Welcome to another week
and before you read any further, we should warn you in advance that we are
after your cash. Well, maybe not your cash as such, but your sponsorship
support…
Still with us?
Good!
We wouldn’t normally
resort to being so blunt, it’s just that we have so many great event projects
on the go, all offering great sponsorship opportunities, that it would be
remiss of us not to mention them. Of course you might not be
interested in sponsorship, but it provides a great means of broadening your
competitive edge by improving your company's image, prestige and credibility
and by supporting events that your target market finds attractive, a great way
of finding new clients.
Sponsorship is vital in supporting events,
especially awards where the income streams are limited, but for the sponsor it
is a good way of increasing brand awareness, especially when a company can
reinforce awareness among its target market and be involved in an event that
attracts a similar target market.
Sponsorship is not an act of charity - it
must show some form of positive return on investment and if done properly, then
the sponsor can enjoy a wide range of benefits which include raising brand
awareness and creating preference, creating positive PR and raising awareness
of the organisation as a whole and also it can provide attractive content for a
range of products and services.
Its usually also a great way to bring a
corporate hospitality opportunity that promotes good relations with clients.
Such is the power of sponsorship, that
there are even Sponsorship Awards, and the Hollis Sponsorship Awards are
probably the most well known. Winning or
being shortlisted for a Hollis Sponsorship Award is a fantastic achievement; a
huge boost to all who worked on the campaign and it’s tantamount to proof that
your sponsorships work.
In these turbulent financial times, when
threats of budget cuts are all around, you need to be able to offer concrete
evidence to your board, your clients, employees, stakeholders and prospective
sponsors that you know their business and your business inside out and that you
have created a sponsorship that ticked all the vital boxes.
As Andy Lulham of Betfair quoted “The
Hollis Awards are one of the highlights of the sponsorship calendar. Being
shortlisted in the PR category for our Ashes cricket campaign, and subsequently
picking-up the trophy, was a fantastic achievement and something that Betfair
is extremely proud of. Not only does the award reflect the hard work that went
into activating the partnership, it’s also testament to the fact that the
sponsorship was successful in terms of meeting our objectives and delivering
a significant ROI.”
So that’s sponsorship for
you….and if handled correctly, an extremely important tool in your marketing
objectives.
If you are still with
us….and looking for opportunities for your organisation then we have some
cracking ones available, and, depending on who your target market might be, a
wide range of possibilities.
If raising your profile amongst
Journalists and Broadcasters is your objective, then The Midlands Media Awards
will be an ideal platform for you. Scheduled for early June, the awards will
recognise outstanding journalism from across the Midlands and provide sponsors with an ideal opportunity to mix with some of
the leading journalists and broadcasters, many of them household names. You
will be in great company and Birmingham Airport and Barclays Bank are already on board this year.
If you want to target the
PR community then we have not one, not two but three separate opportunities
available.
The first is The CIPR
Northern Conference set for 19 June in Newcastle. The one day conference will see a range of high
profile speakers deliver a fascinating insight on the industry, especially in
light of the Leveson report. As part of the event, there will be a special
networking and refreshment area and there are opportunities for sponsors and
exhibitors alike to showcase themselves in an effective and inexpensive way.
If you are feeling a
little more social in your approach to targeting the PR Community, then The
Fresh PR Awards set for September, might be a little more appealing. As part of
the “Freshtival”, a three day celebration of creativity and innovation in
Advertising, Design, Media, Digital and PR, the Fresh PR Awards are an ideal
corporate hospitality opportunity and great networking event, as well as
providing unique benefits for sponsors.
We’re perhaps a little
premature in mentioning the third opportunity to target the PR Community, but
believe me, save some budget, its going to be big and beautiful and will change
the face of communication events!
We have already briefly
referred to “Freshtival 2013” but for anyone who wants to target the Creative,
Digital or Media communities, then this is the event for you. One of the big
advantages about any sponsorship packages for Fresh, is that creative input is
also welcome from sponsors as well as the chance to mix and match the elements
that are just right for you.
Outside of the Marketing
and Communications Industry, there is also the chance to look at targeting the
Oil & Gas Industry, with the first International PR Congress for this
industry.
With a range of top-notch
speakers, a fascinating programme and an exciting destination for the event,
then this could be a very valuable sponsorship investment opportunity.
So there you have it, a
great range of opportunities for 2013. We know budgets are tight, and its vital
to stretch your marketing budgets as far as possible, but one of the core
advantages we are able to offer sponsors here at Cloud 9 is flexibility. Pick
the elements which appeal, ditch the ones that don’t – and we’ll work with you
to create bespoke packages to match your budget.
Sold?
We hope so.
Please do drop us a line
if you are interesting in sponsorship this year. We might just be able to help:
paula@cloud9em.co.uk
Have a great week!
