An Insider’s Guide to Event Sponsorships (From a Company That Spent $500K)

The secret weapon behind a successful event isn’t just great speakers, a cool venue, or sold-out tickets. It’s also the sponsors who bring in important revenue while adding credibility to your event.

When big-name sponsors put their logo on your event materials, they’re essentially saying: “This event matters.”

We know this firsthand because event sponsorships have been a big part of our marketing strategy. We’ve spent an estimated $500,000 on them, sponsoring everything from intimate industry meetups to massive international conferences.

Our booth at Chiang Mai SEO 2024

Our booth at Chiang Mai SEO 2024

Tl;dr: If you’re running events, you absolutely want sponsors like us.

But how do you convince companies like ours to open their wallets for your event? I spoke with Elysa Han, our events marketing manager, to learn what we look out for in event sponsorships.

Consider this your insider’s guide to winning event sponsors.

Nas Summit in Singapore. While it was a sizable conference, it was an event for both current and aspiring content creators who, on paper, are miles away from our ideal customer profile.

In fact, by our own calculations, 62% of event attendees were unfamiliar with our brand.

Our booth at Nas Summit 2024

So, why did we write the check?

The main reason was that the value proposition was too extraordinary. For a modest investment, we received the same value as what would have cost 5X in other events. We had a booth, social media shoutouts, visible branding (e.g., on the media wall), and even event tickets.

Our logo on the media wall at Nas Summit 2024

Even though it didn’t match our criteria, we couldn’t pass up an exceptional offer. So, we turned it into a brand awareness play instead.

creators too—are all about relationships.

Don’t be surprised when I say this but sometimes we sponsor an event because the organizer is an enterprise-level prospect or customer. And sometimes events give sponsors discounts because they see them as a long-term partner and want them to return regularly for all future editions.

Making sure your event is profitable is important. But don’t forget that relationships run the world. Expect to be flexible and negotiate towards a win-win for both you and the sponsor.

Final thoughts

Securing event sponsorships is all about creating mutual value.

The most successful event organizers understand what sponsors are looking for and build packages that deliver real results. By being transparent with your data, flexible with your offerings, and proactive in your communications, you’ll build relationships with sponsors that last beyond a single event.

Remember: sponsors like us are looking for ROI, but we’re also looking for partners who understand our goals and are committed to helping us achieve them.

Trying to organize an event instead? We also organized our own conference and wrote up how we did it:

Further reading

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