Mara Kolter
Mara Kolter, CEM, Business Development Manager at Convention Data Services. Mara has over 20 years of experience in the tradeshow and event planning industry.
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
Partner Voices
MGM Resorts is renowned for its exceptional service and diverse venue options across Las Vegas, Detroit, Springfield, National Harbor, Biloxi, and Atlantic City, providing flexible spaces for meetings of any size. Beyond these offerings, MGM Resorts distinguishes itself through a strong commitment to social responsibility and sustainability, making it an ideal choice for your next meeting.
At the core of MGM Resorts' company values is its platform, "Focused on What Matters," dedicated to meeting customer needs while advancing socially responsible practices. This commitment is evident in several key areas:
Protecting Natural Resources
MGM Resorts is home to industry-leading recycling, renewable electricity and water conservation programs. Some highlights include a cogeneration power plant at ARIA, producing ultra-efficient electricity; one of America’s largest contiguous rooftop solar arrays atop the convention center at Mandalay Bay; and onsite wells that provide water for the celebrated Fountains of Bellagio, avoiding reliance on precious Colorado River water. These efforts and many more save on natural resources while boosting attendee satisfaction.
Committed to Community
Always striving to be good neighbors, MGM Resorts works to avoid food waste and combat food insecurity with the Feeding Forward program. In partnership with local food banks, they safely divert unserved food to food insecure members of the community. Since 2016, over 5 million meals have been provided, highlighting MGM Resorts' commitment to minimizing food waste and addressing community needs.
MGM Resorts supports clients in their responsible-meetings efforts, not only with efficient venues but also waste-reducing décor and signage; sustainable food and beverage options; and outreach to help planners communicate sustainability efforts to attendees. What’s more, they offer a Mindful Meetings series that puts attendee wellness first—through fitness and mindfulness activities, and in give-back events with local charity organizations.
Fostering Diversity & Inclusion
To MGM Resorts, a diverse and talented workforce is essential to success. By cultivating innovative strategies that consider multiple perspectives and viewpoints, the company creates an inclusive workplace culture that benefits its employees and community. MGM Resorts takes pride in being a welcoming home for veterans, individuals with disabilities, people from diverse backgrounds, LGBTQ+ community members, and more. This commitment to inclusion is reflected in the company's recruitment and hiring practices and its social responsibility initiatives. From the workplace to the community, MGM Resorts' commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion remains unwavering, and its efforts continue to create a more equitable and sustainable world for all.
MGM Resorts offers unparalleled service and venue options while standing out for its proactive approach to sustainability and community engagement. Choosing MGM Resorts for your next meeting means aligning with a company that values social responsibility, efficiency, and attendee satisfaction, ensuring a meaningful and impactful event experience.
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