I recently delivered a session on what the future holds for sponsorship and naming rights. I had been invited to speak at the International Association of Venue Managers – Region 4 Convention. It was the folks that run and operate performing arts centres, major sport facilities, conversion centres and such. We delved into the top six trending insights shaping sponsorship and naming rights for today and tomorrow. I thought I would share some of those with you…
- Surprise – technology is one of two majors Gamechangers
- Data – it is king and the second major Gamechanger!
- Relationships
- Gen Z
The fact that technology is critical in today’s sponsorship world should not come as a surprise. If it does… you need to remove the rock that is covering you from reality. Technology means everything from gamification for partners to engage audiences to tracking information; from content access in real time to software to manage your asset inventory and fulfilment management program to AI supported proposal development or reporting. If any of this is foreign or “Greek” to you… reach out… you need support!
Embedded into technology is data. Data is truly the gold standard. Data to accurately determine everything from the historical and archaic “eyeball count” to data generated from your audiences for partner access through gamification or experiences like AR (augmented reality). Data also is key on prospecting and marketing. Through everything from postal code / zip code data segmentation that will tell a sponsor or a property exactly who their audience is (versus that guessing game) and who to be calling on, to AI audits of your ROI measurement, data is critical. AI can help you determine trends and projections from data.
Not surprisingly in this era of economic upheaval and turmoil, relationships have become even more critical. It is funny, when I talk with clients and ask them about their partner relationships and how deep they are, most tell me they are great. They claim they are deep, and they feel very comfortable. Then I ask a few questions around content like core and tertiary target audiences; budget spends or even their main contact’s family and they are easily exposed as not having as “deep a relationship” as they think. Today you and your partner need to trust each other fully. You need to know as much about their business as you do your own. Because that trust is what is securing your future partnership. You and your organization are replaceable and only a deep relationship can stop that from happening.
And finally, Gen Z. They have no attention span. They get their news from TikTok, not The National News at 11 pm or 6 pm. They are a “headlines only” generation. They operate on multiple screens at a time and TV is background (like music used to be for baby boomers). They want to be engaged and not talked at. They will notice the sign or banner but only of it has meaningful purpose to them. This generation truly changes our landscape and if you cannot adapt to that new landscape, you will go the way of the T-Rex.
This new landscape can be managed. You just need to navigate it. It is new terrain and to continue to drive on the old road is not success for the future, it is writing your obit. Be ready to change… yesterday.
If you want to know even more about trends and what the future hold, join Canada’s #1 sponsorship marketing conference, the Western Sponsorship Congress® – Alberta Forum. Register today for savings of as much as up to 50% off!
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