Sponsorship Strategist

LinkedIn as a sales tool

Robb Pardee I'll be joined by leadership coach and trainer Robb Pardee next week for a workshop in Philadelphia, presented by the Philadelphia Business Journal with promotional support by PANO. (Details and registration link here.) Robb will discuss using LinkedIn to Supercharge your Nonprofit, and I had the opportunity to ask Robb a few questions. Even if you're unable to attend, you'll readily see possibilities for your sponsorship relationship-building. Robb, tell us why are you so enthusiastic about LinkedIn. Part of my enthusiasm about LinkedIn comes from my own experience. LinkedIn has dramatically impacted my business and increased my exposure... Read more →

The app as sponsorship asset

NBC created an app so fans and followers could tune in in real time, space-time coordinates be damned. Cool idea, right? When you find the app on Apple's App Store, you might notice the user ratings and that they skew to the poor end of the rating scale, by about 2:1. The first version has 2,783 one-star reviews, with 1,252 five-star ratings. The new version, out since August 1, has a comparable ratio: 535 one-star vs. 309 five-star reviews. I don't know about you, but my curiosity was piqued. "Messy mess of nothingness." --upstatenyguy It seems like NBC launched the... Read more →

Paying attention to trends that impact sponsorship

Tonight when you watch the Academy Awards, you'll witness the end of an era. Eastman Kodak has given up its sponsorship of the famed Kodak Theatre as it contends with bankruptcy. Since 2008 its motion picture stock film business, a significant form of revenue for the company, dropped in half, from $1.57 billion to the current $763 million, because more filmmakers are preferring digital media over film. As you consider potential partners for your sponsorship program, pay attention to trends and their implications to help you anticipate industries on the upswing and the potential for companies, including your own sponsors,... Read more →

Ask the right questions when considering events

The accelerated pace at which we live coupled with the prevalence of "glowing rectangles" in our lives (90 percent of our time, according to The Onion, which sometimes seems pretty close, right?) occasionally can cause us to minimize the importance of human connections in our lives. As many of us gathered around dining room tables to give thanks and eat turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie, perhaps circuitry shifted a bit. Time with family and friends allows us to reconnect with what's most important in life. To drop down to the human level. That connection to the human is what... Read more →

Time warp and early adopters

For a 2 minute reality check on how much our lives have changed from the expansion, evolution, and proliferation of media, check out this video on the future of newspapers. At 1:34 minutes, take note of the title given to the subject, an early adopter of new technology. Take a moment to catch your breath and reflect on how much the media landscape has changed. Read more →

Looking ahead: the CLOUD of London 2012 Olympics

Amazing technology being imagined for our next summer Olympics in London. Check it out. Read more →