Earlier today SPONSORIUM, the leading sponsorship and community investment management software provider, released their most recent study on the industry. It revealed a sign of a potential economic rebound as the average amount requested in sponsorship proposals increased in 2012 globally. All of this data and important information is available from the latest SPONSORIUM Report.
Published annually by SPONSORIUM International, the SPONSORIUM Report publishes data and insights globally as well as regionally for Canada, the United States and Europe, of sponsorship and community investment for the calendar year. The data for the latest “Year in Review” analysis of the SPONSORIUM Report comes from 145 countries and consists of nearly 50,000 opportunities and partnerships all taking place in 2012. The data is collected from the PerforMind™ platform, which over 200 brands around the world rely on to track and evaluate their own sponsorship, CSR and community investment activities.
According to the latest SPONSORIUM Report, Sports accounts for the largest slice of the sponsorship industry in most markets, and has for some time, but many other sectors are relevant and impactful in the markets where they take place according the data.
Some highlights from the SPONSORIUM Report include:
- One of the key observations from the Report is an increase in popularity for many sponsorship sectors (measured by amount of files), by an average of 16%
- In the US, 71% of partnerships are in SPORTS, 19% higher than the global total
- In Canada 49% of sponsorship spending is on sports.
- Only in Europe did Voluntary Organizations (e.g. Habitat for Humanity) rank as 2nd most popular (Education is most popular CSR sector in all markets)
- Following SPORTS, the next most popular sector that brands have partnerships in globally are FESTIVALS/FAIRS, with 7% of partnerships and spending at 1%
- Within Corporate Social Responsibility related fields, EDUCATION/YOUTH ranks 1st globally with 44% of actual partnerships
- Spending on EDUCATION based programs is higher in the US than in any other global market and they also score higher, on average, in the US than in any other market
Canada Key Observations
- A more even split among the top sectors of Sports, Arts, Festivals and Fairs exists in Canada than in any other market
- Canada is the only market where Sports is not the most popular sector. FESTIVALS/FAIRS led proposals polarity index in Canada with 25%, followed by ARTS with 24%, and then SPORTS with 22%.
- Spending towards the Arts is higher in Canada than any other market
- Compared to the other markets, Community Events ranked highest in Canada, as did Health
- Overall average spending is lowest per activity in Canada
“As evidenced by the data contained in the SPONSORIUM Report, 2012 proved to be a remarkable year for sponsorship and community investment,” said Paul Pednault, Founder and President of SPONSORIUM. “Corporate marketing budgets are on the uptick, and the sponsorship industry’s share remains at a point where continued spending justification is necessary.