How to Create Sponsorship Levels & Lock in Sponsors [Examples!] 

Thorben Grosser serves as VP of Partnerships and Channel at EventMobi, bringing 15+ years of expertise in strategic event planning and industry leadership. Having guided thousands of event professionals in crafting exceptional attendee experiences, Thorben deeply understands the nuanced challenges planners face in delivering successful events. In his current role, he collaborates with event agencies and AMCs to enhance their strategic capabilities while sharing practical insights on emerging trends and best practices.

Securing the right sponsors can make or break your event—and the right sponsorship levels can exponentially raise your chances of success!

Your sponsor levels should speak to your sponsors’ needs. One way to do that is to research your sponsors (and your competitors!) and come up with event sponsorship levels that are made just for them.

But let’s be real, figuring out sponsorship options can feel a bit overwhelming. What benefits should you offer? How much should you charge? How many should there be?

In this post, we’re going to break down the ins and outs of sponsorship levels—what they are, whether you should use them for your event, and how you can create levels of sponsorship effectively. Let’s dive in.

What Are Sponsorship Levels?

Sponsorship levels provide potential sponsors with options to support your next event.

That could mean they receive more benefits for more money; they could be themed for different types of sponsors (eg. media, venue); or they could be off-the-wall creative.

For events like conferences, trade shows, or festivals, sponsorship levels can include benefits like:

And tons of other boons.

For nonprofit events like a charity run or a gala, sponsorship levels can include donor networking opportunities or exclusive access to events. 

Ask First: Do I Have to Have Sponsorship Levels?

Hold up: not every event needs sponsorship levels!

Managing levels of sponsorship can take a lot of time and energy from your team, so ask yourself these questions first:

• How big is your event?  Sponsorship levels may be more suitable for larger, more complex events with a range of potential sponsors and stakeholders. Plus, you need an audience big enough to attract sponsors!
• Do you have different types of sponsors?  If your event attracts sponsors with different needs and goals, creative sponsorship levels can provide them with benefits tailored to their needs.
• Do you have the capacity to manage tiers? Consider whether you’ll have the time and resources to implement sponsorship levels. You’ll need to fulfill benefits for each tier, manage and track sponsor agreements at each level, and more.
• Are you bringing value at every tier? Ensure you can offer unique value at every sponsorship level, and make sure you can deliver on the promises made to sponsors.
• Can you meet your event’s needs without sponsorship levels? You might not need sponsor levels if you have a small event or a big one with a small range of sponsors. Or your sponsors may prefer having tailored sponsorship packages for their investment.

To summarize, whether you need sponsorship levels will depend on your goals, your event’s size and scope, your resources, and your sponsors. Think about what’s involved in having basic sponsorship offerings vs. levels or custom packages, and which will fit your sponsor profiles more.

The Benefits of Event Sponsorship Levels

Okay, so we know we need sponsor levels. Your sponsors are ready to feel special and gain extra value—and your event has tons of needs to fulfill.

What’s in it for you? Here are the common benefits:

Generate more revenue through upselling

Say you’ve worked with a sponsor who’s totally invested in your mission. If you build out a tiered sponsorship level package, you give them the opportunity to invest more in your event—and get even more out of it. That’s an A+ for both parties.

Lighten your team’s workload

There are two ways sponsor levels help you ease the stress of event planning. First, you’re not running around creating custom packages for every single sponsor—you’ve got a plan! Second, it gives you more ways to have your sponsors help you run an awesome event. For example, what if you had a sponsor responsible for your networking programming?

Better sponsor relations

Everyone likes to feel seen. When you craft sponsorship levels that are made directly for your target—or existing—sponsor types, you make it easier on both of you to have a relationship that works. It’ll make pitching sponsors easier, and they’ll also know they’ll be taken care of and understood when they sign on.

Increase sponsor visibility

Your sponsor levels should offer benefits that get sponsors directly in front of the audience they’re trying to reach. Do you have a stage that’s all about marketing nonprofit events? Make sure a nonprofit advertising agency has the chance to sponsor that stage!

Give sponsors the VIP treatment

Sponsors that invest at higher levels can have unique perks, such as dedicated speaking time to event attendees and access to VIP areas of the event. This can make sponsors feel valued and appreciated, which can help to build stronger relationships and loyalty over time.

How to Create Sponsorship Levels

You’re ready to build out your sponsorship levels, put together your sponsorship packages, and start converting sponsors.

Here are the 9 steps that will help you create your sponsor tiers, monitor them, and improve them for the future.

1. Evaluate current sponsors and identify potential sponsors

Before looking for new sponsors, you should first look into current sponsors and their contributions to past events. This can help you understand the benefits sponsors are looking for, which allows you to improve your event sponsorship levels to attract new sponsors.

You should also take a look around your space. What are the sponsors for similar events? Which potential sponsors are out there still?

