by Lee Gibbons, CEO

Note: to read more about the PodCamp NYC sponsorship and event specifically, please go to my personal blog at LeeGibbons.com.
When approached about sponsoring events, I have to admit, I feel a genuine instinct to run away. The reason? It has been my experience that the vast majority of sponsorships are a waste of money. However, I also must say that the last three events we have sponsored have been different than that for me. So much so, as a matter of fact, that I have done some analysis and come up with the reasons Gear Media Tech and PodCamp NYC have been different. Out of that thinking, I have developed a list of reasons to sponsor and not to sponsor that I will make sponsorship decisions in the future. I believe it is broadly applicable.

5 Non-negotiable Sponsorship Criteria

1. It’s On Target: The event serves your customers/prospects directly; not as a tengential means of reaching them.
2. It’s About Learning: The event is built around knowledge exchange first, and creating a marketing opportunity second.
3. It Fits Your Focused: The event enables knowledge exchange directly applicable to your core value proposition.
4. It Lets You Be Remarkable: You have an opportunity to stand out as the event’s biggest financial supporter. Like they say, Come Big, or Stay Home.
5. It Contributes You Domain Expertise: You get on-stage face to face time to teach what you know that can help deliver the mission of the event.

5 Reasons to Run Away from a Sponsorship

1. Friendship Pressure: If the event is organized by friends and that is the strongest pull you feel.
2. Indirect Benefit: If the event has only indirect benefit to you, perhaps only reaching your target customer’s customer. (This does work for Large Companies who OEM their products as part of a larger product, but not for startups)
3. Marketing Fair: If the event is primarily built around a marketing opportunity, not an opportunity to support substantive learning. Chances are you will be seen on the same plane as time share sales operations.
4. Competitive Pressure Only: If your competitors always do the event and you feel like that is the primary reason you have to be there.
5. Weak Messaging: If you don’t have something important to say or news to which you can tie your presence at the event.

Networking side note: I promised in my Presentation at PodCamp NYC to post Steve Eisenberg’s contact information on this blog (steve AT steveeisenberg.com - be sure to replace the AT with the @ sign).