Strategies for Handling Increased Competition for Music Festival Sponsors.

There are always new music festivals entering the market which is driving competition for festival-goers. In addition to ticket sales, a key part of any event's overall revenue will often come from sponsorship deals. How can festival organisers secure a lucrative sponsorship deal in an increasingly competitive environment.

Organisations that sponsor events will usually have specific objectives in mind when allocating funds to sponsorship deals. Sponsorship is usually only part of a larger overall marketing budget which is carefully planned to increase sales revenue, launch new products and communicate key brand related messages. The days of simply offering a logo space in marketing materials and on festival sites are no longer relevant. Potential sponsors are seeking tangible solutions and benefits that can be financially measured to indicate a return on their investment. Festival organisers need to shift how they sell sponsorship packages to align with sponsor expectations.

Music Festival Sponsorship Overview.
Sponsors are increasingly under pressure to be accountable for all their marketing spend with more focus on value for money. Sponsors are looking for experiential integration and data rich partnerships which go beyond simple logo placement. In addition, the importance of complying with ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) regulations is a key factor in deciding which event to sponsor. Although emerging sector sponsors are coming from Green Tech, Wellness and FinTech the bulk of sponsorship revenue is still coming from alcohol, beverage, tobacco and vape suppliers who face ever increasingly strict adverting restrictions making event sponsorship an attractive option.

Differentiate Pitches.
Sponsors may have a shortlist of festivals they are interested in sponsoring, and each festival organiser will be invited to pitch for a deal. It is essential that organisers can differentiate their offerings from competing events to make their festival look like an attractive proposition. It is essential to communicate how an event’s festival-goer profiles align with the sponsor’s target audience. Providing access to festival-goer data before, during and after the festival can help sponsors visualise potential sales and financial returns on investment. A dedicated account manager from the festival organising entity demonstrates the commitment the organiser is giving potential sponsors. The account manager can ensure that the sponsor will receive a fast and efficient service to address all their needs.

Partnerships and Solutions.
A sales pitch should focus on potential deals being a partnership rather than just selling logo real estate. There are opportunities for sponsors to be involved with a festival’s year-round activities, from line up announcements to ticket sales and newsletters for example. Having an understating of a sponsor's challenges, like increasing awareness, lead generation, data capture and ESG can assist in building a comprehensive packaged solution. Organisers should clearly demonstrate how a sponsor can move from awareness to engagement and sales conversion by utilising what the festival has to offer with multiple touchpoints for festival-goers. Organisers can provide access to opportunities like ticket sales campaigns, artist reveals, competitions, content creation, data capture, video teasers, social media activity and email or loyalty offers.

Niche Sponsors.
Increased competition from other music festivals can make it challenging to secure a large corporate sponsor. The alternative is to seek out more niche sponsors who may have an affinity with a festival audience. This may require some deeper research to find the right sponsor who has a target audience that aligns with the festival. This approach can work for smaller niche genre festivals who will always struggle to attract large corporate drinks sponsors, for example.

Leveraging Data.
Music festival entities collect large volumes of data from their festival-goers which include demographics and purchase behaviour. Most potential sponsors will consider access to this data as a key reason for securing a sponsorship deal. Organisers should always leverage the data they have to convince a sponsor to partner with them. Organisers should ensure that they have robust data collection and processing systems in place to make segmentation and data selections straightforward. Assuming that data collection is monitored (RFID scans), it may be possible to offer a reduced sponsorship fee in exchange for a small financial fee for every qualified lead generated. This performance-based pricing reduces the risk for sponsors and demonstrates that the organiser is confident in its audience’s engagement.

For festival organisers planning their next event using a software management platform like Festival Pro gives them all the functionality they need manage every aspect of their event logistics. The guys who are responsible for this software have been in the front line of event management for many years and the features are built from that experience and are performance artists themselves. The Festival Pro platform is easy to use and has comprehensive features with specific modules for managing artists, contractors, venues/stages, vendors, volunteers, sponsors, guestlists, ticketing, site planning, cashless payments and contactless ordering.

Image by Eren098566 via Pixabay

<< Back to articles