The Awards are coming and we’ve received exceptional levels of support from sponsors for this year’s event.
At NZ Compare we want our sponsors to get the very best results from their sponsorship activity, so we have pulled together a few tips and tricks to help maximise your return through sponsorship activation. By using an activation, you can transform your sponsorship opportunity into an integrated marketing program of its own that will improve awareness of your brand as well as boost sales before, during and after the awards event.
First off, the assets that you can supply which will help us increase coverage to both our B2B and B2C audiences. The aim is to be ‘asset rich’ so that we can utilize assets in a range of places.
Useful assets to prepare
•Logos – please supply logos in vector format, .eps , .ai pr .svg and ensure you provide them in colour (as normally marketed) and also white versions.
•Video content – video is key to explaining your offering to an audience in a concise, quick and attractive manner. On the night we will play your sponsor ‘sting’ to the audience and we can also share via website and social.
•Written content – a variety of written content opportunities exist and the more content you provide us with and create for your business the more opportunity there will be at exposure. Some ideas for written content pieces include;
oCompany Sponsor Profile – for both B2B and B2C readers
oContent piece – A case study or information piece about the services your business provides, the type of problem it is looking to solve or an associated ‘news’ piece.
•Consider associated competitions or giveaways to generate additional leads or enquiries with associated promotions. The halo effect of other brands, brand sponsors and brand association with other sponsors will bring associated benefits. A well-publicised register-to-win sweepstake will bring traffic and leads to your site. It will also generate sales leads before the event as well as during it. Distribute coupons and samples at the event to encourage sales after the event. By doing this, you will build a foundation for future business with attendees.
Your own activity and opportunities
You are a proud sponsor of the leading utility awards event in the country, contested by some of the biggest brands in New Zealand. So shout about it! Be proud of your sponsorship of the events and the category you are supporting. Consider some of the following;
•Regular social media posts to reinforce your sponsorship and support
•Press release - shout your sponsorship loud and proud. Why you have sponsored and how it celebrates your success and others
•Blog on your own sites – if you have created content for us to utilize then make the best use of it in your own assets, blog etc
•Email signatures – Your company email is seen by a wide range of people, a banner on your company auto signatures will reach far and wide – we can design this for you if required.
•As a sponsor your clients have access to discounted tickets for the event
•People’s Choice Award – The People’s choice category is incredibly popular and is a great way to reinforce your support of your category and give you reason to communicate to the wider public and customer base.
As mentioned above, social and regular activity is key. Think, or speak to your marketing team or an agency, about the best ways to creatively capture audiences to achieve key objectives. While it is difficult to get a sponsorship activation 100% right first time, the key to ensuring you get it right sooner rather than later is by ensuring you have put into place a proper set of evaluation metrics to help track the returns from your sponsorship and measure success.
•Track leads or enquiries with ‘where did you hear about us?’ questions in Customer enquiry forms
•Unique referral links of UTM codes for online traffic through referral links
As with all good sponsorship, objectives need to be set at the start. From those objectives come an activation strategy and ideally at that point, an activation budget. That budget will vary dependent on the objectives. It will depend on the type of sponsorship, and on the target audience. It will also depend on the length of the contract. It will depend on myriad factors. There just can be no ‘typical’.
The decision to invest in sponsorship is never taken lightly and we hugely appreciate your support of the NZ Compare Awards and are confident we’ll provide a valuable return. Sponsorship that successfully puts your target audience first, is on brand and has clear objectives as well as a strong activation strategy will ensure you see a healthy return on investment and impressed stakeholders.
The events team at NZ Compare is here to help – so don’t hesitate to get in touch.