8+ SAMPLE Team Sponsorship Proposal

What Is a Team Sponsorship Proposal?

A team sponsorship proposal is what you pitch to potential sponsors to request monetary support or any form of support for your sports organization or team. For example, a youth football team might be very prepared for a long-distance tournament after loads of training sessions. However, they could not afford the travel fees, equipment upgrades, and other accommodations. Hence, whoever is in charge of the team should secure sponsors wherein mutual benefits go to the players and the sponsors themselves. And it all begins by pitching a riveting team sponsorship proposal or even a sponsor letter.

According to Statista, the worldwide sports sponsorship market was worth $57 billion in 2020. And it could boost up to $90 billion by 2027.

Prerequisites to a Winning Team Sponsorship Proposal

Before writing a team sponsorship proposal immediately, you should get introduced to some important components to perfect your proposal later on. In this section, you will learn about the prerequisites to form a winning team sponsorship proposal.

Brand Study: Get to know your sponsors first. The key is to engage in brand study or market research to fully understand your potential sponsors. At the same time, you will know how credible your sponsor is. In order for sponsors to trust you, expect to study their brand, their position in the industry, and even a history of sports sponsorships they already established. Hence, don’t just simply get connections from random people since you have to look into them first.Target Analysis: The next concern is to find a common target with the sponsors. Bear in mind that sponsors don’t just fund you if it only satisfies your team’s objectives and targets; the outcome should benefit the sponsors’ targets as well. And a thorough target analysis report can help streamline this process. Your study can check how the sponsors and target audiences behave so that everyone will be convinced that your team can help them fulfill their goals as well.Sponsorship Plans: It is never enough to just ask for funds. You have to construct a clear sponsorship plan on how those funds will be used. You can start with how your overall plan can help meet your sponsor’s objectives. The type of sports sponsorship used even matters here. Also, the higher the budget you ask for, the higher the standards your sponsors expect from your strategic plan.Personalized Objectives: While it is great to follow the standard objectives from your organization and the sponsor’s, there is also room for personalizing the objectives. Maybe the conventional sports event proposal does not coincide with the team sponsorship proposal so you have to change it. Most importantly consider a smart marketing and brand activation plan. And those actions are divided according to before the event, during the event, or after it.Scope of Action Plan: From every action you enlisted in the team sponsorship proposal, estimate the possible scope of work in it. A quantitative scope of action plan helps measure out if the plans proposed have a high success rate or not. Also, quantifying helps make the details to be more specific. In other words, the feasibility of the whole sponsorship must be assessed.

Why Is a Team Sponsorship Proposal Important?

Although it is clear as to what team sponsorship proposals are, how about why it is necessary? You won’t hesitate to make a decent team sponsorship proposal when you know how essential it is. And these reasons are worth pointing out as you make your proposal later on:

Business Means Business

A sponsorship proposal is like a business proposal where you present ideas and pitch your sports team to a potential sponsor as to why your organization deserves a sponsorship. So rather than begging for people to fund your group, this is the formal approach in asking for help. And it is not as simple as it sounds because you have to make sure the sponsors benefit something from the proposal too. Hence, it is very essential particularly if your team needs to lessen costs and increase the revenue.

Relationship Proposal

Also, you can’t ignore how team sponsorship proposals either make or break relationships. It is important to note that a special bond forms once a sponsor accepts your request for proposal letter. So if you want to make a solid portfolio of sponsors, there will be key decisions and risks in the process too. With that said, be careful with every statement added in the proposal because how you present your ideas could be used against you. And after a proposal, a long-term collaboration takes place and its success depends on all parties.

Global Sports Sponsorship Phenom

The worldwide sports sponsorship market reached $57 billion in 2020. And as Statista said, it could increase up to $90 billion by 2027. Hence, sports sponsorship is not something you belittle as billions of funds from sponsors are generated globally every year. Clearly, sports sponsorships are important to many organizations. In fact, North America garnered 1/3 of the worldwide sports sponsorship revenue in 2020, particularly with the biggest leagues such as NFL and NBA.

Not Just a Sports Thing

A common misconception is that people assume team sponsorship proposals are only for sports teams. A team could be anything. It could refer to a nonprofit program organization, business team, school drama club, church group, etc. In fact, there are even different corporate sponsorship levels. So in writing a sponsorship letter or proposal, be sure to specify what type of team you are referring to so sponsors don’t have to assume that you need funds for a sports team alone.

