A bit of a segue into a rarely structured part of your marketing plan – Sponsorship and Donations.
Supporting the community which supports you.
The local footy club, Pre-School fete, your kid’s dance studio, a local charity……..
We’ve all been asked at some stage of our business life, in fact I got asked again last week. Sometimes cash or bit of your inventory, sometimes “just a bit of your time” – which is kinda like money anyway.
No matter which, it can put you under a bit of unscheduled pressure – emotional and financial. Here’s why we (and you) should kick the tin, and how we plan for it each year – noting we do not say yes to every request.
Brand. Reputation is everything. Your community feeds you – they are your customers, suppliers, and advocates. Having this type of involvement at a grass-roots level is often viewed as a positive move, which can lead to increased loyalty and sales.
Employees. People are often proud to work for a company that gives back to it's community. Hello, improved job satisfaction and team retention.
PR. This is an opportunity to be used, rather carefully if you don’t mind. You can generate some positive media from your community activity, provided you do so in a way that is not self-serving. Promote the recipient, not yourself.
Connections. The opportunity to network with other business and community leaders around a common cause is not to be missed.
We build an allowance for this into our cashflow budget each year, as there are events and organisations we always support and their needs are known and factored in. We also have a small slush fund to give us the ability to say yes to random opportunities which match our brand. And that is the key – whatever you do please make sure is aligned with your brand as best you can. Want to chat about this or other business strategy ideas? Reach out to me at adaptique.com.au
Photo by Joel Muniz on Unsplash
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