Event sponsorships help you host the types of events people want to attend. But building an event sponsorship package with different levels – and attractive benefits – can be tricky. Read on to learn how to create sponsorship levels that will maximize your event revenue.
Fundraising events can be hugely successful with the right strategy and planning. This is because people want to support your important mission – and they get to have some fun along the way!
If you’re thinking about hosting an event, you must consider adding nonprofit sponsorship levels. Sponsorships help cover event expenses, boosting your overall revenue.
But you might be wondering how to create fundraiser sponsorship levels that will work. Don’t worry – we have you covered!
In this article, we’ll discuss the ins and outs of sponsorship levels. We also share the steps needed to create them for your event and five examples for inspiration.
First, let’s cover the basics of sponsorship levels for events.
Nonprofit sponsorship levels are packages of sponsorship opportunities that nonprofits put together to attract corporate and local sponsors. There are several types of sponsorships you can offer, such as naming opportunities for your buildings, sponsorship of specific programs, and more.
Typically, however, event sponsorship packages are the most attractive to sponsors. They are used most often during events like fundraising galas to drastically increase fundraising or offset event expenses.
Fundraiser sponsorship levels are fantastic for events because they help establish mutually beneficial corporate-nonprofit partnerships and result in more support for your organization. Nonprofits receive extra funding – often at significantly higher levels of giving – and corporate sponsors receive positive brand recognition. It’s a win-win!
Having a variety of levels for sponsorship is a good idea to attract as many corporate sponsors as possible. For example, a smaller, local business won’t be able to support your event at the level a larger, national business might be – but that doesn’t mean you want to lose out on their support!
Pro tip: You can also boost event revenue by selling products during your event. Check out this blog to learn more!
It can feel tricky to come up with sponsorship levels from scratch. That’s why we’ve compiled these five steps to simplify the process.
Your first step is to be sure you have fundraising software capable of accepting sponsorship payments at a variety of levels. This fundraising software should also be capable of hosting a variety of campaigns.
Donorbox is an all-in-one fundraising tool that can help make event sponsorship levels a big success.
Whether you want to launch a donation form, a fundraising/crowdfunding page, a peer-to-peer campaign, or an events page to sell tickets, it’s easy to set up multiple campaigns at once with Donorbox – and to add your sponsorship levels to each one.
This way, interested sponsors have many ways they can give to support your event and receive their sponsor benefits.
The sponsorship packages you’ll put together will depend in part on what you need for the event.
For example, do you need someone to sponsor the entire cost of renting your venue? Then you should price your sponsorship package accordingly.
You should also consider your fundraising goal for the event to help you create your sponsorship packages. If you sell one sponsorship at all levels, how close will that bring you to your fundraising goal? Depending on your answer, you may need to increase your sponsorship levels.
If you add an auction or wine pull to your event, consider seeking donations of auction items and wine along with your sponsorships!
A good rule of thumb is to have two major levels – usually $5,000 or more – and several smaller (but still significant!) sponsorship options ranging anywhere from $500 to $3,000. This will vary based on the scope of your event.
Pro tip: Get creative with naming your levels! The names can relate to your organization or event in some way. Check out the examples in the next section for some inspiration!
Each level should have corresponding benefits for the sponsor. These benefits typically include advertising opportunities and special treatment during your event, and sometimes ongoing benefits after the event is over.
When it’s time to start creating and selling tickets to your event, you can use Donorbox Events.
Create as many ticket tiers as you’d like. Include multiple kinds of admission as well as all your nonprofit sponsorship levels.
You can also easily add the tax-deductible amount to each ticket so donors have an added incentive to buy a higher-priced ticket or sponsorship.
Once someone buys their ticket or sponsorship, they’ll automatically receive an email with their tickets and a receipt.
Check out how Wilmington Christian School used Donorbox to sell admission tickets and sponsorships using the same Events page. Their sponsorship packages are simple and attractive!
You can also manually add any offline sponsorship transactions made with checks, cash, cryptocurrency, credit cards, or bank transfers to your event on Donorbox. This helps you keep all of your event data in one place, making it easy to track the success of your event sponsorship levels.
A good way to make sure your sponsorship levels are accurate is to secure sponsors at that level, of course! That will confirm that you set sponsorship levels that are attractive for the organizations interested in partnering with you.
Connecting with prospects is an important part of selling nonprofit sponsorship levels for your event.
