How To Email Potential Event Sponsors That Will Get A Reply

Event sponsors can mean the difference between organizing a profitable event, or not. Sponsors can add uniquely valuable experiences to event attendees, and they can signal to industry stakeholders that the event your organizing is legitimate.

In this blog post, you’ll learn about the proper way reach out to event sponsors via email.

Objectives

When writing a cold email to possible event sponsors, make sure you keep in mind your end goal: to start a conversation and ultimately schedule a meeting to discuss the sponsorship opportunity. You cannot expect to secure a deal just by writing the email alone. You’re starting a conversation, not signing a deal.

The email should focus on value, an articulation of shared objectives and audiences, and should include a tone or language that elicits a feeling of partnership.

Research

Research is key to constructing the most effective cold email to potential sponsors. The first component you should research before writing your email is the company you are reaching out to. Focus on researching the company’s values and marketing objectives. Then think if your event can further these values or objects.

When contacting a potential sponsor, you should already know the ways in which you could provide them with value. This can range from ROI via sales to brand awareness among a target audience. In the email, you should emphasize these particular objectives and the specific ways you intend to provide this value.

For example, you could include in your email a sentence like:

Considering the launch of your sustainability initiative this past month, it would be great to talk with you to discuss how to expand this initiative by partnering with our sustainably designed networking event. 

You can even identify ways to present a sponsor’s logos at your event in ways that relate to their objectives or values. Remember to keep ideas specific and relevant.

Besides researching the company you intend to reach out to, you should also do research on the specific person you are contacting. You’d be surprised by how much you can find just by Google-ing the person or looking at their social media profiles.

When researching the person, keep an eye out for personality. Once you can identify the personality of the person you are contacting, then you can change the tone of the email accordingly. This ability to match tone with personality will maximize the chances of your email being replied to.

Email Dos & Don’ts

The tone of your introductory email can make or break your event sponsorship opportunitiy. You should write the email keeping in mind that you are seeking a partnership rather than simply an event sponsor who will just be giving you money in exchange for brand recognition. Here are some tips to follow when crafting your sponsorship email:

• Avoid starting the email with pronouns like “I” or “me”. The email should focus on the prospect or potential sponsor, not on you. (SalesHQ)
• Don’t list past accomplishments right away. Again, doing so focuses on you whereas the real focus of the email should be on the prospect.
• Try not to list the ways the sponsor will benefit from partnering with your event. Instead, you should discuss how you intend to provide this value.
• An informal tone is often a better tone: for example, using words like “talk” instead of “meet” will prove to be more beneficial in creating a mood that does not directly expose your sales intentions of scheduling a meeting. (BreakThrough)
• Be specific! Tailoring your email with specific information relevant to the company and person you are reaching out to shows that you are not just sending out a mass sales email.
• Although you should be changing the tone of the email to match the person you are contacting, be sure not to lose your own voice. The basis of the partnership you are building with your sponsors relies on trust, and this should begin even at the start of the relationship – the cold email.

Next Steps

The key to successfully sending cold emails to prosective event sponsors is thoughly doing your research before you hit the send button. By understand the goals of the potential sponsor, and the personality of the person you’re emailing, you’ll be able to tailor your pitch thereby increasing the chances that the recipeint will reply to your message.

For more help on finding, pitching and building long lasting relationships with event sponsors, download our free event sponsorship ebook by clicking the button below!