Let’s face it, businesses don’t want to spend tens of thousands of dollars on sponsorship and get less than what they paid for. According to Eventbrite, brands want to see at least a 2:1, 3:1, or sometimes even a 4:1 ratio return on investment. This is achieved through objectively measuring the impact an event has on a business.

That isn’t to say that it is easy. In fact, a survey done by Eventbrite states that 40% of event sponsorship professionals find measuring and evaluating sponsoring ROI as one of their top two challenges. This is why, as event professionals, being able to do so is all the more important. When you can show your sponsors the data and the numbers to understand the full value of their sponsorship investment, there’s a higher likelihood of sponsorship retention for your future events.

Groundwork for measuring sponsorship ROI

It's important to keep in mind that sponsors don’t just want to break even, they want to earn back (significantly) more than what they’ve spent. The data that you collect in your event needs to aid in this. If you’re unable to do so, there’s a chance your sponsors might not want to continue. To properly understand and measure the ROI of a sponsorship investment, you need to:

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Align with your sponsors

Aligning with your sponsors and their goals for sponsorship will help you, as event professionals, to understand the right data and metrics and they need to gather and measure. It is important to really dig deep to get a grasp of what success looks like for your sponsors.

Once you’ve done so and have a grasp of what the sponsors hope to gain from your event, the next step is to convert this information into measurable data points. This will enable your sponsors to properly evaluate their investment and determine their ROI.

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Determine how to measure value

You must work closely with your sponsors at this stage. You need to know what is considered valuable data points for your sponsors, or even how  certain data points compare to others. Figure out how much value a conversation with an attendee would have and how they see it in metrics.  

This all boils down to your sponsor’s strategy. If the focus for the sponsorship is on marketing, then a point to keep in mind here could be brand awareness. Keeping track of engagement for their sponsored sessions or leads generated through scanning are great metrics to start with.

If it is a sales-focused or deals-focused approach, perhaps measuring traffic in your event’s facilitated matchmaking opportunities or sponsored spaces (e.g. VIP lounges) is valuable data to your sponsors. More often than not, your sponsors’ success metrics will be a combination of both marketing and sales strategies.

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Collect data and report the results

Your previous discussions with your sponsors can affect the type of data you need to present. Some might ask for all the data that you collect, so make sure you are able to do so.

Another point to consider is that you must not collect “vague metrics”. Take attendance for example. Be clear about what that metric encompasses- is it all registrants, or just the people who showed up? How about those who attend on-the-spot?

Prior to presenting your data, make sure that you present the final numbers and the actual numbers for that matter. Don’t make the mistake of  fluffing up the results to make it seem better than it really was. Your sponsors will realize that you weren’t honest, and *poof*  there goes your chance at retention.

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Top 4 Metrics Categories for tracking Sponsorship ROI

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Attendance and Registrations

Showcasing the number of attendees and registrations your event has is a no-brainer and is attractive to sponsors, even more so when you can break down the demographics to demonstrate how your audience is right for them. However, that shouldn’t be all you provide. The real tangible value can be uncovered when it is combined with other metrics. For example, from these attendees and registrants, how many:

• Had discussions or conversations with your sponsors? Was it via meetings, chats on the event app? At their booth?
• Signed up for sponsored sessions? How many actually attended? 

Pulling back the layers of this data and examining it in combination with the usual information on attendance and registration is where your sponsors can gain the most from their investment.

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Website and Social Media

If sponsors have their company website, social media profiles or any other collateral listed on your event website, there’s a chance they would want to track:

•  The number of visits coming from your site to theirs. The case can be similar when it comes to your social media sites.
•  Depending on a sponsor’s needs and goals, they may want to track the number of posts that mention the sponsor, and the engagement on those posts.

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Leads, Visits, and Meetings

Here we measure the connections and interactions between attendees and sponsors or exhibitors. The metrics in question can include:

• The number of booth visits (for sponsors or exhibitors with a booth setup during the event)

• The number of meetings scheduled, held (or not)

• The number of leads gained directly from the event (e.g. through badge scanning). For this, it can be further improved if the leads can be categorized, such as identifying whether a lead is warm or cold, and determining the metrics for that (e.g. sign-up or conversation at booth / participated in a meeting is warm, and just registering for the event itself can be cold.)

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Feedback

Post-event data can also be crucial information for a sponsor’s evaluation of their investment. Feedback in the form of post-event surveys, for instance, can be vital intel from attendees about a particular sponsor. Here, measuring NPS (Net Promoter Score) results - which measures customer experience about a brand and predicts business growth-  or CSAT (Customer Satisfaction Score) of a sponsor’s products or services can be relevant.  

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Of course, these are not the only metrics to keep in mind. There may be metrics that your sponsors need that are unique to them that they’d like you to address and include as well. Understanding a sponsor’s goals from participating in your event is all the more important in this case. 

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The Role of Event Technology in Tracking ROI

Now that you’ve identified the metrics needed to maximize your sponsors’ ROI, you’ll need the tools to do so. This is where the role of event technology comes in. They serve as a tool that can gather data and provide the necessary analytics to exhibitors and sponsors. This insight can also be helpful in sponsor retention for future events as well. 

Jublia is one such vendor that can help supercharge your sponsorship investments. Our Jublia Engagement hub can help with collecting and analyzing data related to the metrics that a sponsor would require to produce a full value ROI report.

With Jublia, you can gather the valuable data and metrics required by your sponsors through a  number of our features. 

Jublia Match 360°, powered by our AI-driven algorithm, can provide business matching assistance, providing recommendations to similar profiles or profiles of interest. Sponsors are then able to track metrics including the number of matchmaking connections made, as well as the number of meetings generated, and whether they were actually carried out or not. 

‍Jublia Scan can be an essential tool for sponsors for lead generation purposes. They can capture new lead data, classify the type of lead, and input their notes on the lead all in the Jublia Native App. 

And with Jublia Content 360° your attendees can create their own personalized agenda with recommendations provided for content or sessions of interest to them.  You can track the number of sessions favorited and inputted in their agendas - and sponsors can see how many attendees have their session bookmarked.

Deliver on your ROI Promise with Jublia

When selling sponsorship packages to brands and businesses, event organizers should always consider “what’s in it for them?” and “how do I show the value to them?”. Your ability to highlight and illustrate the value of their participation in your event is through the presentation of data, metrics, and analytics. This in turn will contribute to their ROI calculations.

Maximizing sponsorship ROI is integral in determining the success standards of your sponsors, and will also help with sponsorship retention. Want to explore more on how to track metrics and maximize sponsorship ROI? Take a look at our customer success story, or if you’re ready to have a discussion, our team of Solutions Specialists will be more than happy to help. Send us an email at info@jublia.com and  don’t forget to follow us on LinkedIn for frequent updates about the event industry!

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