REAL Careers

8 Tips on Using Data to Improve Sponsorships

Photo courtesy of KORE Software

By KORE Software

At the "Getting WISE with Sponsorship" panel event, hosted by WISE Boston and KORE Software, industry leaders from the team, research, consulting and brand sides shared these eight tips on using data and analytics to improve sponsorships. 

1. Be smart about what you're trying to sell, who you're trying to sell it to, and learn to speak their language. 
   Once your data identifies these three points, you can hypertarget your messages. You can create the best message to sell the right product to each segment of your market. 

2. Understand the rules of the generation you're trying to reach. 
   Gen Z uses Snapchat and Instagram for getting their news. They're getting quick news hits in very short forms that takes two to five minutes to read. But Facebook skews older. Knowing this, you'll want to use Snapchat and Instagram to reach the Gen Z market, but Facebook to connect with baby boomers. 

3. Understand the general traits of your target audience so you can offer personalization and variability. 
   Gen Z wants everything personalized, so creating a one-size-fits-all campaign will not work for this group. Gen Z is a diverse group of people. To reach them, you must know their demographics and psychographics so you can create meaningful experiences that they're willing to pay for. Through social media research, you can start to segment and understand this group. 

4. Stop thinking locally. 
   There's pressure now to think nationally, if not globally. Find ways you can adapt by taking a sponsorship for a property that exists in one place and spreading that message and word in an impactful, organic way that will resonate with a national or globe audience. 

5. Use social media to hypertarget your audience across the world. 
   Properties have fans all over the world. This gives you the ability to create content partnerships with global companies. It opens up a whole new avenue of potential partners. Using your segmented data, you can push specific content directly to global fans, content that your property's U.S. fans wouldn't necessarily see, as it wouldn't apply to them. 

6. Find ways to connect with your fans where they exist.
   Fandom is changing. The passion isn't going anywhere, but it's no longer possible to just connect with fans at games or through TV broadcasts. It's time to start connecting with people throughout their day and putting yourselves and your fans in your client's shoes. Identify what your fan's purchasing process is and connect that with sports. 

7. Identify what success is for you and your sponsor.
   Move toward a model where you put parameters in place for what you consider success to be. Find ways to define success beforehand, and then afterward, manage the monetary value of that. 

8. Use your data in a way that helps you understand what's happening, tells a story, and measures against objectives so you can optimize your partnerships. 
   Work with you sponsors or rights holders to understand what is the most pertinent data, what are the sponsor's objectives, and how to leverage that. 

This content originally appeared on the KORE Software website as part of its guides and white papers archives and is republished here with permission.

The opinions expressed are those of the author(s) alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of WISE or any employees or affiliates. WISE makes no representation as to the accuracy, completeness, validity, or usefulness of any of the information supplied by the author(s). WISE will not be liable for any errors or omissions in the information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its use. Publication of the information should not be considered endorsement by WISE. By using this website, you accept this disclaimer in full.