Episode 40: Corporate Sponsorship

Most nonprofits go about corporate sponsorships the wrong way; they focus on programs, themselves or the organization. Corporate sponsorships have very little to do with programs and a whole lot with marketing benefits. Learn the secret sauce to securing corporate sponsors.

LINKS:

Google for NonProfits
YouTube NonProfit Program

NONPROFIT SPOTLIGHT: Entertainment Industry Foundation

Podcast Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):

Welcome to On Air with Amber Wynn, where nonprofit leaders learned to fuse passion and commitment with proven business strategies to create long-term funding, impact, and sustainability. And now here's your host and resident Philanthrepreneur Amber Wynn. 

Speaker 2 (00:23):

Hey fam, it's Amber Wynn, and I am back talking about the one thing that gets me excited at 10:30 in the morning, and that is money. Funding your nonprofit organization is something that I can do with my eyes closed, and I want you to be great at it. Not just good, not just okay, but great. Because the more money you have, then the more options you have, right? You have more money, you can expand your programs, you have more money, then you can increase salaries, you have more money, you can just do more in your community. So my focus as a fund developer, right, is to help you strengthen your fundraising strategy. Today's episode is talking about corporate sponsorships. Now, there's a secret behind corporate sponsorships that I don't think a lot of nonprofits know about. And today I am going to share it with you. But first, we're gonna break for a quick commercial. But when we come back, I'm gonna share some insider tips, tricks and trades about corporate sponsorships. Be right back. 

Speaker 4 (01:32):

Nonprofits are building a better future for everyone. Whether your organization focuses on bringing clean and safe drinking water to everyone on the planet, or caring for people in your local community. Nonprofits like yours are making a difference every single day. But nonprofits also face a unique set of challenges, how to manage volunteers and operations on a limited budget. How to raise awareness about your organization and mission through storytelling and how to drive more engagement from donors to fundraise for your nonprofit. We believe that every nonprofit should be able to focus more energy on making an impact. Our mission at Google for Nonprofits is to equip nonprofits with the best of Google tools at no charge in more than 60 countries around the world. 

Speaker 4 (02:26):

Your nonprofit can collaborate and communicate more effectively with smart, secure business apps from Google Workspace. With Gmail, your nonprofit employees and volunteers can send email from your nonprofits’ custom domain. Teams can stay connected from different locations by using Google Meet and Chat, and you can access and collaborate on documents from anywhere with Google Drive to increase your productivity so you can spend more time serving your cause or community. Through Google for nonprofits eligible organizations can receive free advertising to run ads on Google search with ad grants. Ad grants enables your organization to appear in ads on Google search. When someone's searching for topics related to your mission, your nonprofit can receive free advertising to raise awareness, reach donors and recruit volunteers. Tell the story of your organization through video to create an emotional connection to your cause. With YouTube, nonprofits can expand their audience, reach new supporters, and connect viewers to their mission. And finally, imagine that your donors and supporters could see exactly where their donations are making a difference. With Google Earth and Maps, nonprofits can create compelling custom maps that help tell their story to the world. Nonprofits are changing the world. We are here to help. Learn more at google.com/nonprofits.

Speaker 3 (04:05):

And we’re back. You're On Air with Amber Wynn, resident philanthrepreneur and all things nonprofit if I can just keep it real. I don't toot my horn that often, but when I do toot toot, Hey <laugh>. So today we are talking about strengthening your fundraising strategy through corporate sponsorships. Now, I'm just gonna keep it real with you. Nine times outta 10 when I ask a non-profit, Well, you should be doing corporate sponsorships. It's like, Oh yeah, I'm doing that. It just doesn't work. I'm like, Let me see what you did. I look at their corporate sponsorship package and the focus is off, right? They'll have things like they're talking about themselves. Here's what I did. I started the nonprofit 20 years ago. I, I, I, I. Or they're focusing on the programs. The kids do this and the seniors do that. That's not what corporate sponsorships is about. In order for you to have a successful corporate sponsorship campaign, it's really important that you understand the end game. 

Speaker 3 (05:10):

The purpose of corporate sponsorships is marketing. How many eyeballs can you get this corporation's brand in front of? That's really what they're concerned about. I love corporate sponsorships because it is marketing money. With grant money there's deliverables, there’s reports, there's all of this. With corporate sponsorships or marketing money is really just about impressions. How many people can you get that would align with their business? They don't want, if they're selling tide detergent or whatever, they're not really looking for kids. They're looking for women or men who purchase groceries in the house. So you wanna make sure whoever you serve or whoever's gonna come to your event is gonna be their ideal client. That's a good match, right?. For example, like a copier company, you wanna say. So the people who are gonna be at this event are responsible for budgets totaling over $30 million. They have the decision authority to write that check and select who they're going to use for their copier machine. 

