Jessica Eustace-Cook. M.A., M.L.I.S.Trinity College Library Dublin

Overview Background

The process

Developing a plan or strategy

Creating a funding structure

Identifying prospective sponsors

Making contact - tips and tools

Building a relationship

My Background Graduated in 2000 from UCD Library School

5 years working for the Web of Science as part of MIMAS. 5 years on the UK national exhibition circuit

5 years as national fundraiser for an animal charity

2008-2011 Fundraiser for A&SL

2013-2014 Joint Project Manager & fundraising lead for A&SL

No marketing experience

No professional training in fundraising

How did I learn to fundraise? I made a list of all the positive experiences I had as an

exhibitor and tried to think how to incorporate them into a funding plan which would attract sponsors

I developed ideas as I went along – if something didn’t work one year, I tweaked it

I invested time in building a relationship with individuals rather than companies – huge job movement in publication and sales support but it’s a small pot of employers and employees

Every event I attended as a Librarian I always took the time to talk to people on the exhibition stands

Networking

Fundraising is a team activity

Organising an event requires a number of team players working together. Fundraising is not possible without a good working relationship with:

Project manager

Treasurer or Financial Lead

Venue Coordinator

Promotional officer – social media

Liaison Officers with sponsors – ideally 1 to 1

A good relationship with potential sponsors / exhibitors and potential investors

Fundraising is a long process

Your Event

Planning

Identifying Sponsors

Mapping a funding structure – single or multi streams

Identifying strengths of proposal or product

Contacting prospective sponsors

Waiting & Follow up calls

Getting them to sign

Promotion and advertising

Coordinating event space

On the day liaison

Follow up and next event planning

Identifying your strengths What makes it unique

Access to a unique set of members Are there other comparable events in your country / area

Is this a one off event or will there be a series? – what are the implications of this for your sponsors

Consider the potential promotional avenue your event offers for sponsors Unique access to attendees emails Twitter and Facebook promotional posts Conference Social Event – special funding opportunity Consider providing meeting rooms for sponsors to combine

additional business with your event Consider how to break down the impact of each of these factors

and map that to the cost of each funding strand.

Creating a Funding Structure How much money do you need to raise?

Are you just trying to cover the cost of the event?

Will monies generated be used to fund additional events (this is the model applied by the A&SL)

Do you want a single sponsor rate

Do you want to have different funding streams so that different sized companies can apply depending on their budget?

Don’t get greedy! Ensure a fair ratio between exhibitors and attendees

Is there a similar event in your own country that you can review their pricings

Is there an event or company in the UK?

A&SL’s pricing structure was based on the UKSG conference

What are the pricing streams for CILIP events?

What do A&SL, LAI and HSLG do?

Read literature around pricing models

REALITY: its based on an educated guess.

Our pricing evolved as our event expanded

Guidance?

Tips Create an overview document with all of the funding

streams

Create separate documents also for each funding streams

Label each stream clearly to avoid confusion

Make sure to use your logo on every item you send to a prospective sponsor / exhibitor as you are selling your brand

How do you vary funding streams for a seminar / conference?

Consider varying: Number of exhibitor places

Table size and number

Room placement relative to foot fall

Lightning Sessions

Promotional lead up to event – pre / event /post

Emails

Spotlights

Event promotion

Inclusion of promotional information in brochure – vary number of words

Inclusion of additional marketing material in delegate packs

Inclusion of accommodation costs

Advanced access to delegate list

How do you vary different funding streams for different events? Exhibition stands (most common)

Funded Lunch

Funded Drinks Reception

Spot Prizes

Sponsored Prize for best poster / First time speaker etc.

Be creative – any way in which you can allow a sponsor to be highlighted has the potential to be a fundraising opportunity

BUT: it must be mutually beneficial

Identifying the prospective sponsors These can come from a variety of sources.

I started with trying to identify who would be interested in our event

Potential sponsors for a Library event Your membership or prospective attendees

Colleagues / peers / students / departments / research groups

Physical product suppliers Shelving Photocopying / Scanning / Paper suppliers Digital tools Conservation materials Computers DELL, IBM, Microsoft?

Publishers – Elsevier, Springer, Proquest, EBSCO, IEEE Software suppliers – Endnote? Authentication providers – athens / shibboleth E-Resource providers

Who else has a vested interest in your business?

All of the above are prospective investors in your event

What to send to encourage sponsorship Consider creating a sponsors / exhibitors manual and

include: The title of the event

Details of your keynote speakers or main speakers

Details of the venue

A floor plan of the venue is helpful

A detailed break down of each funding stream and what each stream entails – make this as tempting as possible and clearly labelled.

