U.S. Air Force photo by Larry McTighe
Are you finding it difficult to find major sponsors for your next event in these difficult economic times?
Have you considered greening your event and approaching companies for sponsorship that have high ethical values, sustainability and corporate social responsibility written into their mission statement.
Of course there’s no point going in this direction if your event is in the sex industry or midget wrestling for example.
If you have a quality event with a moral theme why not approach sponsors with community values which are high on their agenda.
The Ethical Corporation Responsible Business Awards 2013 has just released their short list and you might be surprised by some of the nominees, I know I was. But to be still standing and make it onto this list these companies have been fully scrutinised by meeting rigorous criteria and deserve their place.
There are 15 categories this year including new additions:
- Most Effective Domestic Community Investment
- Best NGO Campaign
- Best Small to Medium Enterprise
- Head of Sustainability of the Year
- Best Consumer Engagement Campaign (Social Media & Traditional)
- Lifetime Achievement Award
And this year’s judging panel “ensure that all perspectives are considered and that the debate is well-rounded, this year’s judging panel will include an NGO, a journalist, an academic and a corporate company.”
The 2013 judges are:
- Greenpeace, John Sauven, Executive Director
- The Economist, Daniel Franklin, Executive Director & Editor of The World in 2013
- Brunel University, Angela Ayios, Lecturer
- Marks & Spencer, Mike Barry, Head of Sustainable Business
- Jaguar-Landrover, Fran Leedham, Head of Environment & Sustainability
And what an impressive line-up of educated scrutineers with high level positions in their various roles.
So what have these companies done that warrant applying for such recognition?
Well for a start they have gone out of their way to improve the ethical standing of their company and in many cases to great expense.
So how does this help your event?
Honestly I’m not sure if it will but what I do know is that companies on this short list are active in their communities and care that their products & services are of the highest standard. Also companies with these standards tend to have steady growth and could afford sponsoring events that align with their own beliefs.
“Leveraging sponsorships and activation – from Wikipedia
These are the terms used by many sponsorship professionals, which refer to how a sponsor uses the benefits they are allocated under the terms of a sponsorship agreement. Leveraging has been defined by Weeks, Cornwell and Drennan (2008) as “the act of using collateral marketing communications to exploit the commercial potential of the association between a sponsor and sponsee” while activation has been defined as those “communications that promote the engagement, involvement, or participation of the sponsorship audience with the sponsor.” Money spent on activation is over and above the rights fee paid to the sponsored property and is often far greater than the cost of the rights fee.”
So, to green your next event mmmmm…that is the question?
Climate Wave Enterprises – working with the planet