The local Porsche dealership served as the venue for a fashion show auction.
As I type this, I’ve spoken with three clients in the last 24 hours about designing or beefing up their event sponsorships.
In two cases, we talked about rarely considered benefits they could use to entice new sponsors. In another case, we talked about how to design a complete event sponsorship program.
With these discussions in my head, I can’t help but recall the savvy partnership I witnessed between my nonprofit hospice client and the car manufacturer Porsche just two weeks ago. Major props goes to both organizations.
Gobo lights softened the garage walls. The visible garage door led to an outside tent. The second garage door was opened later to reveal the Macan.
(NOTE: If you’re just getting started with a fundraising auction, a sponsorship program is not something you need to launch right away. It’s perfectly OK to run an auction without a sponsorship program.
But for those of you who *do* run auction sponsorship or underwriting programs, focus on how your auction event can help a sponsor’s business succeed, like this group did.)
In other words, instead of thinking about how the company can help YOU, start thinking about how YOU can help the COMPANY.
Sponsors are more likely to say “yes” to your offer when you bring them creative methods of reaching their potential customers.
To that end, let’s start thinking about how your event can boost a sponsor’s bottom line.
For instance, at this auction, my client brought 300 fashion-conscious, upscale shoppers to the table. That’s serious value-add for a company like Porsche!
You can see the mechanic’s toolboxes in the back. A few white couches were brought in, but most guests stood throughout the night.
And on the other side, we had Porsche, the event sponsor. Porsche hosted the auction fundraisers and runway show in their dealership.
Guests enjoyed cocktails in the showroom before moving to the garage — a clean garage — for the full program. Amidst a silent auction, guests mingled, drank, and ate.
At the designated time, we started the program. I worked the runway first, selling the live auction items.
Then the runway models (male and female) strutted their stuff, showing the must-have items of summer.
We concluded with another model – a car model. Specifically, it was the dramatic roll-out of the Porsche Macan.
Watch the video to see how this was done. Prepare to be impressed.
Would you have been pleased, if you were representing Porsche?
Porsche North America was quite pleased.
So now that you’ve seen one example of what you *should* be doing, let’s get YOU smarter on securing sponsors.
I have a highly-rated program — a master class in auction sponsorship — where you’ll get my documented, step-by-step process on securing sponsors for your auction fundraiser. You’ll learn how to create a compelling value proposition so companies ask, “Where do I sign?”
(Not to hurt your feelings, but sponsors rarely want tickets to your auction. Instead, let’s give them the benefits they do want, be that media opportunities, blog visibility, or 300 fashion-forward customers rolling all over your car once it’s “revealed.
This DVD and workbook gives you countless examples of how my clients have thought “outside the box” to give sponsors creative benefits that inspire your targeted companies to sign on the line.
When you start using fresh approaches to showcase your sponsors, you’ll build stronger relationships and raise more money for your mission.
A solid sponsorship program can add $1000s of dollars to your event revenue. I’m not kidding!
Click to learn about the Sold Out Event Sponsorships training.
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