The First 60 Days of a Club Sponsorship: Do’s and Don’ts

13/8/2025

Clubs often breathe a sigh of relief when a sponsor signs on. But securing the agreement is only the beginning. What happens in the first two months determines whether that sponsor becomes a long-term partner or a one-time supporter.

Do: Deliver Benefits Quickly

Sponsors should see their support acknowledged immediately:

  • Use the tier logos provided to you (gold, silver, bronze).
  • Post a thank-you on social media.
  • Feature them in your next event program.

These actions confirm that the club is organised and values the partnership.

Don’t: Leave Sponsors Wondering

Silence is a killer in the first 60 days. Avoid waiting months before delivering promised benefits. Sponsors should never wonder if you’ve forgotten them.

Do: Ask the Right Questions

Early conversations should include the sponsor’s objectives. Programs like Supercharger provide a “Sponsorship Objectives template” that clubs can use in meetings. By understanding what success looks like for them, you can tailor your acknowledgements and reporting.

Don’t: Over-Promise

Clubs sometimes agree to deliver benefits they simply don’t have the capacity to manage. Stick to what’s achievable. A smaller set of well-delivered benefits is far more valuable than a long list of broken promises.

Case Study Example

At Batemans Bay, club leaders reported that their new structured approach transformed sponsorship outcomes. By focusing on clear, early delivery, they built trust that led to ongoing support season after season.

The Payoff

The first 60 days aren’t just about keeping sponsors happy—they’re about setting up a system your club can replicate. Once the process is smooth, you can grow from one sponsor to many, building financial stability that frees your committee from constant fundraising pressure.

Handled well, those first two months are the foundation for sponsorships that grow year after year.

Moving Beyond Donations: How Clubs Can Offer Real Value to Sponsors

13/8/2025

For many community clubs, the default approach to sponsorship is really just a donation request: “Would you like to support our club?” While well-meaning, this approach rarely secures significant funding. Sponsors aren’t looking to hand out cash—they’re looking for value.

Why the Old Model Fails

Businesses today want partnerships that deliver measurable outcomes. A simple logo on a jersey isn’t enough. Clubs that continue to treat sponsorship as charity find themselves stuck with small donations rather than sustainable support.

The Value Sponsors Are Looking For

Sponsors want:

  • Access to families and community networks.
  • Credibility by aligning with respected local organisations.
  • Opportunities to connect with potential customers at events.

By reframing sponsorship as a business decision rather than a favour, clubs can unlock far larger commitments.

Structured Programs Make the Difference

The Club Sponsorship Supercharger PLUS program guarantees $10,000 in sponsorship within 60 days. Why? Because it gives clubs the professional tools sponsors expect:

  • A tailored Sponsorship Invitation that demonstrates reach.
  • Category-specific email templates to approach the right businesses.
  • Professional packages that clearly show benefits at gold, silver, and bronze tiers.

This clarity turns “support our club” into “here’s how we can help you achieve business goals.”

Case Study: From Small Asks to Big Wins

The Batemans Bay Seahawks AFL club shifted from chasing small donations to securing major sponsorships. By focusing on what they could offer businesses—community presence, visibility, and strong engagement—they built relationships that delivered long-term revenue, not just one-off support.

Why This Matters for Committees

When a club adopts this professional approach, it changes the conversation at committee meetings. Instead of debating who will “ask for money,” the team collaborates on a sponsorship strategy that businesses respect.

Moving beyond donations isn’t just about raising more money. It’s about creating partnerships that last.

Why Committees Struggle with Sponsorship—and How to Fix It

13/8/2025

If you’ve ever sat in a committee meeting where the idea of “finding sponsors” came up, you’ll know the familiar silence that follows. Everyone agrees sponsorship would help, but no one knows how to start—or worse, everyone assumes someone else will take it on. The result? Missed opportunities and another season of scraping by.

The Committee Challenge

Clubs don’t fail to attract sponsorship because businesses don’t want to support them. They fail because committees often:

  • Rely on outdated approaches (asking for donations rather than selling value).
  • Lack professional tools (no consistent packages or proposals).
  • Struggle with shared responsibility (one volunteer gets stuck doing it all).

When these roadblocks pile up, clubs miss out on thousands of dollars that could fund new uniforms, equipment, or junior development.

A Different Way Forward

Programs like the Club Sponsorship Supercharger are designed to break this cycle. Clubs that complete the program are shown how to:

  • Secure $3,000 within 30 days by approaching one key sponsor.
  • Build a dynamic Sponsorship Invitation document tailored to their reach and impact.
  • Use templates, scripts, and asset registers to approach businesses with confidence.

This structured approach shifts sponsorship from a vague committee wish to an actionable, repeatable plan.

Case Study: Batemans Bay Seahawks

The Batemans Bay Seahawks, a regional AFL club, transformed their sponsorship outcomes by implementing these strategies. Instead of relying on small donations, they engaged local businesses with a professional proposal that highlighted the club’s community reach. The result was not just one-off support, but a growing family of sponsors invested in the club’s success.

Fixing the Committee Bottleneck

The key to overcoming the committee hurdle is shared ownership. Instead of leaving sponsorship to one exhausted volunteer, successful clubs create a simple action plan that spreads the work. For example:

  • One member updates the asset register.
  • Another adapts the Sponsorship Invitation.
  • A third sends outreach emails to agreed business categories.

With professional tools, this work is light and clear—and results arrive quickly.

