Planning fun, creative, and effective sponsorship activations helps properties retain brands and ensure a positive experience for all involved parties. Taking a one size fits all approach won’t work with sponsorship activations. It’s vital to take into consideration the specifics of the brand you’re working with and cater to their needs. Here are a few tips to ensure a successful activation:
Know the Brand’s Success Metrics
It’s important to consider how what you’re doing for activation works into the brand’s objectives and success metrics. If the brand is looking for engagement, ensure your activation strategy supports a genuine connection with the audience. Getting the answers to a few basic questions can help you identify if what you’re doing makes sense with the brand’s objectives. Questions such as:
- How does this fit into the overall objectives of the brand?
- What are we trying to achieve here?
- What happens if people don’t engage?
Knowing these answers will help you throughout the next steps of the activation planning process and keep you on track for a successful experience.
Get More Data
Data is one of the most important considerations for any sponsorship deal. Brands need data to ensure the sponsorship is helping them achieve their goals. They’ll have their own plan for obtaining data, but properties can make this smoother and more efficient for both sides.
If a property is able to provide key information about the audience that is also shared with the brand’s target audience, the activation strategy will be more effective. For example, if the brand is typically engaging with people of a certain age range, income, or location that overlaps with the property’s audience, let them know. Providing this data empowers brands to make the best use of their resources.
Be Creative
Don’t just install a sign at your venue and call it a day. Allow brands to become immersed in the property and create engaging experiences. Make sure you take advantage of digital options as well, including social media and other digital media options. Participating in TikTok trends, creating filters, utilizing hashtags, and more are simple and cost-effective ways to activate brands in a fun and immersive way.
Help Brands Execute
Brands want to feel appreciated and supported. Helping them execute, not just plan, their strategy for an event or period of time makes a difference. From concept creation to execution, properties can help brands every step of the way. Help them work through the budget, infrastructure, how many people they’ll need there, and any other logistics involved in the specific deal. By showing them you’re willing to work with them on every level possible, you help brands know you value their sponsorship and them as a partner.
Creating engaging and successful sponsorship activations helps your property thrive. By knowing the brand’s success metrics, getting and using data effectively, getting creative, and helping brands execute you can help make this happen. Supporting brands and keeping things interesting helps brands feel appreciated and improves the longevity of the partnership.
