Building Sponsorship Assets That Brands Actually Want
Sports organizations often have more sponsorship opportunities than they realize. While logos on jerseys, banners, and websites are some of the most recognizable sponsorship assets, they represent only a small portion of what an organization can offer a potential partner.
Events, digital platforms, email marketing, content, naming rights, product integration, and on-site experiences can all become valuable sponsorship assets. The key is identifying those opportunities and understanding how they can help a brand accomplish its marketing and business objectives.
The strongest sponsorship programs aren’t built around offering as many assets as possible. They’re built around offering the right assets to the right brand.
What Are Sponsorship Assets?
Sponsorship assets are the opportunities and benefits an organization can offer a brand as part of a partnership.
Some assets provide visibility, such as signage, branding on jerseys, or naming rights. Others give brands opportunities to communicate or interact directly with an organization’s audience.
Common sponsorship assets can include:
- Event and venue signage
- Website and social media exposure
- Email and newsletter integration
- Naming and presenting rights
- Product sampling
- On-site activations
- Branded or educational content
- Special offers and promotions
- Hospitality opportunities
Identifying these assets starts with looking at every way an organization interacts with its audience.
Rather than only asking where a sponsor’s logo could appear, organizations should consider their events, communication channels, programs, facilities, content, and overall participant experience. Each of those touchpoints can create an opportunity for a brand to connect with the audience.
Identifying Assets That Create Value
Not every sponsorship asset has the same value to every brand.
An organization may have a highly engaged email database, several major annual events, a strong social media presence, or access to families within a specific geographic market. Each can be valuable depending on what a brand is trying to accomplish.
SSEC’s recent partnership between OH SNAP! and Wisconsin Youth Soccer is a good example of how different assets can work together. As the Official Grab-and-Go Healthy Snack Partner of Wisconsin Youth Soccer, OH SNAP! can reach more than 160,000 players, coaches, parents, and family members across the state. The partnership includes product sampling and appearances at major soccer events, along with email, newsletters, social media, website exposure, educational content, special offers, and retail promotions.
Those assets give OH SNAP! multiple ways to connect with soccer families throughout the year.
For sports organizations, thinking about assets this way also creates more flexibility. Instead of presenting every potential partner with the same package, organizations can focus on the opportunities that make the most sense for each brand.
Matching Assets to a Brand’s Objectives
Identifying sponsorship assets is only the first step. The next is understanding what the brand is trying to accomplish.
A company focused on awareness may prioritize signage, digital exposure, or presenting rights. A brand looking to introduce consumers to a product may value sampling and on-site activation. Other brands may be focused on reaching a specific market, engaging local families, educating consumers, or strengthening their presence within a community.
The assets should support those objectives.
SSEC’s recent partnership between PSE&G and New Jersey Youth Soccer is centered on community involvement and statewide impact. For a company with deep connections throughout New Jersey, the partnership creates an opportunity to engage with local families, support meaningful programs, and invest in an organization that brings communities together.
That is why understanding the brand comes before building the package. The question shouldn’t simply be, “What can we offer?” It should also be, “What is this brand trying to accomplish?”
Creating More Than Logo Placement
Logo placement still has value. It can build visibility and reinforce a brand’s connection with an organization.
But strong sponsorship assets give brands opportunities to do more than simply be seen.
Product sampling can put a product directly into a consumer’s hands. An on-site activation can create face-to-face interaction. Educational content can allow a brand to provide useful information. Email and social media can extend the partnership beyond an event and keep the brand connected with the audience throughout the year.
The OH SNAP! partnership demonstrates this well. Its presence isn’t limited to branding around Wisconsin Youth Soccer. Product sampling, event appearances, digital communication, educational content, and retail promotions give the brand several ways to become part of the experience for soccer families.
The goal isn’t to eliminate traditional assets like logos and signage. It’s to build around them with opportunities that give the partnership more purpose.
Building Assets With Purpose
Strong sponsorship assets start with understanding what an organization has to offer, who it can reach, and why those opportunities would matter to a potential partner.
That means looking beyond traditional inventory and considering the different ways a brand can connect with an audience. It also means recognizing that the right assets will change depending on the brand and its objectives.
At SSEC, we focus on building sponsorship opportunities around those goals. By understanding what a brand is trying to accomplish and matching those objectives with the right assets, we can create partnerships that go beyond visibility and provide value for the brand, the organization, and the communities they reach.