10 Ways for Associations to Offer Benefits for Sponsors and Exhibitors Online
As more events are being cancelled, many associations are opting to ramp up their online continuing education sessions and conferences in order to soften the negative financial impact. Some are pre-recording their sessions and making them available on-demand, while others are choosing to live-stream on the scheduled date.
So, how does the shift towards virtual events impact sponsors and exhibitors?
Many associations rely on sponsorships to fund their in-person events and conferences. In return, sponsors and exhibitors are looking for marketing exposure and opportunities for attendees to better connect with their brand. As a result, being able to show sponsors and exhibitors the value of sponsoring virtual events is key.
Here are some of the online initiatives that you can do to continue to offer sponsors and exhibitors the benefit of exposure to members and attendees.
- With paid on-demand events and courses, consider offering discount codes for members with the sponsor/exhibitor name.
- Place sponsor/exhibitor logos and links to their website on the event webpage or on the online learning platform for a period of time.
- Encourage sponsors and exhibitors to sponsor individual sessions or courses.
- Sponsors and exhibitors can create short promotional videos to be placed on the event webpage or on the online learning platform
- Sponsor/exhibitor videos and links can even be embedded directly into on-demand videos.
- Consider promoting the “sponsor/exhibitor” of the week through the event webpage, social media, email campaigns, etc.
- Ask speakers to mention the sponsors and/or exhibitors before or after their online presentation.
- For live online events, sponsors and/or exhibitors can join for opening or closing remarks.
- Promote sponsors and exhibitors, while enticing attendees, with sponsored raffles for gift cards and other virtual giveaways.
- If your association has a community platform for members to communicate and network online, consider utilizing the platform to provide more exposure for sponsors and exhibitors.
There are many initiatives that are easy to implement for sponsors and exhibitors to reap the benefit of exposure online. As critical as it is for associations to engage their members virtually, it is equally important for associations to ensure sponsors and exhibitors are incentivized to continue to provide funding for virtual events.
The event delivery method may be different, but the goal remains the same. In today’s digital world, associations need to think outside the box and find new and creative ways to continue to engage members, attendees, speakers, sponsors, and exhibitors.
