Many events would not exist without sponsor revenue. This is true of both physical and virtual events. An exciting feature of virtual events is that many sponsor benefits enjoyed at physical events are replicated and, in some cases, enhanced online.
The benefits are typically delivered via a virtual event platform. How well a platform supports sponsor value should therefore be a key consideration for event planners evaluating event platforms.
Let’s take a look at some of the sponsor opportunities to look out for.
Sponsor Exposure
Central to the event sponsorship discussion is branding. The more customisable the virtual event platform the more opportunities there are for sponsor branding and messages.
Here are some opportunities to consider when crafting sponsorship packages:
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Add a short welcome sponsor video to play automatically when attendees login to the virtual event platform for the first time.
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Incorporate a single, main event’s sponsor brand, or multiple brands as part of the virtual platform’s home page design.
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Brand the attendee networking rooms so the sponsor’s brand is incorporated seamlessly and prominently into the design.
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Create banner ads and set them to rotate within high traffic areas within the platform.
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Consider the backdrop for your live streaming. Add one or more sponsor logos.
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Invite sponsors to introduce sessions live or play pre-recorded messages to camera.
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Incorporate sponsor video adverts into your live stream.
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Allow sponsors to add video content to the on-demand library in your virtual platform.
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Preschedule sponsor alerts to attendees to be delivered to attendees as pop ups on the event platform and via email.
Lead Generation
Connecting sponsor company representatives with attendees is often an equally important way to add sponsor value. Good virtual event platforms offer plenty of opportunities. Here is a flavour of the possibilities.
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Invite sponsor representatives to create attendee profiles to interact with attendees one to one via text or video calls.
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Offer customisable virtual expo booths enabling sponsor representatives to interact with attendees.
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Invite sponsor representatives to host virtual topic tables in your networking rooms or breakout sessions.
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Invite sponsor representatives to host tables in the networking rooms in small groups watching the live streams together.
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Include challenges in your event platform game where attendees earn points for interacting with sponsor representatives. Read more about Gamification
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Encourage sponsor representatives to engage in session chat and vote up Q&A and to contribute to the event’s social media and private activity feed.
Data
Virtual event platforms provide detailed privacy compliant data on all attendees’ activities, from live streaming viewing, messages sent, polls answered, areas visited etc. making sponsorship ROI easier to quantify for virtual events.
Increased Audience Size
There has also been much written about how virtual events are attracting higher numbers of attendees compared with their physical predecessors.
With an impressive list of sponsor opportunities, increased audience sizes and more quantifiable sponsor ROI, virtual events make for a very compelling proposition for event sponsors and as a result, for the events landscape overall.
