

To pick up your own copy of Jump-start visit the store on my web site or through Amazon below.

How to Jump-start Your Sponsorship Strategy in Tough Times

by Gail S. Bower by Bower & Co. Consulting LLC

Gail Bower, President, Bower & Co. Consulting LLC, specializes in raising the visibility, revenue, and impact of non-profit organizations, destinations, and festivals/events. She's a professional consultant, writer, and speaker, with nearly 25 years' experience managing some of the country's most important events, festivals and sponsorships. Launched in 1987, today Bower & Co. improves the results of clients marketing strategies, events, and corporate sponsorship programs. She is the author of the guidebook, entitled How to Jump-start Your Sponsorship Strategy in Tough Times, and is a source for the media. For more information, visit her web site or contact her at 215/92-BOWER (215/922-6937).