Speaker 3 (06:24):

So that's what corporate sponsorships are about. Corporations sponsor organizations because they wanna look good to their potential audience. They make profit, lots of profit, but especially in this day and age with millennials, there is research out there that says 85% of millennials today say that they won't support a company if they aren't good social responsible corporations. That means that they are in the community. So you wanna understand that too and put that in your corporate package. You don't wanna focus on things that they don't care about. I'm not saying that they don't care about your programs, kinda I am saying that, but you wanna make sure you focus on the things that they're interested in, which is what's gonna make them look good? 

Speaker 3 (07:14):

What's the value in sponsoring this event? How many people are gonna be there? What type of people are gonna be there? So that type of information is really what you wanna focus on, and it's a lot. But when you understand what you're doing, then it makes sense. So the marketing benefits, the benefits are things like the step in repeat space on your website. You're going to send out an e-blast saying, Hey, we'd like to thank this corporate sponsor for supporting this event, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, those types of things. And if you're not sure what to put in you can always visit my website, www.amberwynn.net and I have a corporate sponsorship template there that you can check out. But again, when we talk about diversifying your funding streams, every nonprofit should have how many funding streams? 10. A minimum of 10. And your corporate sponsors, your corporate sponsorships should be one of them. 

Speaker 3 (08:22):

Marketing money. I'm not gonna say easy money. I'm gonna say less complicated because remember, the deliverable is what your event is going to do. There's not gonna be any reports. They're gonna write you a check. But I also wanna just point out really quickly that there's three parts to a corporate sponsorship package. That's the other thing. One is the introductory introductory letter that's introducing what your organization about what the high level benefits are. Two is the actual donorship levels where you break down if you come in as a title sponsor, gold, silver, bronze. And then the third part that most nonprofits, especially the small, smaller ones, don't really realize is the corporate sponsorship agreement. That agreement is the legal document that says, You give us this money, this is what you're gonna get in return. And you break down all of the marketing benefits. You talk about how you can use their logo and the term of the commitment without this one, it's really hard cuz that's really what they give to their accounting department so they can write that check. So there are three parts to the corporate sponsorship and the focus should primarily be about marketing. All right, So let's pause for a minute for another quick break. And when we come back, we're going to jump into Ask Amber, questions from you, my community. Be back in a minute. 

Speaker 5 (09:49):

Are you a nonprofit organization with 501(c)(3) status? Are you using video to promote your cause and attract donors? If you answered yes to both of these questions, then the YouTube nonprofit program was created, especially for you. The YouTube nonprofit program allows you to activate your cause, broadcast a compelling story, and launch an effective campaign via YouTube. The program gives nonprofits access to YouTube tools that most users don't get, an embedded donate button, call to action overlays, annotations live streaming, and access to a community forum. So take advantage of this program for your nonprofit and you can really see the results in your video and overall communications. 

Speaker 3 (10:30):

Welcome back. You're On Air with Amber Wynn, Philanthrepreneur, and today we're talking about strengthening your fundraising strategy through corporate sponsorships. Before the break, I told you you could go to my website, www.amberwynn.net, and there I have a workbook on corporate sponsorships and it has all of the templates that you can use to guide you through creating an effective corporate sponsorship package. Right now I have a question that I think is pretty relevant to what we're talking about today, and it was sent to me by Maria. Maria is out of Harthorne. Hey. Hey. And this is her question. Hello, this is Maria from Harthorne. My question for Amber is how do I set the financial levels for my corporate sponsorship package? Thanks. Thank you, Maria. And it's a very good question because people will set these random amounts. Gold is a hundred dollars, silver is 50, and first of all, that's too low. 

Speaker 3 (11:36):

The way to set your financial levels for your corporate sponsorship packages is base it off of your budget. This is why I tell you, having an accurate budget is essential for your fundraising strategy. If your budget is, let's just say $250,000 in your corporate sponsorship packages start at a thousand dollars, how does that help you? Yes, you've got some money coming in, but the purpose of fundraising is to cover your budget, but you have to know what your budget is. So be sure to go back and look at a previous episode when I talk about the budget. But that's the primary document you're gonna use to help set your financial levels. The formula that I tend to use is you want to try and cover all of the costs of your programs using your sponsorship levels. Let me give you an example. If it costs $25,000 to put on a program, then you wanna make sure that you have your levels set to cover that. 

Speaker 3 (12:40):

So maybe the platinum level would be $5,000. The gold level would be $1500 and so forth. But totaled altogether, if you just get one corporate sponsor from each one of those levels, it's going to equal $25,000. So now from this event, you've at least covered your programs and you have the other funding sources, right? You've got 10. So this one is gonna cover your programs, but you've got other programs that's gonna help to cover your salaries. So one event is not gonna cover your budget unless you are just like the bomb. I'm not saying that you're not, but that typically doesn't happen. But you want to have a diversified stream of funding sources that's gonna help you cover all of these varying expenses in your organization. So thank you Maria. That was an excellent question. And if you guys aren't certain, you can always take a look at my corporate sponsorship template. 

