When to Say NO to a Sports Sponsorship

Wait, sports marketing types aren’t supposed to be dissuading brands from engaging in a sports sponsorship … right? I mean, that’s how the money is made.

The truth is that sports sponsorships aren’t for everyone. In some cases, it can be counterintuitive for your brand to make the investment required for a sports sponsorship to work for you. This is not a groundbreaking thought … it’s just that you don’t normally hear it from people who make a living evaluating, negotiating, and executing sports sponsorships.

There are times when people from both sides of the table need to say NO. Today, let’s look at it from the brand perspective.

There are several reasons a brand should allocate its efforts elsewhere when considering sports as part of its marketing strategy. Let’s make this blog easier to read with a list of what we see as important validations for not investing in a sports sponsorship investment:

1. You don’t have the proper budget to create the type of sports sponsorship that will have the impact you seek. This is where most brands (and teams) get it wrong. Sports sponsorships have a lot to offer, and if you can’t afford to do it right, don’t do it.

   If your budget only covers the cost of the sign, then you really aren’t sponsoring anything. You’re renting logo placement and hoping people notice.

2. A sports sponsorship does not align with your marketing strategy. When you fail to properly bridge concepts, your sports initiative stands alone. Sports sponsorships are not a side project; they need to connect to your broader marketing goals.

   The best sports sponsorships feel like they were always part of the plan … the less effective ones feel like add-ons.

3. The audience doesn’t match your customer personas. This happens more than you think. Decision-makers are fans just like the rest of us, and salespeople tend to be more concerned with their budget than alignment. A packed stadium or an impressive TV rating doesn’t always equate to a qualified audience for your product or service.
4. Don’t choose exposure over outcomes. People in our business love to use the term ‘brand awareness’ as a justification for all sorts of zeros on a check. Say NO to any sports sponsorship that doesn’t have a clear objective. Make sure you identify clear KPIs to measure efficacy.

   Line Drive uses a very simple marketing exercise to begin our sponsorship process. What does success look like? If you can’t answer that, you might as well start figuring out how to explain why it didn’t work.

5. Make sure your brand has the internal bandwidth to help your sports sponsorship succeed. I know, I know … teams provide the manpower needed to activate, but executing a sponsorship properly also requires internal resources. This includes relationships to maintain, content to create, and assets to maximize.
6. Don’t buy sports sponsorships for brand status. Yes, it happens. There is an appeal to being associated with a team, a high-profile player, or a major sports event. If your decision is driven by perception and not strategy, you need to rethink what you’re doing.

The truth is, sports sponsorships aren’t for everyone. And in some cases, it can actually work against your brand to make the kind of investment. Like any marketing process, the decision to invest in sports is one that should be made after careful consideration and evaluation. Experience helps, as does transparency, open communication, and consensus from your marketing team. If you are giving this consideration or reviewing what you may already be doing, be sure to have the correct metrics for measuring success.

Ed has bought, sold, and consulted on sports sponsorships for over 30 years. If you’re looking to learn more about how you can make your sponsorship investment more impactful or if you’d like Ed to review your partnership efforts, contact him at ed.olsen@linedrivesportsmarketing.com or call his cell at 602.284.6722