Help Your Exhibitors Get Their Brand Message and Story “Heard” - How Sponsorships Add Value to Your Event

May 24, 2015

Sponsorships have a direct and long-lasting positive effect on a company’s brand awareness and strategy. By offering the advantage of a sponsorship opportunity within the life cycle of your event, you are offering your exhibitors the ability to boost their company’s name recognition and exposure to their target audience: their current and future customers. An exhibitor’s sponsorship also broadens awareness of your event within new communities, such as the customer base of the sponsoring company.

Your event’s website and communication materials emailed to attendees provide multiple opportunities for registrants to see sponsorship information and click to learn more about the sponsoring company. As your event’s website traffic and registration increase in the months leading up to the event, the sponsorship achieves a broader reach. Onsite, sponsorships bring your exhibitor’s brand to the forefront of attendees’ attention.

How to begin:

  • Move beyond the basics of sponsorships. Offer more than just signage.
  • Highlight benefits to your exhibitors, not just the elements of the sponsorship. Focus on your exhibitors’ needs and offer solutions.
  • Customize the sponsorships you offer into categories. This will help your exhibitors identify what they want to accomplish and whom they want to reach. 
  • Get consultative. If the opportunities you currently offer don’t meet your exhibitors’ goals, engage them on a customized solution that does.

The next step: 

Create the components of your sponsorship packages. Don’t forget these key areas:

Registration Emails: Feature the sponsoring company’s name and logo with a link to their website.

• Registration confirmation

• Check-in email 

• Show-day updates

• Post-event email

• Receipt email

Banner Advertising: Offer dynamic advertising based on your attendee demographics.

• Registration websites

• Attendee registration resource center (portal for registered attendees to manage and upgrade registration details, book a hotel, download a receipt, network with other attendees, generate a Visa invitation letter, access their CME, etc.)

• Onsite check-in and self-registration screens

• Customized screensavers on workstations

Badges and Holders: Feature the sponsoring company’s name, logo and a QR code.

• Real estate on the front and/or back of the badge

• Educational sessions and printed tickets 

• Custom badge holders or lanyards at the event

Registration or Cyber Café Workstations: Feature the sponsoring company’s name and logo.  

• Landing page for cyber café or CEU certificate generation. CEUs offer additional exposure by being available onsite and post-event.

• Signage for the workstation or cyber café screens

• Custom-branded mouse pads for the computer stations

Onsite: Feature the sponsoring company’s color scheme, name and logo.

• Branded t-shirts for the onsite registration assistants or line monitors. The sponsoring company’s name and logo are then easily recognizable to each attendee receiving service.

• Onsite recycling bins placed around the hall for recycling paper or badge holders

Post-Event: Offer image-based ads with a link to the sponsoring company’s website. 

• Attendee thank-you email

• Exhibit Tracker (customized email and website for attendees that provides a list of the exhibitor booths they visited)

• Inquiry page for your next event (creates a prospect list and gives attendees the ability to receive notifications of when registration opens for your next event)

• Event Surveys

 

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Partner Voices
Overview: The award-winning Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) goes the extra mile to make every day extraordinary by offering customer service excellence and industry-leading partnerships. From their dedicated in-house Rigging team to their robust Exhibitor Services, The Center of Hospitality brings your imagination to life by helping you host unforgettable meetings and events. With more than 2 million square feet of exhibit space, world-class services and a dream destination, we are committed to making even the most ambitious conventions a reality. In October 2023, the Orange County Board of County Commissioners voted to approve allocating Tourist Development Tax funding for the $560 million Phase 5A completion of the OCCC. The Convention Way Grand Concourse project will include enhancements to the North-South Building, featuring an additional 60,000 square feet of meeting space, an 80,000- square-foot ballroom and new entry to the North-South Building along Convention Way. “We are thrilled to begin work on completing our North-South Building which will allow us to meet the growing needs of our clients,” said OCCC Executive Director Mark Tester. “As an economic driver for the community, this project will provide the Center with connectivity and meeting space to host more events and continue to infuse the local economy with new money and expanding business opportunities.” Amenities: The Center of Hospitality goes above and beyond by offering world-class customer service and industry-leading partnerships. From the largest convention center Wi-Fi network to custom LAN/WAN design, the Center takes pride in enhancing exhibitor and customer experience.  The OCCC is the exclusive provider of electricity (24-hour power at no additional cost), aerial rigging and lighting, water, natural gas and propane, compressed air, and cable TV services. Convenience The Center is at the epicenter of the destination, with an abundance of hotels, restaurants, and attractions within walking distance. Pedestrian bridges connect both buildings to more than 5,200 rooms and is within a 15-minute drive from the Orlando International Airport. The convenience of the location goes hand-in-hand with top notch service to help meet an event’s every need. Gold Key Members The OCCC’s Gold Key Members represent the best of the best when it comes to exceptional service and exclusive benefits for clients, exhibitors and guests. The Center’s Gold Key memberships with Universal Orlando Resort, SeaWorld Orlando and Walt Disney World greatly enhance meeting planner and attendee experiences offering world-renowned venues, immersive experiences and creative resources for their events. OCCC Events: This fiscal year, the OCCC is projected to host 168 events, 1.7 million attendees, and $2.9 billion in economic impact.  The Center’s top five events during their 2022-2023 fiscal year included:  AAU Jr. National Volleyball Championships 2023 200,000 Attendees $257 Million in Economic Impact MEGACON 2023 160,000 Attendees $205 Million in Economic Impact Open Championship Series 2023 69,500 Attendees $89 Million in Economic Impact Sunshine Classic 2023 42,000 Attendees $54 Million in Economic Impact Premiere Orlando 2023 42,000 Attendees $108 Million in Economic Impact