Scary economy dos and don’ts for sponsorship seekers : : Kim Skildum-Reid's Corporate Sponsorship Blog

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I’m Kim Skildum-Reid, I’ve been doing sponsorship for about twenty-four or so years, and I really love it. I’m also never short of an opinion, idea, story, or rant, so the fact that I have a blog is a good thing. Otherwise, my poor husband would bear the brunt of it, and as a builder, he really couldn’t give a rat’s bum.

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Scary economy dos and don’ts for sponsorship seekers

Posted on 6 October 08 by Kim Skildum-Reid

Equal time for sponsorship seekers! Here are some quick scary economy dos and don’ts.

Scary economy dos

Do take the opportunity to reinvent – You have never had a better time (or better excuse) to work with your sponsors to reinvent their investments so they get a stronger result.

Do stay flexible – If a different set of benefits will help your sponsors get a better result, be prepared to swap them out.

Do stay positive – Sponsors are still going to be investing sponsorship, but they are likely to be more careful about it. This is your big opportunity to reinvent your own approach to developing offers, making them stand out from the crowd and making you look like a real strategic winner. (You may want to take a look at The Sponsorship Seeker’s Toolkit 3^rd Edition for a running start on changing your approach.)

Scary economy don’ts

Don’t rely on sponsorship growth – Your sponsorship income may grow in the next year or so, but there is every chance it won’t. You need to look into other revenue streams and reassess your budget, just in case.

Don’t go for guilt – Putting a guilt trip on a sponsor is not going to make them renew. It’s just going to tick them off.

Don’t take it personally – Sponsors are not asking for more and/or exiting because they are trying to hurt you. They are under as much stress as you are.