(TODO: Write more, more, more)
(Note: For the time being there will only be descriptions about how the builderscon planners have been doing things, but we should provide alternatives, as sponsor strategies should be flexible depending on the local market)
builderscon (as of this writing "plans to", but in the future we should make this something that we can readily provide to any potential organizer) provides materials that can describe
- What ideas/golans builderscon stands for (in enterprise-lingo)
- Multi-media resource describing the event
- Flyers for the casual attendees
These are material that do not frequently change, and hence builderscon will provide them. Usually they are bundled in a form called "prospectus".
If you are a new organizer, you MUST prepare staff to keep record of what your builderscon was like. This may include photographs, videos, and blog posts. These SHOULD be released under terms that allow non-commercial use with proper attribution. (Note: We may need to create a special case for usage within the builderscon framework -- as it may be necessary for builderscon to create commercial material)
Here are some advice that may be able to help you better prepare yourself to convince potential sponsors:
We suppose you will have to explain and discuss about the merits of sponsoring a builderscon. You MUST keep in mind that those making the financial decisions are not necessary those who understand what builderscon stands for. Therefore, you MUST NOT assume that potential sponsors will automatically understand the value that sponsoring a builderscon will bring.
More often than not, good-will sponsors are eager to help you, but they do not know how to help you at all. Your pitch should not be a simple "Sponsor us!" because then you will look like you only care about the money they will be giving you -- which is something that you MUST not think. builderscon organizers MUST aim to hold the conference that can bring satisfaction to both the attendees and the sponsors.
In builderscon we do not offer "Platinum", "Gold", "Silver", "Bronze" sponsorship packages precisely for this reason. We feel that such packages are vague in terms of merits to the sponsor, and provide little value to them other than the amount of that will be billed to them. Instead you should provide concrete items describing possible ways in which they can help you for how much, and exactly what sort of compensation the sponsors will receive. We call this the "Sponsor Menu"
(Note: Write more about this)
If this the first time you organize a conference with many sponsors, you will quickly realize that you forgot to collect crucial data after companies start to pledge for sponsorship. After all, it is extremely hard to know which information you needed unless you have already been burnt by having to scramble for it after you realized you needed it.
Below are some of the information that we think would be most important to keep track of.
Contact information includes the following:
- Name of corporation/entity
- Name of contact person
- Division/department of the contact person
- Email address of the contact person
- Physical address of the corporation/entity
These are usually provided to you the first time you exchange information, or in emails that the contact person sent you. This is my advice: do NOT assume that you will be able to find these information later from the original email, business card, etc, that you were so sure you saved somewhere.
Instead, the moment you know that they are seriously pledging for sponsorship, write this all down in a centralized spreadsheet or the like. You will need this later.
Also, it is always a good idea to get a hold of extra contacts within the same group as your contact person. It is extremely common for your contact person to quit the job while you are still discussing details, or that the contact person just forgets to relay a message to their boss or colleague and leave for a vacation.
You should keep track of dates. By dates we mean the dates when you sent out crucial information. For example, the dates that:
- The call for sponsorship was first sent
- The confirmation of sponsorship pledge was sent
- The invoice for the sponsorship was sent
- The company logo was received
It is important to know how long it has been since the last communication happened, as pinging the sponsors could sometimes be a delicate task: You do not want to ping them too often that they get annoyed, but you also need to know exactly when to start panicing.
This is obvious, but you should keep track of the exact sponsorship detail for each sponsor.
- Items that the sponsor pledged for
- Discounts that you have made, if any
- Special considerations, if any
(These may seem obvious, but many people forget to do this)
By schedule, we mean things like when you expect proposal submissions start, when you expect your ticket sales to start/end, AND when you expect the sponsors must send in materials, including swags.
It is important for your sponsors to know the overall schedule.
This is extremely important if you are thinking of bagging the swags in a bag. Make sure to specify exactly what the expected dimensions/shape of the swags are.
Make sure to specify the number of swags that each sponsor should send.
Swags cannot be processed (i.e. bagged, and what not) until all of them arrive. You should be clear and explicit about when/where the sponsor swags must arrive.
Sponsorship.md - List of possible sponsorship items