2. Figure out sponsor needs

Once you’ve identified the targeted sponsors for your event, you can start figuring out and categorizing their needs and goals. Learn what sponsors hope to achieve through this collaboration and what benefits are most important to them.

Survey sponsors, check out competing sponsorship levels, and look at sample sponsor packages from outside your space—you never know where inspiration will strike.

3. Assign resources to fulfill sponsorship agreements

Before reaching out to sponsors, make sure you know if you have the resources to fulfill your offers. Make someone your sponsorship lead, responsible for fulfilling any and all obligations that come with signing on a new sponsor—especially the big ones.

4. Identify the benefits for each level

Start categorizing your benefits into your sponsorship levels. Make sure you clearly define and communicate these, and make them look absolutely irresistible. If you decide to offer à-la-carte sponsorship packages, start writing these down too.

5. Name your event sponsorship levels

You can use the good ol’ tier names (Diamond, Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze) or come up with new ones depending on your event. Events with creative sponsorship levels may even attract the attention of more sponsors.

Say you’re organizing an annual fundraising event called the “Stars of Hope” Gala. The names of the gala sponsorship levels could stick to this theme. 

Here’s an example: Supernova Supporters ($50,000), Glittering Galaxies ($25,000), or Guiding Lights ($10,000). Or you can name your fundraiser sponsorship levels based on planets or solar systems. For example: Big Dipper Sponsors, Milky Way Sponsors, and Andromeda Sponsors.

6. Price your sponsorship levels and create your sponsorship package

Pricing your sponsorship levels is the trickiest part of the process. You’re going to want to look at your organization’s needs, what your sponsors can afford to pay, what competitors are offering, and what the overall cost of your event is. Every event is different, but make sure you’re meeting industry standards!

7. Reach out to sponsors and follow up with good leads

After creating and designing your sponsorship package, you can start contacting sponsors. As mentioned, make sure you reach out to your current sponsors first. And don’t send and forget: create a follow-up system to secure sponsor support and keep leads hot.

8. Deliver on your promises

It’s time! Your sponsors have held up their end of the bargain, so make sure you put together a sponsorship fulfillment checklist and start checking off those boxes. Keeping sponsors in the loop at every step is another great way to build trust.

9. Report on the results

Track and report on the results of your event and sponsorship efforts. This helps sponsors know how their support has paid off and can encourage them to collaborate with you again. 

Some event management platforms allow you to track and report on your analytics. EventMobi, for example, offers different ways to measure your event analytics like:

• Meetings booked
• Banner views and clicks
• Company page views
• Live poll and survey results
• Session data for sponsored programming
• Gamification participation
• Video views

Whether your event is virtual, hybrid, or in person, your sponsors will have a clear idea of the benefits of your partnership.

Get Inspired: Event Sponsorship Level Examples & Ideas

Need some inspiration to get going? Check out these event sponsorship level examples. The first example features a virtual conference with meaningful sponsorship level names. The second one is a personal finance annual event that also includes an à-la-carte benefits package.

Event 1: GitHub Universe 2020

GitHub Universe 2020 is a virtual conference that brings together tens of thousands of people to explore the future of software development, and the tools that will help us get there.

The full experience offers attendees three days of discovery and 50+ hours of content, with executive keynotes, speakers from prominent software companies, workshops, entertainment, and lots of opportunities to network in between.

Sponsorship levels for this event:

Event 2: FINCON 2023

FinCon is an annual event for personal finance content creators and influencers to connect with other bloggers, podcasters, YouTubers, authors, advisors, coaches, and freelancers who create new media about financial topics. The vast majority of creators also attend to connect with brands for influencer or affiliate partnerships.

Sponsorship levels for this event:

À-la-carte benefits:

• Pro Networking table where companies can meet 1:1 with Pro Pass attendees: $2,500
• Brand Studio (to record content with creators and influencers): $1,000/30 minutes
• Host or plan your own dinner/event in conjunction with FinCon: $8,500

Next Steps: Design Your Own Sponsorship Package With Creative Sponsorship Levels

Having sponsorship levels tailored to the needs of your sponsors can benefit all parties involved. With the right sponsor levels, you can attract a wide range of sponsors. In return, sponsors can increase their brand exposure, generate leads, and build strong relationships with attendees.

Every year, EventMobi helps thousands of attendees meet & engage with awesome sponsors, in-app and on the event floor. We offer…

…and everything else you need to create sponsor value that will keep your revenue streams steady.

Additionally, if you’re looking for more sponsor-related information, check out these resources:

• How to Design Event Sponsorship Packages Too Good to Pass Up. Create event sponsorship packages that entice potential sponsors to commit to your event.
• 66 Creative Event Sponsorship Ideas to Help You Secure Your Ideal Sponsors. Check out this comprehensive list of event sponsorship ideas you can add to your sponsorship levels.
• 3 Ways to Attract Sponsors and Exhibitors for Your Next Event. Make sponsors excited about partnering with your organization using the tips in this guide.

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