How to avoid the stress of last-minute event sponsorship details

Managing the details of event sponsorships can quickly dominate a fundraiser’s time in the weeks and days leading up to your organization’s special event. Luckily, you can save yourself the stress of dealing with last-minute event sponsorship details by following some or all of these suggestions.

These 5 simple hacks can help you stay organized and on top of your event sponsorships:

Hack #1: Review the benefits at each sponsorship level and be absolutely certain that you can deliver. If you’ve promised sponsors that their logos will appear in your newsletter or event program, you need to allocate space for those well in advance of a deadline; and be sure to communicate that to everyone involved in the process.

Hack #2: Create an online form that companies can use to submit their sponsorship. With less paper to keep track of, you minimize the piles on your desk and are less likely to misplace an item. More importantly, you make the process convenient for sponsors.

Hack #3: Obtain the sponsorship’s logo at the time that they submit their sponsorship form and specify the logo file types that you need. (Tip: If you’re using LGL Forms, you can add a “File Upload” field to the form to allow the companies to submit their logo file/s.) No one wants to be chasing down logos when they’re up against a deadline with the designer or printer, but I’ve been in that position more times than I’d like to admit. When you receive submissions, review the logo files right away to confirm you have what you need. If you don’t, follow up immediately.

Hack #4: Collect contact information for the go-to person at the sponsoring company. This is your nonprofit’s point person for anything related to the event; be sure that each sponsor has contact information for the appropriate point person at your organization, too.

Hack #5:  Confirm the proper use of the sponsor’s name in your materials. Your local hardware store may be known around town as Lenny’s and they may have submitted their sponsorship form using that name, but they may want you to use their official name of “Lenny’s Hardware Store of Springfield” in your newsletter or event program.

Conclusion

When you’re in the throes of managing an event, you’re overseeing a lot of details and logistics. Make your job simpler for yourself by following these five suggestions so you aren’t chasing down important sponsorship details at the last minute.