As a sports sponsorship marketer that has developed sponsorship packages that have sold for $340 million, I've guided numerous sponsors through entering the sports sponsorship arena. Sponsorship is not like other marketing mediums; sponsorship has the power to tap into the emotion of the fans to supercharge marketing efforts.
Before you dive into a multiyear sponsorship, it's crucial to have a solid content strategy in place.
Best Practices for Sponsors Crafting Sponsorship Strategy
Today, I want to share some best practices for sponsors to develop a compelling content strategy.
1. Know Your Audience and the Audience of the Team
Before you can create compelling content, you need to understand who your audience is. This goes beyond demographics to include their interests, behaviors, and pain points. A deep understanding of your audience will help you create content that truly resonates with them and sets the stage for a successful sports sponsorship. Align yourself with a property (i.e. team) that has that segment of people in their fanbase that you can easily target and reach.
2. Define Your Objectives
What are you hoping to achieve with your content and sports sponsorship? Are you looking to raise brand awareness, drive sales, or establish thought leadership? Defining your objectives upfront will guide your content creation and help you measure your success.
3. Develop a Unique Brand Voice
Your brand voice is your company's personality, as expressed through your content. It sets you apart from your competitors and makes your content uniquely yours. A consistent, engaging brand voice can help build a strong connection with your audience and enhance the impact of your sports sponsorship.
4. Create Valuable Content
Quality should always trump quantity when it comes to content creation. Focus on creating content that provides real value to your audience. This could be educational content that solves a problem, entertaining content that makes them laugh, or inspiring content that tells a compelling story.
5. Leverage Multiple Formats and Channels
Different types of content and channels resonate with other segments of your audience. Explore a variety of content formats - from blog posts and videos to podcasts and infographics - and distribute your content across multiple channels - from your website and social media platforms to email newsletters and events.
6. Align Your Content with Sports Themes
As you dive into sports sponsorship, consider how you can align your content with sports themes. This could involve creating content around major sporting events, athlete stories, fitness tips, etc. Such content can help you tap into the excitement around sports and make your sponsorship more engaging.
7. Measure and Optimize
Finally, it's essential to measure the performance of your content and continually optimize your strategy based on your findings. Key metrics include website traffic, social media engagement, lead generation, and more. Regularly reviewing and adjusting your content strategy ensures it remains effective as you venture into sports sponsorship.
In conclusion, a solid content strategy is necessary for any sponsor looking to get into sports sponsorship. By understanding your audience, defining your objectives, developing a unique brand voice, creating valuable content, leveraging multiple formats and channels, aligning your content with sports themes, and measuring and optimizing your strategy, you can set the stage for a successful sports sponsorship.