Team Sponsorships

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Jonathon,
Please remember that their are small opportunities out there that many teams ignore while they are looking for the big sponsor. Many small town teams try to get local businesses involved even if it means only $25, every little bit helps. The small business owner knows it is good to promote local students because it comes back to them in business. You can also solicit them for a donation of goods or services for a raffle which brings in money through the sale of the tickets.

[George C]

You could also try service clubs such as Optimists, Rotary or whatever you have in your area. Optimists has a focus on youth. We've had a great relationship with them for a few years now. A partnership is better than a sponsorship. We're planning to help them with their annual Christmas tree sale this year. It will help them and help us become better-known in the community. This past summer we started a relationship with Rotary by participating in their Rib-fest. Have a look as well at our FIRST Community program at http://1334.ca/first-community-challenge.

[ebarker]

PM me...

next idea: PM me... 2 days has past since the OP

[RoboMom]

Some ideas here under "Sponsors and Fundraising" http://www.firstnemo.org/resources.htm

Also, there is a separate subforum for Fundraising here on cd, under Team Organization. Check out the great ideas already posted, esp. the stickies at the top.

[brrian27]

This is our first year of actively seeking sponsors and it's gone pretty well so far.

We've created a presentation outlining what robotics is, history, our team, goals, sponsorship benefits, etc. that is adaptable to basically any company we may want to pursue. Having a presentation can really "wow" sponsors when they see the incredible things we do.

Also, we've created a sponsorship plan with varying levels of rewards based on how much is donated. This helps a sponsor know both sides of the team-sponsor relationship.

Something we're in the process of doing is creating a wishlist with specific items that we need. This could include event registration, mechanical parts, wants, time, etc. This helps a sponsor know exactly what is needed.

And to find sponsors, just look for connections in the community. Perhaps a student's dad works at a large company or someone had a part-time job at the grocery store. Anyone can be a sponsor if you market yourself correctly.

Good luck!