If you’re spending your hard-earned money on something, what do you check? You look at reviews, star ratings, product user experiences. Now, think about your event sponsors. If they’re investing their hard-earned money, why would they do that without proof that their investment is going to pay off (literally and figuratively). This is why event analytics are so incredibly important in the event world!
Now, we’re not saying create a sponsorship guide that is solely plastered with every single event analytic you’ve ever gathered. You want to intentionally and strategically curate a sponsorship media kit that focuses on the best data that will speak to the sponsors you’re trying to attract. And if that means spending some time to customize based upon who you’re pitching, so be it. That’s where you’ll see success.
So, what analytics should you be gathering? And how can you leverage the data once you have it when securing sponsorships? We’re going to share all our tips, keep reading!
Data You Need to Be Gathering from Your Events
Prior to using your event analytics to land big sponsors, you need to make sure you’re gathering the right data. Through adding questions to your registration forms, post-event surveys, and polls, and opt-in gamification on-site, you can gather all these data points (and more)!
- Attendee Demographics: Age, Job Function, Company Name, Income Level, Personal and Professional Interests, Children,
- Event & Event Marketing Reach: How many people does your event reach, how many people does your event marketing reach, how many people can your sponsors anticipate reaching combining these two factors?
- Prior Sponsor Data: Put together a post-event sponsor survey that surveys sponsors quarterly or every 6-months, asking what ROI they saw from your event. That means on-site, and post-event! Prospective sponsors will also want to see names of big-time sponsors from previous years, as well as who is returning this year. The little fish are always wanting to hang out with the big fish. Use that to your advantage when leveraging sponsorships!
- Your Company’s Reach: Even if you have a target audience that isn’t coming to the event that sponsors will still have a chance to reach through digital marketing benefits, they’re going to want to see who they have the chance to reach, and how many total may see their content!
How to Gather Event Analytics
One of the top questions we get from customers trying to leverage their data is, “Where the heck do I get all those numbers from?” It’s pretty simple, actually! You can use tools like Google Analytics, analytics from your social pages (Facebook & Instagram Insights), and the analytics functions on your event software to find this data! You can even find apps like Buzzsumo that allow you to track what content is performing best. Trending sessions? Yes, please!
Never used any analytics tools for your events? Our team can show you how.
How to Use These Event Analytics & Rich Data in Your Sponsorship Acquisition Process
Businesses love numbers! And they want to see how their numbers will increase by investing in your event. By using the event analytics you’ve gathered, you’ll show that you’re worthy of being trusted and can walk the walk, not just talk the talk. Numbers don’t lie and will showcase your success, and their potential for success, better than any fluff content.
- Put it in the Sponsorship Media Guide: Pull one stat to feature per page of your sponsorship media kit that relates to the content on that page.
- Use it in Cold Pitch Emails: If you know that a sponsor is trying to create a greater reach for their brand, show them how many people they can reach with cold, hard numbers. Use this as a hook to get them on a call!
- Bring it Up in Prospect Meetings: Now, once you have them on the phone or out for a cup of coffee, organically try to pepper in some of those stats. If they have questions about how they’ll see results, or who they’ll reach, using real numbers and percentages is best.
Not enough companies set up thorough event data capture opportunities. And honestly, it’s a shame, because the key to profitable events is being able to leverage previous success and build upon it. So, whether you’re hosting your first event or your one-hundredth event, please, please, please, start gathering data and using those event analytics if you aren’t already. You can only go up!
Not Collecting the Right Event Analytics & Struggling with Sponsorship? Let EBA Lead the Way!
We know that as an event planner that yes, you can break down the numbers like the best of them. However, do you enjoy it? For many, that’s a hard no. That’s why our team loves streamlining event analytics collection, analysis, and leveraging them for event sponsorship. It makes it easier to get what you need from your event data, without having to spend hours with numbers swirling around in your brain. Let’s be honest, as event producers we’re super creative and numbers aren’t always fun! But they are essential if you want your events to generate ROI and be profitable. Let’s chat about how we can streamline your event analytic acquisition and use them to help you gain sponsors! We know we can help you get results.
P.S. We’re launching a new sponsorship masterclass soon. Be sure to follow us on Instagram to be the first to know when registration opens!
