Hi everyone! Thinking caps on. I have two charitable musical tours coming up, both of which would benefit from sponsorship. One is an international services-related male voice choir; the other a talented classical genre keyboard duet.
I think both these talented musicians’ would benefit if they were sponsored by a business. For instance a newspaper or property developers. The sponsor/s would get considerable marketing spin-off. I would not have a problem identifying and approaching potential sponsors.
It is however a side of marketing that is new to me. I am trying to shorten the learning curve so I minimise problems. I am not sure how much to ask for and to what costs they might apply. Has anyone experience of sponsorship; or can anyone point me in the direction of someone who might have the answers? Cheers. An appreciative Michael.
Corporate sponsors will pick up the tab from everything even down to toilet roll on the tour bus! Smaller sponsors will only provide the necessities. I would seriously figure out what is required and then work out what is plausible to ask for depending on which potential sponsor you approach. I would have three lists of requests, one for small sponsors, one for medium etc etc you will then also need a proposal.
The proposal should include:
Details of venues
Size of audience for each venue
Estimated costs involved
Profit share (if any)
Details of any memorabillia that you plan to market at the event
Deatils of any competing sponsors (BE CAREFUL! Don’t try to target more than one sponsor in each field, e.g. Supersol AND Lidl. If they’re paying out for your expenses they WON’T compete.
Details of how popular the band/bands are and how many gigs they have done previously
Success of previous gigs
Estimated audience of previous gigs
Details of the charity/charities you’re representing via the event
Details of how many tickets have sold already, where and how you are selling tickets (if you are selling tickets)
Proof that you have applied for (and received) all licenses required
Details of why and how you think their sponsorship will benefit their company
What I will say is that you will struggle to find a sponsor for a specific gig, rather than a tour however they may be inclined to go ahead on the basis that they are charitable events, this will depend entirely on the mood the guy is in when you visit.
Be smart, presentable, punctual, timely and straight to the point. Be confident! Think Dragons den, this is EXACTLY how it will be.
