by Charles Ray

Created on: June 24, 2009

When planning events for non-profit or community organizations, budgeting tends to be the major limiting factor. One way to get around this is to find companies willing to bear the financial burden through sponsorships. For many first-time event planners, it comes as surprise to learn that there are often lots of companies willing to pay to have their name and products displayed before potential customers.

The keys to obtaining sponsorship for your event are Preparation, Planning, and Persistence. I once convinced a west coast winery to sponsor a golf outing for an international group that turned out so successfully, they came back and proposed a repeat performance for the following year. The event went on to become an annual fixture, benefiting not only the international group, but the company as well.

Before approaching companies with your request for assistance, do your homework. Are your event and the venue in line with the company's business plan? It is hardly likely, for instance that a company selling vegetarian products will sponsor a rodeo. On the other hand, in an effort to burnish their image, many tobacco companies have sponsored 'quit-smoking' events. One has to wonder at their sincerity, but if you're hard up for funding, perhaps sincerity isn't a compelling requirement. Of course, possible community reaction should be considered. If your event is in a community that is strongly against a certain company or line of products, it is probably unwise to have that company as a sponsor.

When you've identified desirable sponsors, approach them with a detailed outline of the event. It is far easier for a busy executive to make a funding decision when presented with a complete list of requirements than when all you have is a vague concept. In my approach to the winery, for instance, I had prepared a list that outlined the number of golfers, the number and type of prizes to be awarded, average costs of meals and refreshments, locations, local requirements, and a projected budget. All the company was required to do was say yes and write a check.

I once worked for Richard Armitage when he was Deputy Secretary of State. He was fond of saying that the most effective people were those who took "no" as a conditional answer. If your first approach to a company meets with silence, hesitancy, or even refusal, don't give up. Evaluate our approach, and try to determine if there was something missing that could have made the difference. Be prepared, if necessary, to make alterations to your event in order to get sponsorship.

Sponsorship of an organization's event can be a win-win situation for all concerned. Your organization gets an event without busting the budget, and the sponsor gets relatively cheap publicity and an improved public image - not to mention a whole bunch of potential new customers.

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