Why It Matters

A guaranteed first $3,000 is only the beginning. Once a club sees how easy it is to replicate the framework, they can grow sponsorship year after year, building financial security and freeing volunteers from endless sausage sizzles.

400% increase in sponsorship

400% increase in sponsorship

10/10/2021

Keperra Country Golf Club had teed off their sponsorship program with more than a 400% increase in sponsorship revenue, and they’re just getting started.

We were pleased to work with General Manager Gavin Lawrence and his team to get Keperra Country Golf Club Sponsorship Ready.

“The professional selling tools that have come from the process are professional and now in line with how we as a club wish to see our brand be portrayed in the market. The results have been more than impressive and we are genuine contenders in assisting brands connect with the community and moreover deliver commercial return for investment,” said Gavin Lawrence, General Manager of Keperra Country Golf Club.

​“We have a strategy now and would recommend the program to any golf club seeking to go to the next level in raising revenue so they can continue to reinvest in the club and keep their members happy, healthy and active,” he added.

Congratulations to Gavin and his team on a great result. We can’t wait to see what the coming months deliver.

To learn more about the work undertaken by Keperra Country Golf Club with Sponsorship Ready, please click here.

Softball Queensland new partnership approach

Softball Queensland new partnership approach

3/6/2021

Softball Queensland and CEO Ross Symonds were recently featured in an Australian Leisure Management article highlighting their new approach to sponsorship management.
An excerpt from the article:

Softball Queensland has unveiled its new approach to forming sponsorships in response to the ever-changing landscape of community and sports organisations.

With the industry still recovering after COVID-19, it has become more paramount than ever for organisations to encourage participation and demonstrate the value return for business sponsors.

Advising that the organisation’s approach to create partnerships involves understanding business objectives and tailoring a package to suit those needs, Softball Queensland Chief Executive, Ross Symonds explained “a partnership with Softball Queensland is not a request for philanthropy, with sizeable reach and impact a partnership can deliver on commercial, brand and community engagement objectives as well as help us keep Queenslanders fit, active and healthy.

“Softball Queensland is a powerful conduit to thousands of engaged and passionate supporters, players and volunteers across the state.”

Noting that sponsorship partnerships with Softball Queensland were beneficial as it promotes brand image, visibility and awareness, Symonds commented “through these vital partnerships we create a platform for our sponsors to showcase their own work and this delivers traffic to their businesses and websites.

“As well as raising brand awareness, Softball Queensland can offer prospective sponsors opportunities such as co-sponsor networking, community connection and strategies to enhance social media presence through campaigns.”

Softball Queensland and Sponsorship Ready designed the new approach to suit the changing landscape of community sports organisations and create meaningful sponsorship opportunities.

Sponsorship Ready Director Terry Johnston said it can take as little as 90 days to get sponsorship ready which is evident through Softball Queensland’s recent additions to its portfolio.

“Softball in Queensland has a story to tell (so) it comes as no surprise to me that Softball Queensland is getting interest in the market now – I have simply helped them tell their story in a way that appeals to sponsors.

“Softball Queensland has some great sponsorship assets that can deliver business objectives.”

To read the full article, click here.

Congratulations to Ross Symonds and the Softball Queensland team. It’s great to see your efforts recognised in the media.

Tips for clubs with > 400 members

Tips for clubs with > 400 members

18/10/2020

Golden Rules for clubs with > 400 members…

  1. Sports clubs have an engaged, passionate audience – but perhaps they could do better to allow sponsors to leverage this…. Consider the ways your club can help put an SME’s product or service in danger of being sold, create a list or register of all your clubs possible sponsorship assets, get the key people in a room and flesh this out. Its critical, and ideas will flow. Guaranteed. But you need to think about how your club can deliver on their brand, commercial and community engagement objectives and you need to get more creative than signage and logos on apparel. Use the inventory prompt ‘what have you got to sell’ to kick start the process.
  2. Sports clubs have plenty of volunteers, a history, and a story to tell – but struggle articulate it for sponsors …. publish this content, tell the story, and capture it in your professional pitch material. Your selling tools need to be professional, a must. I cannot stress this enough it – in my professional opinion, and I have pitched to hundreds of people representing many sports – it is the difference between winning and losing a sponsor.
  3. Sports clubs and Associations know their organisation makes a positive impact on their respective communities and people’s lives – but cannot define it, this too needs to be told and captured in your selling tools. This type of content is what sponsors are looking for to deliver on community engagement or corporate/social responsibility objectives. Consider strategic alliances with organisations in health/social space in your community. It will help your conversion rate.
  4. Clubs suspect they can provide significant ‘reach’ for prospective sponsors – but cannot demonstrate it…..this is just so key to success, if you can demonstrate quantitatively in your selling tools the reach you have you are then demonstrating ROI versus other mediums sponsors would already be spending on such as radio, print, digital etc
  5. Clubs know their organisation has a good brand, reputation, and governance – but fail to really showcase it in their pitch. Again, these are key components in your selling tools and seriously consider a survey of your member base to get rich data on what members think of the brand so it can be used in your pitch. Why not try getting data on what your members think of prospective sponsors!?!
  6. Fewer, bigger, and deeper relationships with sponsors makes sense – but they tend to have multiple lower value partners with high servicing costs. Consider making the change in your sponsorship strategy to fewer, bigger, deeper. Those already on board subscribe to your club and its impact so take steps to grow their investment and bespoke their partnership platform.

Want more useful tips? Download here for more information.

Author

Terry Johnston from ​Sponsorship Ready

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