In Sport Sponsorship

what is in kind sponsorship

What is a sponsorship in Kind, or a Barter sponsorship?

We have stressed several times that sponsorship can be very flexible. In fact, exists a lot of different types of sponsorship. There is no a sponsorship projects like the other, and there is no standard sponsorship package.

On the contrary a good sponsorship moulds itself perfectly on the company’s objectives, mission, strategy and budget and a sponsorship in kind is proof of this.

Let’s examine the sponsorship in kind, or barter.

A sponsorship in kind is just a sponsorship with the same marketing rights as any other sponsorship but in which, the price is not paid in money but partially or totally in kind. Is it very common? Yes it is.

Sometimes sports teams and organizations running large operations need products or services and can offer to a potential partner (capable to supply those products or services) another way to pay for their sponsorship. Anybody with a commercial background knows well the concept of barter: it’s a practice through which companies exchange goods or services instead of money , offsetting them. How can this practice be linked to the sponsorship world? And with which specific advantages?

A good example of sponsorship in Kind: building a new sport facility

Let’s say that you are a football team which is building a new stadium or a Tennis club that needs a new central court or a F1 Team whose new Headquarter is finally planned and approved.

Indeed you face a big challenge, because building new structures without affecting the current and following sport season is very difficult, (you have a certain amount of time and you have to make sure to be on time, the championship it’s not going to wait for you) moreover you have to make sure to have the right resources; but you also have the big chance to run a marketing and commercial operation linked to your new facility.

Because you can approach the construction and building materials sector that could be interested in using your new stadium as a showcase for their capabilities.

Products need to be described and recounted and what it is better than placing your goods in interesting buildings or structures in which sports activities are held or sports-related matters happened? Structures in which people would like to go (even your potential clients) to watch passion-fueled events?

Just think about bringing a potential client to see how a F1 car is built, meeting the team in the process, while walking on your floors, or showing them your window frames, or lights or any other fixture…And then compare it with bringing the same clients to see just a block of offices…

The opportunities are endless

The same concept applies to football, tennis, basket and any other disciplines you can think about…yeah, even golf, sure it is played outside but you could take care of the clubhouse.

Any and each of these structures have hospitality facilities that can be used for your potential and existing partner, so within a single meeting it would be possible to show (just to give you an example) how the famous architect XY used your products to reach the new standard in stadiums, while leveraging on the passion of the guest for the sport you are linked with, in order to create a better relationship that will lead to more constructive commercial relationship in the future.

The industries related to the construction sector can look at you with different eyes, not only the ones of a potential supplier (fighting among others to win the pitch). They can look at you with the eyes of a potential partner with whom to create a win-win cooperation.

Both parties can have a huge benefit, if you think that the aim of the owner of the building is to have the best-finished product at the cheapest price and that the objective of the material’s producer is to have its finest products placed in the building and to use it in its marketing and communication effort…A common objective that can be reached by both if they partner and exchange totally or partially products for marketing services.

Discover What is a Sponsorship Activation or If you would like to know more about barter in sport contact us using infotrsports.com and in the meantime visit

 

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Riccardo Tafà
Riccardo Tafà
Managing Director for RTR Sports, Riccardo graduated in law at the University of Bologna. He began his career in London in PR, then started working in two and four-wheelers. A brief move to Monaco followed before returning to Italy. There he founded RTR, first a consulting firm and then a sports marketing company which, eventually, he moved back to London.
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