Clear contact details for project lead, treasurer and fundraiser

Include:• Entrance / Exit• Refreshments• Doors• Table layout• A foot flow of movement

through the exhibit space can also be helpful

Promotion & Advertising Normally the promotion and advertising of a sponsor will

occur as part of a timed plan. For example for the A&SL advertising of platinum sponsors

occurs up to 3 months before the event and reflects their investment

Consider merchandising as a promotional function Consider visual displays or pop up displays on the day Verbal acknowledgements during the event Use the event brochure to help promote your sponsors Encourage on the day competitions to help highlight sponsor

activities These elements can all be used to help advertise and promote

your sponsors without disrupting the flow of the event

What discourages investment Spelling and grammar

Misspelling a company name

Misspelling the person you are contacting

Asking for too much or too little money

Relevance

The funder must see why your event is relevant to them

Lack of structure for an event

This can make it difficult for a sponsor to see how they fit into the event

Contacting prospective stakeholders You have identified those who potentially might invest

Before contacting create a spreadsheet with contact name / email / date of contact – this will allow you to track their progression

I recommend a max of three attempts to get sponsorship from an individual contact or company Consider different wings of large companies e.g. Springer

Have a deadline for cut off - this will encourage timely responses Consider the timeline for calls for sponsors - most companies

start planning their funding for events for the following year around Sept

Keep track of each contact you make with a company whether you are successful or not.

The relationship Building a relationship with sponsors and exhibitors is one

of the most important parts of the fundraising role

In most cases you will be the point of contact between the project manager, treasurer, secretary and venue coordinator and the exhibitor / sponsor

Be aware that their experience at your event will influence whether they will encourage their company to reinvest in the future

Consider what they need to achieve from the event and try to encompass their needs into your planned event

Exhibitors & Sponsors Be aware of their IT needs

Consider exhibitors comfort

Consider providing break out time for companies to talk and meet with your delegates

What happens next? Your sponsors are starting to make contact you need:

Correct company name

Correct size and type of logo

Twitter hashtag

Brief company description – this will go into promotion

Named exhibitors with emails

Finances As point of contact you will need to get

Correct contact name, email address and address for issuing of a bill for attendance

Be prepared delay over this. Consider delays if payment is in

foreign currency and discuss with Treasurer before hand

Tip: Do not under estimate the amount of emails you will get

in relation to this stage.

Set aside 1 hour a day to deal with correspondence

Set up standard replies if at all possible to deal with the most frequent queries.

Consider creating a separate email address to deal with correspondence

The Venue - considerations A month before the event send contact details and guidelines

to the exhibitors for set up and break down of the exhibit area

Ensure that CLEAR dates of delivery for material intended for the delegate packs are provided, separately to the exhibit material

Clarify what will be provided Booth?

Chairs – (number)

Table – with or without table cloth?

Ensure there are enough power points near the exhibitor tables – this can be a huge source of contention on the day.

Provide a rough count of delegate numbers to allow sponsors to estimate documents and freebies

Example of exhibition venue details from A&SL 2014

Event Day Liaison Ideally you will be able to assign a sponsor to

an event day liaison

Common event day challenges:

The cable they brought is not long enough – consider a back up

Illness resulting in a last minute change of person –new name badge required

Late delivery of exhibition items

On the day arrival of material meant for the delegate packs - solution set up a drop off and and pick table

Post Event Follow-up Email

thank sponsors for their time and

investment

If you received feedback from attendees – pass it on

Sponsor Survey - recommended for future events (survey monkey)

how to improve

what to change

Give a time line (if appropriate) for next call for funding

Back to planning the next event

Try to hold a review / planning meeting no later than 1 month after the follow ups. This will allow youto sketch ideas while theyare fresh in your mind. A draft plan is much easier to return to after a couple of months than trying to remember from Scratch.

Top tips for any fundraiser Timeline – must be established early so the project can be

broken down into achievable sections

Speakers – must be identified early so that they can be used early to encourage sponsors to invest

Venue – catering, accommodation, parking, distance to transport / airports –must be considered when exhibitors are travelling to attend

Technology – laptops, power points, internet, mics, charging stations

Delivery / Collection – marketing items for the conference and the sponsors

Network! Network! Network!

Scenario A: 1 Day National Seminar Suggest a potential theme

Suggest a venue – what considerations will effect this

Decide how many project team members would be necessary to support the event

Identify a minimum of 3 funding streams

Identify a minimum of 6 potential sponsors

Write a list of 5 reasons why a sponsor would want to fund this event – what are the benefits for them

Identify 3 ways to promote your sponsor during the project

Identify 3 potential support tools which may help support communication amongst your project team

Scenario B: 3 Month Exhibition Select an appropriate collection for your event

Decide how many project team members would be necessary to support the event

Identify a minimum of 3 funding streams

Identify a minimum of 6 potential sponsors

Write a list of 5 reasons why a sponsor would want to fund this event

Identify 3 ways to promote your sponsor during the project

Identify 3 potential support tools which may help support communication amongst your project team

Scenario C: Book Launch Decide what format the launch will take e.g. reception /

reading Suggest a venue – what considerations will effect this Decide how many project team members would be necessary

to support the event Identify a minimum of 3 funding streams Identify a minimum of 6 potential sponsors Write a list of 5 reasons why a sponsor would want to fund this

event – what are the benefits for them Identify 3 ways to promote your sponsor during the project Identify 3 potential support tools which may help support

communication amongst your project team

Contact Details Jessica Eustace-Cook

Nursing & Midwifery Subject Librarian

& SFI Research Support Librarian

Email: eustacj@tcd.ie

Tel: 01-896-4916