Programmatic Sponsorships: Establishing Your Approach, How-to, and What Sponsors Need
Programmatic Sponsorships: Establishing Your Approach, How-to, and What Sponsors Need
One of the greatest lessons 2020 taught SICSA was the value of having multiple revenue streams and diversified income. By not having all of our eggs in one basket, SICSA can pivot, adjust, and continue to support the growing needs of our community (for both people and pets). In addition to traditional fundraising efforts including grants, individual donors, and events; SICSA has continued to grow support by connecting corporate sponsors directly with programs.
Programmatic Sponsorship Approach
SICSA’s approach is simple. We help the donor fulfill how they want to meet their philanthropic goals best. It is how many of us in the fundraising field have worked with individual and family donors for years. Most nonprofits, however, don’t extend this approach to businesses and corporations. Continuing to list your events and amenities in a menu-like way is, in my opinion, one of the most ineffective ways to approach any donor. Worse is when this menu of options is coldly mailed to potential donors.
Implementing Programmatic Sponsorship Fundraising Tactics
SICSA uses a different sponsorship fundraising approach. Our team meets one-on-one with each business to understand what interests them, what they care about, and what they hope to achieve with their support. We share how SICSA has continued to grow and expand programs to meet ongoing and emerging needs. We share outcomes, pictures, and stories. We talk specifically about how we serve people and pets, and how it has made a difference in their lives and the community. We encourage them to ask questions, and we note which areas appear to strike a chord. We offer opportunities to see our mission up close and in person through shadowing and volunteerism. This conversation then opens the door to grow their support from strictly event sponsorships, to also include direct mission-critical programmatic support. Funds secured through program support sponsorships are then used to operationally cover the cost of the specific program they support.
What do donors look for in Programmatic Sponsorships?
What we have learned through this process is that, like their individual and family donor counterparts, businesses and corporations want to be a part of the “good.” They want to know their funds directly support the programs that mean the most to them and their employees. Sponsors want to have their brand tied to the success stories of the community organizations they support. Businesses who support SICSA want to directly support life-saving programs for cats, dogs, and the people who care for them; not see their funds be used for event signage, banners and program ads.
Although social media has a huge reach, over-posting can quickly become noise. Instead of creating more posts, which hale business and corporate support, SICSA threads sponsor messaging into limited posts that megaphone lifesaving, mission critical communication, while giving expansive marketing to the sponsors. Marketing amenities include social media crowdfunding campaigns, digital ads, and logo/link placement, as well as in-person networking events, direct mail, e-newsletters, and more.
Ultimately, nonprofits should look for partners and businesses to help underwrite program expenses to shine a spotlight on the message they want their audience to hear/see. In doing so, the community will better know the services they offer and the difference the organization is making in the lives of those in our community.
Looking for more information?
To learn more about SICSA and available sponsorship opportunities, please contact Nicole Sturk, Director of Resource Innovation at nsturk@sicsa.org or by phone at 937-294-6505 ext. 39.
For more information on the power of programmatic sponsorships, check out this recorded Take Five Nonprofit Conference session with Nicole Sturk:
