Marketing is a huge (and complex) industry.
The ultimate goal of marketing is always to sell, but the road to getting there, and executing it can look very different. Some marketing strategies focus on driving immediate sales, whereas others focus on long-term strategies that lead to loyal and devoted fans.
With the rise of the internet and social media, the marketing landscape has changed drastically.
One marketing method that brands use, which has increased even more in popularity as the internet and social media with all its forms,has come around, is sponsorship deals.
Let’s look closer at how brands can use sponsorship deals in their marketing, and how it can help boost a brand’s recognition.
What is a sponsorship deal?
According to Wikipedia, ”Sponsorship is a cash and/or in-kind fee paid to a property (typically in sports, arts, entertainment or causes) in return for access to the exploitable commercial potential associated with that property.”
With that said, the topic is quite broad and covers a lot.
But at its core, a sponsorship is, in a way very similar to influencer marketing. The purpose of sponsorship deals is first and foremost to associate the brand with a famous person who people look up to in order to build an image. And secondly, it is to leverage the exposure this person or property has.
What makes sponsorship deals so effective is that by associating a brand with a chosen and desired entity or person, the brand automatically gets the trust and prestige that is associated with them. It is thus very contagious. And then, of course, it is also a matter of exposure and getting seen in the right contexts.
Below, we share some good examples of sponsorship deals for inspiration.
Car companies sponsorship deals
An industry where sponsorship deals are very common is the car industry. The spectrum of strategies is very broad for car companies, who use all types of different sponsorship contracts to reach their target audience and convince their cars are the best.
Common sponsorships within the car industry for some of the world’s leading car brands is to be part of racing serious of various types, for example, Formula 1 or Rally.
Mercedes, for example, has its very own Formula 1 team. Other sponsorship deals within the industry include sponsoring professional drivers with means, such as cars, accessories, or money.
W88 sponsorship deal
Another great example is W88 online casino and betting which invests heavily into sponsorship deals. Just recently, they announced that they would be the main sponsor of the Aston Villa FC 2019/20 English Premier League. This is an interesting (and clever) sponsorship deal for two reasons.
Firstly, the company has sports betting, which of course is focused on sports, which they sponsor. Secondly, the people who watch sports are the people who will naturally be the people who bet on sports also. W88 earns value for the casino product from this sponsorship deal, people all over the world see the English Premier League, and when they want to play online casino W88 comes to mind because of the advertising that W88 gets following the sponsorship deal. this theory can be proven by checking the list of Malaysia’s most trusted casino sites, for example. With that said, with this sponsorship contract, they reach their target audience and they reach it with the right message. Smart.
Budget
The scale of your sponsorship deals will, to a large extent depend on your budget. If you only invest in a small event, you won’t get a huge reach. The more people you reach, the greater the impact of your campaign will be. This is really something to keep in mind because if you invest small, don’t expect big results.
The key to getting good results is to team up with individuals and entities that are relevant to your company, and whose fan base consists of your target audience. The key here is to reach the people who truly matter for your brand. That is the most important.
Conclusion
As you can see, there is a wide array of different sponsorship deals strategies that companies can use. Which is suitable for you naturally depends on your ambitions and budget, but most importantly your target audience and where your audience is, and what they react well to.
