For any committee members who are leading on securing sponsorship we have created the below guidance for you to consider when securing a sponsor.
Step 1: Prepare, Pack and Approach
You need to create a plan of who you are going to approach, what you are going to ask them for and how you are going to negotiate that with them.
Creating a sponsorship pack
A Sponsorship Pack can be given to companies to include more information about your club/societies and what you want from the deal. Having a professional looking offer and visual takeaway for the sponsor can sometimes be the difference between closing a pitch or losing the company so get prepared. There is a rough guideline below of what to include in your pack:
- What your club/society is about and what you do (include detailed figures)
- What the company would gain from sponsorship of your club/society (publicity, reaching to a student audience or potentially thousand etc.). Targeting students is part of many companies’ promotion strategies.
- What would you like from the company (workshop, space, or do you need money or catering for an event or new hoodies for the year etc.)
- If you are asking for money, how much will it cost the company? - don’t be unrealistic, expect to have to negotiate. Make sure you know what other clubs/societies like you have secured to give you an idea of what you are worth as a club/society.
Step 2: Negotiate Outcomes and Sign Contract
If a company has agreed to sponsor you, you must then draw up the agreement between yourselves (the club/society) and your sponsors. This agreement will consist of everything that the organisation is giving you and what you are promising the organisation in return.
We have created a contract template that all societies should be using for contracts.
Proposal and Contract Template
Step 3: Submit for Union approval
The Students' Union will review and sign all contracts on your behalf – no matter how big or small the amount is. Without a contract signed by a Union officer or member of staff, all agreements are not valid. Make sure you submit them using the button below for review and the union will get back to you within 2 weeks.
Submit your contract
Step 4: The Union will send an invoice for you
Once your contract is approved, the Union Finance Team will raise an invoice and send it to your sponsor with a 30 day period for payment. The activities team will cc’ in the finance team to your confirmation of signed contracts email which will authorise them to raise the invoice. They will raise an invoice within 2 weeks.
To check if a sponsor has paid, please check your student group account.