Being able to host Queens Park Rangers’ kit launch at our office earlier this year showed just how far we had come as a company in a short space of time. We were now main sponsor to a Championship football team and ready to shift our brand exposure up a gear.
But, as exciting as it is seeing the Smarkets logo on the players’ chests, the journey to get here wasn’t always an easy one.
Taking into account what we’ve learned since last summer when Smarkets decided to first sponsor the team, the following tips should help other growing startups approach sponsorship.
Know your USP
Before even thinking about sponsoring, look at it from an external point of view — who would want you to sponsor them, and why? In order to do this you will need to understand your unique selling point. What sets you apart from the other potential sponsors?
This is significant as once you understand your USP, the teams and agents need to match what you offer with a package that would suit you.
Understand what you want to gain
You need to have goals and outcomes for the sponsorship to be valuable. It is not as beneficial to sponsor something just to get your logo out there a bit more. Be clear on the outcomes you wish to obtain.
One thing we wanted to consider was which team made us look like a serious business? How can we strategically choose a sponsor that validates us as a company, as well as other more obvious goals such as brand awareness?
Decide which team/event suits your goals
Once you’ve grasped what you’re trying to achieve you’ll need to set some benchmarks and decide which team/event will meet your needs and goals. There are several factors that may influence your decision, yet it also depends on the flip side of the coin. Sponsorships are always based on cooperation.
After immersing ourselves into the subject, we came to the conclusion that a London-based club would benefit us most, mainly due to the ease of being in the same city.
We were also searching for a partner that would represent our ethos at Smarkets, and for us QPR seemed like the best fit. The parallels start with QPR being a fan-centric and fair club, which mirrors our ambition to disrupt an unfair and profit-oriented betting industry. They have the aspirations to return to the top flight. We want to be the benchmark in betting.
With regards to validating our brand, we saw QPR as one of the better-known clubs in the Championship. They have played in the Premier League recently and are a household name in English football. Looking back, validation was not what we were looking for initially, nonetheless, it was definitely an added bonus.
Measure the sponsorship’s effectiveness
Last, but by no means least, it is critical to measure and evaluate the sponsorship. Did you achieve the goals set out to begin with? What does this mean for the future, and how can you improve and build on sponsorships?
According to industry research, around half of US companies studied don’t have a system or method to measure their sponsorship ROI. There is an underlying issue that companies do not actually know what they have lost or gained from the sponsorship transaction.
Apart from the cost of the sponsorship deal itself, the cost of activating and maintaining such a deal must be considered. Aspects like employee salaries and resource costs are often neglected. For example, we promote all QPR games with 0% commission. The value of commission lost here needs to be considered for an accurate ROI calculation. Gaining a deeper understanding of the costs opens a more effective path to get the biggest return from the sponsorship.
Alternatively, a company could view it as an ego-enhancing transaction for the company or as a way to strategically build relationships with individuals and customers which you might not otherwise have access to. Even so, these desired impacts should be evaluated.
Just writing these four things down in the form of a blog has given us a better idea on how to improve in the future. QPR being our first ever sponsorship deal, we felt it was an important one in terms of growth but also as a learning experience.
