Sponsorship broker

A sponsorship broker is an individual, or agency, that procures sponsorship funding for properties (defined as an outlet with a captive audience that provides for a positive experience).^[1] Sponsorship brokers tend to specialize to particular niches within the sponsorship-marketing field.

A typical sponsorship could be, for example, an arrangement to exchange advertising for the responsibility of providing funding for a popular event or entity. For example, a corporate entity may provide equipment for a famous band in exchange for brand recognition. The sponsor earns popularity this way while the sponsored can earn a lot of money and/or receive free music equipment. This type of sponsorship is prominent in the sports, arts, media and charity sectors.

Many music festivals, performers, and artist cater to a demographic that is highly coveted by corporate marketers. This can potentially be very lucrative for musical performers and festivals. Historically, the main obstacle for these organization has been a lack of understanding on how the sponsorship functions as a form of marketing and how to package themselves in a way that will demonstrate a ROI (Return on Investment) for sponsors.

Occasionally a company's motives for sponsorship are altruistic in order to create goodwill in the community which increases their good reputation. However, sponsorship is more commonly used to derive benefit from the associations created for a company's brand(s) or image as a result of the sponsorship.

Sponsorship belongs to the promotional tool of Marketing.

See also

• Donation
• Cause marketing
• Ambush marketing
• Sports marketing
• Sustaining program
• European Sponsorship Association

References