Virtual Event Sponsorship: Creating Valuable Partner Opportunities in Online Events

Pack sponsorship offerings with value and secure sponsor dollars with these best practices

A well-planned event sponsorship delivers exponential ROI for both the event host and sponsor. Recognizable sponsors boost an event’s credibility and perceived importance in the marketplace, while sponsoring an event puts the sponsoring brand in front of a highly-curated target audience.

Not all sponsor opportunities are created equal though. Learn to tailor online event sponsorship packages to the needs of targeted sponsors to engage the most coveted partners.

Why brands invest in sponsorship

Marketers typically invest in sponsorship opportunities for one or more of these reasons:

• Increase brand awareness
• Drive leads and sales
• Show thought leadership
• Connect with customers

The number one reason a sponsor will invest in your event, however is that you are able to quantify and communicate a strong value proposition. A prospectus that shows potential sponsors who event attendees are and how they align with audience(s) the sponsor is trying to reach should be a top priority in sponsorship planning.

Opportunities to increase brand awareness

Sponsors looking to build brand awareness want opportunities for logo placement and link placements to their company or product info. The more highly-visible and exclusive the placement, the more valuable it will be to a sponsor who wants their brand aligned with your event. Online events are packed with opportunities for sponsor branding. Consider these popular placements: 

• Event website pre-event
• Pre-event social tiles announcing sponsors
• Include in footer of event emails to attendees 
• Event platform landing page banner on event day
• Transitional graphics between live stream speakers
• Dedicated sponsor message shared in your social channels

Opportunities to drive leads and sales

Sponsors will take an interest in your online event if it offers their sales and marketing team the ability to directly demo products and services and collect leads from attendees. If your targeted sponsors are motivated by lead capture, consider hosting a virtual exhibit hall as part of the online experience. Virtual sponsor booths can include:

• Digital signage
• Product info downloads
• On-demand videos 
• Product demos
• Live chat with sales reps
• Access to list of attendees

Opportunities to show thought leadership

Brands want to participate in their industry’s thought leadership conversations and include their  solutions as part of the discussion. Offer online sponsorship opportunities that let participating brands show off their thought-leadership as complementary to your’s.

• Sponsor & staff a birds-of-a-feather live chat
• Participate in a relevant session or panel discussion
• Present a session in a dedicated “partners” track
• Participate in a solution demo

Opportunities to connect with customers

Sponsors want to make personal connections with members of your community as they are taking in new ideas and products. Consider the following opportunities for participating sponsors to start their own conversation with attendees:

• Send a dedicated sponsor email to registered attendees pre-event
• Send out a sponsored push notification during the event
• Participate in attendee-to-sponsor meeting scheduling 
• Access to the list of attendees post-event

Ready to start planning your virtual event ? Contact Shiloh to get started today.