"Magic Pill" for Getting Sponsors

Getting sponsors is easy if you have all the right procedures and resources in place. Many people feel that it is extremely hard to get sponsors, because they have tried and failed.  You must realize that if everyone could do it they would. Getting sponsors is tough. It takes the right combination of:

• Resources You need to start

Many people do not realize all that is involved in the beginning to sell good sponsorships. Understanding the lingo or terminology is a good place to start. With a good understanding of the terms in this business you will get a brief, basic outline of the bare minimum that is needed to successfully sell sponsorships to big corporations with great products and services. In it's simplest form this can begin by asking yourself the Who? What? When? Where? How? and Whys? of your sponsorship.

• The types of people looking for sponsors

A. People looking for the "magic pill" because they have no money

B. The ones looking for sponsors and they have money, but no time.

C. The ones with no time and no money and they want you to work for commission(free) to get them sponsors. They have no clue how to begin. They believe it is as easy as knowing the right people and poof!!! People give you money. They do not realize there is a lot more involved.

D. The people that have tried and failed and understand the pain of gate-keepers, committees, and budget cuts.

• having the right thing to sell to sponsors.

You have to have something to sell that adds value to the sponsors brand.  Make the person making the decision look good.  Everyone likes to look good.  It is a basic human emotion.

• understanding what sponsors want to buy

What sponsors want to buy depends on the person making the decision. It is not about you or your sponsorship opportunity. It is about their company, the underlying causes for why they need you to help them and how this effects them emotionally in terms of personal pain, fear, or gain.

• understanding how sponsors buy

People do not like to get sold to or "pitched" to, despite what other people say. Selling a sponsorship is all about helping people buy from you. You can never sell a sponsorship and expect to have a happy customer afterwords. No one likes to be sold to. Think about it. How did you go about making your last big decision? Do you like to be sold to? What steps did you have to go through before you decided it was right to buy?

• how to keep sponsors happy so they buy from you again.

Now is the time to make sure you have a good relationship with your sponsor. This is a great time to make sure you over-delivered and helped them see how great your sponsorship really is/was for their brand. Help them see how you are their trusted advisor and that "you have their backs," especially in and when the going gets rough.  If it does get rough, help them understand how you will both communicate if it does

This begins a series of articles in which I will share with the readers of Hub Pages how you can get sponors for your needs. We hope you enjoy it and see it's value in your profit or non-profit business. Feel free to give us feedback. Tell us what you like and do not like about these articles. They are for your benefit.