You can find prospects through the following sources –
Pro tip: Use Donorbox’s donor management tools to search for new prospects and label existing prospects. You can filter all donor data by a variety of filters to find past donors who might be interested in sponsoring your event.
You can also include notes on each supporter profile to make prospects easy to find in the future. Here’s what it looks like –
We love how detailed Radiant Living Center got with their sponsorship levels for their Fun Fair. The event featured over 35 vendors, yoga classes, sound healing, and more.
Their sponsorship levels ranged from $250 to $5,000 and included perks like putting marketing materials in VIP gift bags for the event to a spotlight presentation on the Center’s podcast.
They listed the details for each sponsorship level right on their Donorbox Events page with a graphic –
Interested sponsors could also pay for their sponsorship right on the same page. This keeps potential donors from having to navigate away from the page – and risk never completing the transaction.
For each level, interested sponsors could see how much of the sponsorship amount is tax deductible. In this case, it was the whole sponsorship level, which is a great added incentive!
Maya’s Hope does a fantastic job communicating the perks for each of their nonprofit sponsorship levels for their Lotus Ball. Their fun event featured hors d’oeuvres, a champagne reception, dancing, magicians, and more.
Their fundraiser sponsorship levels ranged from $500 to $10,000, with amazing perks like a limo for the event, a VIP cocktail table, and even a private magic show.
They used a Donorbox fundraising page to collect sponsorship funds. To communicate the perks for each level, they simply uploaded a chart detailing the differences between each level.
Under each nonprofit sponsorship level on their donation form, they explain the impact each level of donation has on a child’s life. This is a great way to encourage giving at a higher level!
This fun golf event featured three sponsorship levels ranging from $500 to $1,500. They offered fantastic incentives like advertising on the event shirt, VIP tent lunches with drinks, and golf cart passes for the day of the event.
They used their Donorbox Events page to clearly outline the benefits of each level.
Checking out with Donorbox Events is easy, with a streamlined form simply asking for contact and payment information. This speeds up the process of checking out – which means it’s more likely sponsors will complete their transaction.
Interested in hosting a golf tournament fundraiser? Learn more in this blog!
United Policyholders hosted a night of wine tasting and partying for their UP for Good event.
We love their appeal to sponsors before they even list the details about sponsorship opportunities. They clarify how important that additional support is to the people they help.
Their sponsorship levels ranged from $1,000 to $25,000, with the biggest perk being an optional two-minute speaking slot during the event. The rest of the perks involve advertising – a huge incentive for companies looking to improve their image.
We also love how the sponsor levels “Tasting” and “Wine” are thematically connected to the event!
Westport Historical Society hosted their event touring historic cemeteries called Stories in Stone in June 2023.
Their nonprofit sponsorship levels started at $75 t and went up to $500. Perks included tickets to the event and admittance to the refreshment tent.
They incorporated information about their sponsorship levels directly into their ticket tiers. Remember, Donorbox Events gives you unlimited ticket tiers, which means you can fully customize your event page to match your needs. Here’s what it looked like on their event page –
Their tiers represent symbols commonly found in historic cemeteries, which is a fun bonus!
Nonprofit sponsorship levels can take your event – and your fundraising goals – up a notch.
But creating them can feel like a big task. Just remember to keep your needs in mind, along with what makes the most sense for your event. Then you’re ready to start selling sponsorship levels.
Donorbox makes selling sponsorship levels for events super easy, whether you want to use a fundraising page or an events page where you can also sell tickets. Automated receipts and ticketing streamline your workflow, which means acquiring sponsors uses fewer team resources than ever before.
You can also find prospects for sponsorship levels using Donorbox donor management tools. This is the best way to ensure your sponsorship levels will be a success!
Plus, Donorbox has tools to help you increase your fundraising event conversion – meaning your hard work for your event will pay off in the long run. You can find a more detailed look at our features here.
For more event planning and fundraising tips, check out the rest of our Nonprofit Blog. Subscribe to our newsletter for hand-picked blog content delivered to your inbox.
Lindsey spent years wearing many hats in the nonprofit world. Whether she was helping arts nonprofits with their messaging and content, planning a fundraising gala, writing an NEA grant proposal, or running a membership program with over 400 members, she learned how to navigate – and appreciate! – the fast-paced world of fundraising. Now, she loves sharing those hard-earned lessons with the Donorbox community.
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Lindsey Baker Bower