The Value of Strong Corporate Support

Sponsorships for your event are fundamental to its success. They are the largest potential source of event funding for your organization, and if done strategically, they can make it so that the hard costs of your event are paid for before guests arrive.

Then everything you raise the day of your event can go to supporting your good work.

Sponsors can also be great partners for your event. If activated well, they may participate in a variety of ways including providing volunteers for the event planning, in-kind printing services, gifts for your guests, etc.

They can be so much more than just a check.

At the heart of successful sponsorship solicitation is a good relationship. Sponsors say ‘yes’ because they value your work and it’s in line with their guidelines, but they also say ‘yes’ because they know you and get something out of being a part of your event.

This year’s Grimm Gala, a benefit for Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, is a great example of how a pivotal sponsor can be a fantastic partner and help make a successful event happen. Sasha Roiz from the cast of the television show “Grimm” wanted to find a way to raise money to support families taking care of their children at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital. He came up with the idea of the Grimmster Endowment supported by the Grimm Gala.

The well-cultivated relationship between Sasha and Comcast around the television show, made it possible for him to ask them to underwrite the event. But their role went beyond a financial one because of that well-cultivated relationship.

Comcast came to the table to help plan the event as well, supporting its development throughout the planning process. The company used its media leverage to help get coverage of the event and brought other sponsor partners to the table as supporters. They even donated coffee mugs as takeaways from the event which facilitated a branding opportunity for Comcast and a value-add for guests. At the event, Comcast’s logo as the presenting sponsor was woven into the event visuals, appearing on the step and repeat where guests posed with characters from “Grimm” and on the program PowerPoints.

There was a nice, and successful, symbiosis at work. This kind of activation and cultivation enabled everyone to walk away feeling successful, and helped the event to raise a lot of money for a great cause.