Does the thought of reaching out to potential corporate sponsors for your nonprofit feel overwhelming?
Maybe it’s your first experience with corporate sponsorship and you don’t know where to start. Perhaps you’re a seasoned professional looking to add some new strategies to your plan.
We have you covered! Check out our guide on how to take the stress out of recruiting corporate sponsors — from start to finish.
What Are Corporate Sponsorships?
So you’re ready to start exploring corporate sponsorships but aren’t even sure what they are or how they work. We can help!
Corporate sponsorship is a way for companies to publicly position themselves with a nonprofit organization to exchange financial support or other resources. Simply put, it’s when a company donates money, time, or resources to a nonprofit like yours in the spirit of forming a mutually beneficial partnership.
By forming partnerships with corporate sponsors, you can expect:
- Increased awareness around your cause or event
- New ways to attract first-time donors Improved legitimacy for your nonprofit organization
- Encouragement for employee volunteer opportunities
- Amplification of your marketing and advocacy efforts
- Potential for additional partnerships like matching gift programs
There are several types of corporate sponsorship. Familiarize yourself with the basics to determine which type of sponsorship is ideal for your organization or event:
- Financial sponsorship: Financial sponsors provide cash funds needed for a program, project, or event. Generally, the nonprofit organization offers recognition with signage or other publicity, promoting brand awareness.
- In-kind sponsorship: In-kind sponsors offer either time and services, expertise, or physical goods rather than direct cash gifts. One example of an in-kind sponsorship is a catering company providing food for an event.
- Media sponsorship: Media sponsors help nonprofits by covering the cost of advertising. A media sponsor might pay for a promotional radio ad for a nonprofit’s upcoming event, as an example.
Corporations gave over $20 billion to nonprofit organizations last year. While it’s a competitive market, you can boost your chances of securing a corporate giving partnership if your organization is thoughtful, personal, and creative.
How To Find Corporate Sponsorship Partners
When you’re getting ready to start securing corporate sponsorships, it’s essential to begin by identifying your most compatible audience. While it may be tempting to reach out to anyone who could be willing to support you, an poorly aligned match could confuse or, worse, damage the public perception of your organization.
Consider the (former) partnership between McDonald’s and the Olympics. Though McDonald’s was a long-term supporter of the Olympics, the relationship ended in 2018. Critics of the partnership felt the connection with a fast-food chain devalued the Olympics’ core values — athleticism and health.
Take a look at organizations in your target market with similar core values and philanthropic visions as your organization. Generally, you can locate this information on a company’s corporate responsibility page, where you can also find the types of organizations they have or are currently working with.
Hasbro’s Corporate Social Responsibility page nicely illustrates what they are passionate about, who they have worked with, and what philanthropic activities they do.
You can seek out local small businesses and sports teams as well as larger corporations with branches in your geographic area, like banks and insurance agencies.
Once you’ve formed a shortlist, reach out to your internal corporate sponsorship committee and board members. Share the list with your team members to identify any personal connections or contacts at the selected locations. Leverage their connection to start building a relationship and cultivating a potential partnership. Have your team record and send personalized video messages (more on that later!) to connect with their contacts at your prospective corporate sponsors for a personalized and memorable first impression.
What’s In It for Your Corporate Partners
Once you’ve identified your prospects, you’ll want to get clear on how your sponsors benefit from their charitable giving so that you can craft your pitch and navigate the relationship with these details in mind. Understanding your partnership’s benefits to the corporation will make it easier to work through the cultivation process for you.
Here are the perks you can share:
- Sponsor recognition: Recognition is everything for your corporate sponsors. They’ll want to see their logo everywhere along with social media and podcast mentions — you can even leverage the power of video shoutouts for a more engaging statement of appreciation.
- Internal employee relations: Tickets to sponsored fundraising events can be given as employee loyalty and incentive perks. Seventy-one percent of surveyed employees say it’s imperative or very important to work where the culture supports giving and volunteering.
- Attract new customers: By aligning themselves with your organization, corporations gain exposure to an audience, and a demographic they may not have been able to connect with otherwise.
- A way to stand out: With competition everywhere for every industry, companies are always interested in standing out among their competitors. Ninety-one percent of global consumers are likely to switch brands to one associated with a good cause. Brand image is important!
There are many reasons corporate partners feel motivated to sponsor nonprofits, so don’t assume all of your prospects have the same goals. Keep the lines of communication open, and ask your prospects directly what their goals and expectations of a partnership are so that you can customize a proposal they won’t be able to refuse.
How To Craft a Winning Pitch and Proposal
Rather than using a generic template, spend time putting together a comprehensive, articulate, and compelling pitch. Include an overview of your organization’s history and mission to highlight your common ground right from the start. You can usually send your pitches to the marketing department but check back with your internal stakeholders regarding any personal connections with decision-makers for more targeted outreach.
Outline exactly what’s in it for the corporation. Include the specific set of benefits tied to the contribution. Will there be a news conference or press release involved? How many social media mentions per week will you provide?
Some organizations prefer to outline sponsorship packages in predetermined categories such as the commonly used “Gold, Silver, Bronze” style of naming. Others prefer to offer a more customized pitch based on previous discussions with the prospect, their intended giving type and amount, and the specific promotion you’re offering in exchange. No matter how you go about it, be sure to include particular deliverables for both parties.
As far as deployment of your pitch, email subject lines with the word “video” can increase open rates by 6%. Include a video introduction to increase engagement and stand out! You can include testimonials from current or former sponsors highlighting their experience as well as testimonials from those who benefit from your organization’s mission. Invite your prospects to send a video themselves with any questions or initial thoughts they have with the video request feature from ThankView.
Traditional letters and phone calls are also effective outreach methods when cultivating your relationship with business owners and other local organizations. It’s essential to keep in mind that not all decision-makers will bite on the first call. Be sure to follow up regularly and stay in touch with regular updates on your organization’s progress or when additional sponsorship opportunities come up. While one event might not fit into their current marketing strategy, your next project may be a perfect fit.
Sustain Your New Sponsorships
After you’ve secured your corporate sponsors and your event or project has kicked off, be sure to send regular progress updates.
Sharing your progress will keep your corporate partners engaged and show them firsthand what you have accomplished with their partnership.
Once you’ve concluded your project, be sure to send out personalized thank you letters with a detailed review of how sponsoring your event or fundraiser made a difference.
Video is a great way to communicate updates fast without sacrificing the emotional appeal. Use video throughout your corporate sponsor recruitment, cultivation, and stewardship for a personalized approach to creating deeper corporate relationships. If you’re ready to improve the odds of securing your next corporate sponsorship, book a demo with our team today!