SHOW ME THE MONEY

WITH DAVE DEMER

EVERYONE IS THINKING ABOUT ROI, YOU SHOULD TOO!

Last month we covered prospecting, and how to find the right people to call on. Hopefully you’ve started making a giant list of potential new sponsors!

Assuming you get some meetings set up, what assets will you propose to them? It’s time to think about ROI: Not just their Return on Investment, but yours. Have I lost you?

We all know Time is Money. Every sponsor you bring on board and every asset you sell them takes time out of your and your teams’ schedule, which is money out of your pocket. I’m sure you’ve all had that moment with your head in your hands saying to yourself, “Why did I agree to X….. this is taking up so much time!”

In our push to get a cash commitment out of a sponsor, sometimes we fill the pitch with “stuff” …. Banners here, logos there, tickets for him, parking for her, etc. And sometimes the partner hasn’t even asked for those things. Yet they all take time to prepare and deliver.

It’s great to go above and beyond for those generous supporters, but I challenge you to think through the time that goes into each asset that you sell.

You might start by listing lots of potential assets on a whiteboard. Then think through the ones that take up the most time to deliver. It’s not like you won’t EVER sell those, but you might save them for the sponsors that invest the most with you.

I had a friend whose father owned a restaurant. When his Dad passed on the restaurant to him, he asked his Dad about his prices for each meal and where he got them. Dad said he just kind of made them up to what seemed fair.

My friend went through and weighed each food item on each dish and figured out how much it cost him to buy that exact amount of food. Then he looked at how long each item took to prepare and how much his kitchen staff cost per hour of operation.

That gave him a real hard cost to each menu item, and he could then do the math on what to charge, taking into account his costs AND his time.

Each of your assets deserve the same amount of analysis (without counting out how many French fries come out of one potato!)

Before the heavy sales pitches start, review what you’re selling, and make sure you’re asking for the amount of money that gives you a solid Return on Your Investment!

Dave Demer has been selling sponsorships for events of all shapes and sizes since 1993. In his 30+ years he’s picked up a trick or two to target, research, meet and close sponsors to the tune of millions of dollars. He’s been media, sports, special events and non-profits. He’s currently the Founder and President at The Event Shop (www.TheEventShop.com) a non-retainer based sponsorship sales firm. And on weekends, he still loves a great festival, concert or sporting event!