Resources

For more than 40 years, Bruce has shared his insights and thought leadership on event marketing and sponsorship trends and topics. In addition to contributing to industry publications, Bruce is a regular contributor to IFEA's iE Magazine, through his quarterly column, The Sponsor Doc. Many of his columns can be found here.

From Transactional to transformational

Sometimes I feel like I’m selling soap rather than sponsorships. My pitches are based upon what rights and benefits I can provide. The sponsor is interested in more “stuff” and acts like my packages are more of a buffet from which they can pick and choose. Do you have any suggestions on how I can break out of this?

Building and Documenting Sponsorship Value

One of the most daunting aspects of selling sponsorship is determining the value of the rights and assets package you’re offering, which, in turn, helps you set an appropriate fee.

The Importance of audience insights (Summer, 2024)

Event organizers have been struggling with this question for years. Needless to say, it is easy to provide accurate attendance at gated events, but it has been a daunting task to get a reliable attendance estimate at free events.

Top Takeaways from SMA Summit (Winter, 2024)

It’s all about Storytelling – If I heard one theme over and over again from both properties and brands during the Summit, it was that we must see ourselves as facilitators of storytelling.

ChatGPT as a collaborative partner (Spring, 2024)

ChatGPT provided me with a bunch of ideas. Many were pretty ordinary, some irrelevant, but others quite insightful and innovative. I was able to glean something useful from each query I made.

Limiting Sponsorship Attrition

Sponsor attrition has become a greater problem in our post-pandemic world. Perhaps it is because some sponsors learned to live without us during the cancellations of 2020. Or maybe it’s because many of our principal contacts (and advocates) have left the company. It could also be the general uncertainty of the economy with the rise in inflation and threat of recession

A Good Problem To Have (Fall, 2023)

What do you do when you have an offer out to a new sponsor in a specific category and the prior sponsor decides to renew. This will take some special handling.

You Want Me To Sell How Much? (Summer, 2023)

I have explained many times that as sales goals are speculative, I generally set sponsorship revenue goals as a percentage increase over the prior year.

Harnessing the Power of Relationships (Spring, 2023)

I see my role as a matchmaker…brokering win-win relationships between an event and a sponsor that mutually achieves both our objectives symbiotically.

Sponsorship - Timing is Everything (Winter, 2022)

Approximately 65% of publicly traded companies operate on a calendar-based fiscal year that runs from January until December.

Reflections on a Career Selling Sponsorship (Summer, 2022)

I was asked to share some of my thoughts and reflections on a career selling sponsorship. Frankly, it’s too long for one column so this is Part I. I hope you find it helpful.

What Does Your Crystal Ball Tell You? (Winter, 2021)

Let me preface my thoughts with this…as I looked back at my predictions over the past two years, I would say that I have been correct a little more than 50% of the time.

Sponsorship - The Road to Recovery (Summer, 2021)

I would begin by taking the temperature in your own community. Have you set your 2021 dates? Are other events coming back?

The Survey Says . . . (Winter, 2020)

The tabulation provided an insightful view into what we might expect in the year ahead. I wanted to provide you with my topline observations.

And the Gold Pinnacle Award for Best COVID Sponsor Cancellation Goes To (Fall, 2020)

At a time like this, what I say, do, and convey will have more to do with our recovery than anything else.

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