Speaker 3 (13:43):

It explains that you know how to back into using your budget to actually come up with the funding level. So take a look at my website and the corporate sponsorship template there and it'll walk you through it. But now is time for Nonprofit Spotlight, and that's where I have the opportunity to put a spotlight on the most amazing people on the face of this earth. It's nonprofit Founders and Executive Directors. I mean, when I say that, y'all know I've been an Executive Director, right? Yeah. Been there, done that. And I tip my hat. And it's one of the reasons why I work so hard to support you, cuz I know the sacrifices that you make to do the work that you do in the community. So today on Nonprofit Spotlight, we are going to focus on Entertainment Industry Foundation. EIF was founded in 1942, and it's a multifaceted organization that occupies a unique space in the world of philanthropy by mobilizing and leveraging the powerful voice and creative talents of the entertainment industry, as well as cultivating the supportive organization, both public and private, and philanthropists committed to social responsibility. EIF builds awareness and raises funds and develops and enhances program on the local, national, and global levels to facilitate positive social change. Let's check out EIF. 

Speaker 6 (15:21):

Since 1943, the Entertainment Industry Foundation has been amplifying awareness and support for causes like these. To learn more, please visit eifcares.org. 

Speaker 3 (15:44):

Thank you EIF. What I like about EIF is they've created an organization that supports multiple causes. Sometimes people feel like they have to start a nonprofit and then they stick with this cause I'm gonna do a whole segment on donor advised funds. But a lot of times you can make more of an impact by bringing together different funding sources. Like let's just say you and a couple of your girlfriends get together and they decide, This month we're gonna support this organization. Next month we're gonna support that organization. You don't necessarily have to start a non-profit and just do that. You can make a difference by bringing together like-minded people and supporting organizations who already are established and need your help. I'm going to do an episode just on that, but EIF made me think about that. So thank you EIF, because you're definitely making a difference in different organizations lives. 

Speaker 3 (16:46):

Now it is time for Mindset Minute. That's when I share with you just some of the crazy things that be going on in my head. Y'all just don't know. I have all types of ideas that just pop up in my head and sometimes I get them out. And today we're gonna talk about you. You and if you do your research, why is that important? Well, we're talking today about corporate sponsorships and people will just mimic what they see, right? You start your nonprofit and you see that someone is doing a gala and you'll do a gala not really understanding what's going on in the background. So you may honor somebody who can't fill up the tables, and that's the purpose of a gala. By the way. You wanna honor somebody, let's just say in Disney or in the record industry, who can fill up those tables. 

Speaker 3 (17:41):

If you honor Amber Wynn, you gonna get Amber Wynn and her two boys. That is not the purpose of a gala. So for corporate sponsorships, my question is, did you do the homework? The homework is understanding funding cycles. Corporations set their budgets in the fall between September, October, November. It's important that you understand that because when you are creating your corporate sponsorship package, you need to create it some time in March, April, right? You wanna create it in March, April, get it approved by the board, send it out in May. Cuz now between May, June, July, you're making calls, you're talking to people, and let me just tell you, marketing people have high turnovers. So you may have the contact right now and they're like, Oh, I'm not responsible for that. So the whole summer you're trying to find the right person. 

Speaker 3 (18:37):

Once you find that right person, now you gotta make them excited about this event. Now you gotta get them engaged. Now you gotta get them so inspired that they go back and they say, Hey, we wanna get this organization in our budget. So that's gonna take between June, July and August. August. You wanna know you're in that budget because sometimes the budgets are set September, sometimes October, November, but it's in the fall. This is important. This is why you need to do your research because I have people say, Oh, I'm gonna do an event in the spring. Well, are you in the budget? No, I'm gonna start sending out packages. Oh, honey, it's too late. So you've put forth all of this energy and you don't get the results, and then you get discouraged and then you come to me and say, Oh, I've tried to do corporate sponsorships. 

Speaker 3 (19:24):

They don't work. No, they work. You just didn't do your research to find out that you need to get your corporate sponsorships out a year before in the spring. Do the work in the summer. So I keep saying to you guys, you can't make things up as you go along. You need to understand the nonprofit sector. Don't worry, I'm here to share it with you, but you gotta do your part. And in this Mindset Minute, doing your part means doing the research. All right, So that's all I got for my Mindset Minute. That's all I have for this episode. We have been talking about strengthening your funding strategy through corporate sponsorships. If you're interested in putting together a really effective corporate sponsorship, check out my templates that I have. You can find them at www.amberwynn.net. And if you enjoyed or thought this episode was very helpful, could help someone in your community, be sure to share. Be sure to subscribe and be sure to check me out next week cuz you know I'm gonna be here. I'm gonna be here because I'm here to support you. And until next week, you be sure to take care of yourself, like you take care of your community. See you next time. 

Speaker 1 (20:42):

Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe and leave a review on iTunes. Head over to www.amberwynn.net/podcast for the links and resources mentioned in today's podcast. See you next time.