08/12/2026
SPONSORSHIP SHOULD BE AN INVESTMENT — NOT A $10,000 BANNER
There are still major events where a $10,000 sponsorship prominently features a banner in the lobby as a key benefit.
But how does a sponsor calculate ROI from people walking past a banner?
Logos and visibility can have value, but they shouldn't define sponsorship anymore. Activation is what creates business opportunity.
A strong sponsorship should create value for three sides: the sponsor, the organization, and the audience.
For sponsors, that means opportunities to generate leads, recruit employees, meet potential customers, demonstrate products, strengthen client relationships, build referrals, and create business connections.
For the organization, it means stronger partnerships, greater sponsorship revenue, and sponsors who have a reason to return.
For the audience, it means useful experiences, education, services, access, or opportunities—not more advertising.
This is the type of partnership opportunity we can build through St. Mary's. Our community of students, parents, alumni, business owners, professionals, educators, and community leaders provides opportunities for meaningful engagement throughout the year.
Instead of starting with "Where can we put your logo?", we start with:
"What does your business want to accomplish?"
Then we create activations before, during, and after events that can produce measurable results—and ultimately an ROI report showing what the sponsorship investment delivered.
I don't want to sell a company a $10,000 banner. I want to create a $10,000 business opportunity.
That's the difference between selling sponsorship and building a business partnership.
