Sponsorship is crucial for any sports club. It enables clubs to cover the costs of running club activities, purchase equipment, build facilities, develop players, pay coaches, provide key services for local communities, and much more. With limited funding available from government or local authorities, sponsorship provides a valuable source of revenue for clubs and with rising costs, it is a key tool for club revenues. Additionally, sponsorship can help raise the profile of clubs within their local communities, attracting new members and supporters. Without sponsorship, many amateur sports clubs would struggle to operate and provide opportunities for people to participate in sports.
In the current climate, sponsors (local businesses) seek more than just their name on a sign or on a jersey, they seek a return on their investment. Think of it as more of a partnership and how both parties mutually benefit. Understanding this new dynamic will help your club sponsorship revenues grow! A partnership with a local sports team can bring many benefits to a business, including:
Increased brand awareness: A business can get its brand in front of a large and engaged audience helping increase brand recognition and awareness in the local community and leading to sales for them.
Positive association: Sponsorship of a local sports team can help a business build a positive association with the community helping improve the perception of the business and improve their green credentials.
Targeted marketing: A local sports team sponsorship can help businesses reach their target audiences, such as families or sports enthusiasts, more effectively and accurately.
Cost-effective advertising: Sponsorship of a local sports team can be more cost-effective than other forms of advertising, such as radio, TV, online, social media, or print ads. Digital sponsorships partnerships can be tracked and measured accurately and linked directly to a sale or a call to action, the holy grail for your sponsors (more on this below).
Employee engagement: It can help boost employee morale and engagement by giving them opportunities to get involved in community events and activities, as well as attracting talented employees for the clubs or local community.
When seeking new sponsor partnerships or renewing with a long-time sponsor, you need to show them how you intend to offer them value past a pitch side banner which offers limited value to businesses. A simple way to do this is to package your offering into three groups: Physical, Club Gear, and Digital.
Physical Partnerships Assets: These are physical displays of the club's partnership with a business. These include pitch-side banners, physical material distributed to club members, and even on club equipment. They are hard for a sponsor to quantify the return on investment that they will get from this.
Club Gear: Includes all clothing worn by players jerseys, members and supporters. Clubs should streamline and control all club gear to maintain consistency in what is worn in order to generate a larger sponsorship deal. Your main sponsor will get preference for the front of the jersey sponsor, and logo on all club gear. You can also boost your sponsorship revenue by offering lower-value sponsorship options to other businesses for the back of jerseys and sleeves.
Digital Partnerships Assets: In the modern era of club sponsorship, digital assets are like gold for businesses and will get their attention. This includes social media presence and inclusion in digital communications. ClubSpot’s in-app sponsorship feature offers high value to potential sponsors. Placed on a club's very own club mobile app, it allows the sponsor to be at the forefront of members' eyes and can also be clicked on linking potential customers directly to a sponsor's website for a purchase or other call to action. It provides a cost-effective, tailored and targeted marketing approach, enabling sponsors to reach their desired audience more effectively.
Members whose club use ClubSpot’s club management platform are visiting their club's own club-branded mobile app on average twice per week per member. A measurable statistic in your quest for more money from your sponsor!
By leveraging digital sponsorship channels, such as social media and in-app platforms, businesses and sports clubs can engage with their fans, and members (who are valuable potential customers for sponsors) on a more personal level, building strong relationships that can translate into increased brand loyalty and ultimately sales. Digital sponsorship also offers a broader reach, enabling businesses and sports clubs to expand their audience and attract new fans and customers in a measurable way. You can’t click a jersey and open up a sponsor's website!
Check out HWH Bunclody’s in-app sponsorship with their local O’Reilly’s SuperValu and how quick and easy it is to buy your shopping.
Also, check out the Ballyhaise GAA App and how their partnership with McBreen Environmental allows members to go directly in to book a residential service from McBreen while massively increasing the business's local awareness and goodwill.
If you would like to know more about boosting your club's sponsorship revenue and to receive a free sponsorship presentation template, contact us today at info@clubspot.app or call us on 087 3809143. We’ll also let you know how one of our clubs increased its sponsorship revenue by 400% using this presentation template and the ClubSpot club management platform.