Fundraising Tips: How to get the most out of your sponsors

How do you make sure you are getting the most from sponsors and attendees? With our fundraising tips of course!

Donations can form a big part of an event’s budget. However, keeping sponsors and attendees happy whilst persuading them to open their wallets can seem like a tricky task. Nevertheless, with our fundraising tips, you’ll see that there are ways to make it seem like donating is a good idea. Not only that, but a good event manager will be able to show that sponsorship benefits both parties.

Here are six fundraising tips to help you get larger donations:

1. What are your prospective sponsors’ objectives?

Find out what your sponsors’ marketing objectives are and then provide them before they have even brought them up. This shows you’ve done your homework and you are dedicated to their brand. For instance, offer them exclusivity if this is what they always insist on. Promote the good cause that they are aligned with. Or, how about, giving them prime exposure during the event? All of this shows due diligence on your part. Not only that but it also makes you look professional.

2. Make it easy for them to donate instantly

Donating money is typically an emotional reaction. Usually, something touches the heart and you feel compelled to donate. That moment, unfortunately, passes quickly. It is your job to ensure you capitalise on that the moment. So that the instant it is felt your sponsors or attendees can quickly and easily donate. Make sure you provide an app or a page with a link to how to donate. Don’t make it too difficult before the moment has passed.

3. Target the right people

Don’t spend valuable time and money chatting to the junior teaboy who has just started in the office and couldn’t make a budgeting decision if you paid him. Make sure you know exactly who makes the decisions and target them. For instance, in some companies it is the marketing team, in others, it is the CEO. Whereas in some firms you’ll have to speak to community relations.

4. Know your donors

Companies launching a new product will carry out market research to establish whether it is likely to be a success. Likewise, you should research your donors to find out about them. This allows you to connect with them, to know where their objectives lie and what their ultimate goals are.

5. Create the right offer

Once you had got to know your donors you are then in a position to create the right package deal for them. Give them specific goals and create targets that can be measured in terms of progress. This will give them a sense of control over the whole event. Show them the benefits of sponsoring your event and highlight how your success will impact on theirs.

6. Use their own language to persuade them

To conclude our article on fundraising tips we’d like to finish on human behaviour. In particular, body language. Studies have shown that if you mirror someone’s behaviour they are more likely to like you. Not only that, but they are more likely to agree with what you are saying too. This also applies to language. So by using a sponsor’s own language, this will resonate with them in an unconscious level. They’ll feel an affinity with you that they don’t even realise. All of this makes them more amenable to your suggestions.