How to Write a Team Sponsorship Proposal

Don’t feel intimidated if it is still your first time to come up with a proper team sponsorship proposal. In fact, it is very easy to make when you are guided in just six basic steps. And the best part is there are sample proposals to guide you along the way too. So without further ado, here are the steps on writing a well-thought-out team sponsorship proposal:

  • Step 1: Research Your Sponsors Carefully

    First things first, do your Primary Research for your potential sponsors. This will help you know what to write and what not to write in the proposal. For example, you might ask help from a sponsor that has zero interest in sports events and you are only wasting your time proposing there. That explains why you should observe the prerequisites of a team sponsorship proposal, as discussed earlier. From brand study to the scope of action plan, those will play a huge role in your proposal writing process. Also, be smart in reaching out to them first to warn them about an upcoming proposal.

  • Step 2: Download a Sample Team Sponsorship Proposal

    See those 8+ team sponsorship proposal templates above this article? Those are your lucky options in writing the proposal seamlessly. Just select your preferred template and customize it afterward. And Sample.net brings you more sample templates as well. You may opt for a sponsorship Request Letter Template, sports tournament proposal example, sports business proposal template, sponsor cover letter, or any letter sample of choice. You have plenty of options to choose from!

  • Step 3: Know What You Want and What to Offer

    Sponsorships are on a two-way basis. You offer something and your sponsor offers something. So do not assume that the team sponsorship proposal is all about asking for funds. You must be equipped with something to gratify your sponsor. An exchange of services is much better than merely begging anyway. While it is universal that most teams seek financial help, the sports team can offer benefits to the sponsor too such as marketing the sponsor’s brand or products to generate their Product Sales. And what you write in the proposal can still be changed once you and the sponsor have a better talk about the deal.

  • Step 4: Follow Standard Business Writing Format

    When it comes to proposals, always think about formal Business Letters. There is an expected format for it. An example is to not keep the writing too personal since business still means business. And you should be cordial and professional at the same time. Showing signs of respect is the best way to go rather than not thinking about what could offend a sponsor. Also, you should have provided when the proposal was composed, when you expect the sponsorship, how much it costs, etc.

  • Step 5: Keep It Detailed yet Straightforward

    There is no need to transform team sponsorship proposals into Detailed Letters. Indeed, adding more details is impressive when you need to discuss the proposal thoroughly. However, making it too long when it could have been abridged is highly discouraged. Sponsors themselves would want to know what you want and what you offer right away rather than showering them with flowery words and lacking the main points. So there is a sense of balance in giving enough detail but it should be direct to the point at all costs. And if you are confident that you have said what needs to be said in the proposal, you are doing well.

  • Step 6: Attach Supporting Documents

    Sometimes, sponsors need a little push before saying yes. And this is where supporting documents or Background Statements are at play. Maybe your statements about the sports team were unbelievable. The thing is some people could exaggerate how talented an athlete is but you have to refrain from that. Instead, be truthful with the content. You can attach documents that prove how the sports team lacks the resources such as budget sheets that show the limited money they have. Additionally, end your proposal on a positive note. A tip is to thank the sponsor for bothering to read the entire proposal and that you are expecting a response soon.

FAQs

What are the types of sponsorship?

There are many types of sponsorship but they are categorized mainly into four. And these are the financial sponsor, in-kind sponsor, media sponsor, and promotional sponsor. It is crucial you know the right sponsorship type that is fitting for your team.

What are some tips to convince sponsors in supporting you?

There are lots of ways to convince sponsors in helping you and it usually depends on your creativity. Here are some examples you might want to consider:

  • Make your sponsors feel special by mentioning what they are capable of and why it makes sense to have them.
  • Don’t be scared to reach out to them first before writing the proposal.
  • Use specific sports event examples and how working with sponsors helped a lot.
  • Add visuals or supporting files to implement a riveting narrative.
  • Prove that you have an impressive social presence.
  • Show how much you value your sponsors.

How do sponsorships help athletes?

Sponsorship funding benefits athletes so they can be more focused and are assured that they can compete in any tournament. Thus, they won’t need to find the money themselves and it no longer stresses them out during the actual event. Clearly, sports teams and sponsors can build a partnership agreement that benefits one another.

The next time you need financial support or aid from sponsors, the best advice is to be transparent with your team’s needs. Expect to explain how much a sports event costs and how much it means to your team. The same goes for mentioning how much you currently have because it seems unrealistic to just say your team has absolutely zero budget. Sponsors wish to understand the full details until they know how to distribute that money, particularly if they are interested and compelled to support your team’s endeavors. Make that happen using our collection of free sample team sponsorship proposal templates.