We love what we do.
We provide advice to brands and properties wanting to achieve the best results with sponsorship.
We really love when clients find more success after our work together.
Some clients know a lot about sponsorship but want expert help in a narrow area. Other clients come to sponsorship for the first time, needing wide-ranging assistance in making sponsorship work as part of their marketing plan. Regardless of their experience level, we have seen enough to separate the successful clients from those who minimize their potential.
A manifesto is a public declaration of opinions on a subject. This CHARGE manifesto represents our views, developed over twenty-five years, on what we believe about successful sponsors.
At CHARGE, we believe:
Successful sponsors choose sponsorship strategically.
Before any sponsorship opportunity, the successful sponsor has already vetted sponsorship as a marketing platform. It’s a choice based on organization strategy and marketing opportunity. Successful sponsors don’t choose sponsorship on a personal whim or because a particular opportunity happened to present itself.
Successful sponsors identify their goals first.
Successful sponsors know exactly what they want to get out of it and how to measure if they’ve succeeded. They don’t panic after the first year when “the boss” asks for a report on results. Successful sponsors confidently assemble the KPIs they identified at the outset of the sponsorship. Then, they smile.
Successful sponsors dedicate financial and personnel resources to sponsorship.
Before selecting or negotiating specific opportunities, the successful sponsor has already allocated money in its budget for rights fees and leverage activities. These sponsors also designate prepared staff to negotiate and manage relationships because sponsorship is as essential to their marketing goals as any other platform.
Successful sponsors do their homework.
Successful sponsors do their homework before building sponsorships. Their confidence comes from preparation and specific sponsorship knowledge and not experience negotiating “other big marketing deals.” Successful sponsors don’t merely “go with their gut.” With their practice, successful sponsors know the going rate for rights fees and all the relevant contract terms before the deal is even discussed.
Successful sponsors do their own research.
Successful sponsors appreciate data from their property partners. However, they always do their own research to verify if the sponsorship works for them.
Successful sponsors dedicate time to building the sponsorship relationship.
Successful sponsors know that return on investment follows investments of time. They invest the time to work closely with the rightsholder’s team to maximize value, brainstorm new opportunities, and solve any and every problem as they arise. These investments nearly always yield benefit.
Successful sponsors are in it for the long-term.
Successful sponsors recognize that sponsorship is a learning process that takes time. Mistakes will be made and corrected. Overlooked opportunities will be discovered and exploited. The successful sponsors build their most robust relationships over time. For this reason, they shun one-off bargain deals or short-term plays.
Over time, we’ve learned that our advice works best with clients who share our beliefs. If you feel the same way about sponsorship, we will enjoy comparing notes. Contact us to schedule a call.
