Sponsorships can apply to every volleyball club, but it takes the strategy to implement them. Here are some steps to get you started.
Define the Type of Sponsorships
There are two types of sponsorships that your club can seek:
- Club Sponsorship: A club sponsorship is about visibility in the community and at events. Clubs can do a lot to raise their profile in the community through charity, social media and competing in local events. Building relationships in the community, schools and recreation departments is a great step toward creating opportunities for sponsorships.
- Event Sponsorship: Not all clubs run big events, but many at least run some smaller tournaments or in-house leagues. A club does not need to be large to run events. Make sure you have information to provide a potential event sponsor, such as event dates, location, number of teams and number of spectators). If this is a new event, you will need to estimate, but don’t overestimate. If this is a reoccurring event, use your analytics from last year.
Encourage your staff and coaches to share their connections with you. Your coaches and staff can be your most valuable resource when seeking sponsorships.
Establish the Type of Sponsor
- Local Business: This type of sponsor is likely looking for more foot traffic and new local clientele for their business. If you host an event, offer this sponsor a booth to display information and offer a contest or give-aways.
- National/Regional Level Sponsor: This type of sponsor is typically looking for an association with the club, visibility on marketing material, the club website, newsletters, etc. Provide the sponsor with the size of your mailing lists so they know how many readers and followers will be seeing their logo, and the potential number of direct clicks to the sponsor’s website. If the sponsor will have branding on your teams’ uniforms or club name, let the sponsor know how many tournaments your teams will attend, the size of those tournaments, where your club name and uniform will appear, and how frequently it will appear.
Negotiate a Sponsorship
Regardless or whether it is a club sponsor or event sponsor, or both, there are two ways for your club to negotiate a sponsorship.
- Direct Sponsorship: the sponsor pays money to have its’ name associated with the event or club.Here’s a recommendation of how much direct sponsorship dollars your club can strive for based on your size:120 Athletes / 10 Teams: $10,000 worth of sponsorship240 Athletes / 20 Teams: $25,000 worth of sponsorship
360 Athletes / 30 Teams: $50,000 worth of sponsorship
480 Athletes / 40 Teams: $75,000 worth of sponsorship
- In-Kind Sponsorship: the sponsor absorbs certain expenses that the club would be incurring. For example, a local restaurant could offer complimentary meals to the coaches or staff or catering at events. A hotel can offer free hotel rooms to entice clubs to send their teams to your event.
When presenting to sponsors, it is about understanding what is good for each side.
Define the Sponsorship
Once you decide what kind of sponsorships to establish and seek, the next steps is to clearly define two elements:
- Win-Win: Define what each party will gain/receive.
- Quid Pro Quo: Define what each party will provide or do for the other. In other terms, define the action items.
It is recommended to negotiate all sponsorships for at least one year. This gives you time to make it work on both sides. Many clubs make the mistake of creating a sponsorship only around the club season. A year gives you time to show and gain value in the offseason, as well as during the season. Most businesses do not have a season; they are always trying to gain business, and get exposure.
LinkedIn has become a primary mechanism for building relationships with current sponsors and potential sponsors. Businesses use Linked as a marketing tool, and it can be a great networking resource for club directors and coaches.
For related reading for club directors Click HERE. For more business education, visit the JVA Member Resources.
About the Author
This article was co-written by Briana Schunzel, JVA Director of Marketing, Education and Partner Development, and the late Phil Bush, a Sales, Marketing and Strategic Planning Consultant with MavRen Marketing in Atlanta, Georgia.
Phil was one of the Founders of A5, a JVA Member Volleyball Club catering to young players from age of 8 to 18. The Club grew rapidly in the Atlanta area to become one of the Premier Youth Sports organizations in Club Volleyball anywhere in United States.
Phil was one of the Founders of A5, a Volleyball Club catering to young players from age of 8 to 18. The Club grew rapidly in the Atlanta area to become one of the Premier Youth Sports organizations in Club Volleyball anywhere in United States.
