You are doing well in your sports management position, and perhaps, you have even been assigned the critical task of securing lucrative sponsorships for your team. What do you do?

Gaining sports sponsorships can be a challenging task, but with the right focus, drive, and strategy, you can ensure there is only one way for your team - forward. Read on to learn more about how you can create clean and beautiful sports sponsorship proposals to score a win both on and off the field.

Thought Catalog/Unsplash. Researching the right potential sponsors can cut the time and energy needed to secure a deal in half.

Choose the Right Sponsors

When selecting potential sponsors for the first time, it’s important to cast a wide net–the more people you ask, the more likely you are to secure a sponsorship for your team. Make sure that you contact them in a personal capacity but don’t leave generalized messages, as it is likely to sabotage any relationship you could potentially create with them.

Do extensive research into the companies you are going to contact, gauge how their objectives align with yours, and the teams they have partnered up with in the past. This will give you a fair idea of how to proceed if they respond to your initial attempt at contact.

Yogendra Singh/Unsplash. Assess how your and the sponsors’ interests and objectives align - and work them into your proposal.

It’s a Give-and-Take Relationship

Getting sponsorships is a give-and-take relationship since the sponsors are going to gauge what you can do for them if they invest in your team. You are more likely to get a win if you also demonstrate what you can do for them in return for this sponsorship. Paint a picture of how this relationship can pave the way for both of you in the long run.

Assess if it is monetary support you require or any other form of help you need from a potential sponsor. Are there any products, promotions, or services that your sports team and organization could benefit from? If so, it’s important to center and personalize your proposal around that specific objective.

Reaching out

You should be smart about reaching out to potential sponsors. Ensure ways of contact that can reach them directly so that your proposal does not end up in the trash or spam folder.

Be brief about your organization, what you ask for, and what you can do for them in return. Share a couple of your best ideas for sponsorship options and how you would utilize them. Be sure to provide all contact information in a business-letter-style email.

Airfocus/Unsplash. Presenting your proposal in a clear, concise, and professional manner will help it to be taken seriously.

The Proposal

If you receive a positive response from the recipient, prepare your proposal and its presentation, complete with all the details from your initial email. The presentation must include thoroughly researched facts on the demographic you cater to, how you serve them, and what the sponsorship can do for you.

If possible, include your online presence with all the relevant statistical numbers and chart out detailed sponsorship options in a presentable, clear format. Make sure that your letter, proposal, and presentations are all done in a concise, professional way and are backed with facts and figures.