Pageant Sponsorships: How to Get Local Businesses to Fund Your Pageant Expenses

If you are reading this, you are already well aware that competing in pageants takes a lot of time, effort, and commitment. After you have added up all of your expenses for an upcoming pageant, it can be overwhelming. Once you learn the basic tools that you need to start seeking sponsorship, you will be well on your way to never having to pay fully for a pageant again. This technique of gaining sponsors is a gold mine for contestants who are seeking to compete more than once during their pageant career.

Make a List of Potential Sponsors

This is your first step to sponsorship success. Do not limit yourself to your immediate group of friends, family, and businesses — think big! Most businesses have a set aside “sponsoring” fund that they can give out each year. It is important to get on this as early as possible because these funds evaporate quickly and those who wait will not receive them. Also, consider how you can help them. Business are more likely to hand over money if they are getting something in return. I will cover this more in the next point. For now, this is a list of sponsors that have worked for myself and others in the past:

•Local Restaurants (Most chain restaurants are owned by local franchisees who are seeking to promote their specific location)
•Local Stores (gift shops, nutrition centers, dry cleaners, formal wear shops, clothing boutiques, specialty boutiques, coffee shops)
•Business Professionals (dentists, cosmetic dentists, doctors, fitness trainers, spas and salons, weight loss centers, nutritionists, insurance companies, chiropractors, massage therapists, nail salons, tanning salons, and locally owned businesses that can benefit in some way from sponsoring you — get creative!)
•Family and Friends

How are you better than an advertisement in the local paper?

Potential sponsors are more likely to give you money to fund your journey if they can see how it is financially beneficial to them. Compose a letter or a phone call dialogue sheet that is focusing on the reasons of why it is helpful to them to sponsor you. For example, if you are vying for the title of Miss Oklahoma and last year you placed 2nd runner-up to the title, that is important information for a sponsor to know. Tell them why it makes sense for them to give you money, think of facts that make sense to share. Did 5,000 program books sell last year at the state pageant? The average cost I have seen for a full page of advertising in a statewide distributed publication is about $1500. Show them how their sponsorship is financially smart.

If you already have a local title and a professional headshot that is worth displaying, let them know! Tell them that if they sponsor you they not only will receive the ad in the program book, but you will bring them a personally signed headshot photo that they can display at their business. At my local McAlister’s Deli, I see this all the time. They have state titleholders with signed photos hanging on the walls. Imagine how many people come in that deli everyday and see those photos and connect that titleholder and organization with that deli — a lot! This type of sponsorship is beneficial to both parties. If you can give viable reasons for a business to give you money, you are more likely to get it. Businesses care less about the fact that you are competing in a pageant, and more about how their sponsorship can benefit their business. Why is it better for them to invest $300 in your efforts than to use that towards advertising somewhere else? Come up with a reason that is specific to you and that business. Have you spent a lot of time developing your platform, volunteering, raising money for a cause, doing well in school and receiving awards? Make them feel secure in their investment.

Connect and Follow-Up

Have you ever heard the saying “in order to get what nobody else is getting, you have to do what nobody else is doing?” This is where most pageant contestants lose potential sponsors. Developing a sponsorship letter with a stamped return envelope is a great way to guarantee sponsors, however you have to consider how much mail these businesses or people receive daily. Most businesses receive twenty or more pieces of mail a day; you are likely to get lost in the mix. Make your request personal. Follow-up with a phone call, or even better show up at their business and speak to them in person. What better way to say, “I can help you if you will help me” than to show up and show off your polished look and interpersonal skills. I recently heard a statistic that in the wedding business industry, most bookings most often happen after the 10th follow-up, but most businesses stop trying after the 2nd follow-up. Those who are giving up after the second follow-up are leaving a huge percentage of sales to those who are persistent, the same applies to you with your sponsors. Most people will recognize that your letter was not just sent to them. Think of ways that you can build a relationship with these businesses without having to call each of them every single week: create a blog, facebook page, twitter account, or emailing list. When people feel connected to something or someone, they will feel compelled to give sponsorship support.

Develop a Plan and Execute It!

I have created a bullet pointed flow chart for you to follow when developing your pageant funding strategy.

•Make a list of potential sponsors and their contact information (type it and print it for you to keep)
•Brainstorm ways that those sponsors can benefit from funding your pageant goals
•Create a sponsorship letter that you can use as a template
•Pack your sponsorship letters with a letter and a stamped, already addressed return envelope
•Assemble all of your materials in a binder so that you can see who you have sent letters to, check off sponsors who have given to you, and know who you need to follow-up with.
•Follow-up with your sponsors in one of the ways listed above — make sure that at least one of those times you are following up in a way that is personal. (phone call or personal visit).
•Write Thank You notes, if someone gives you money or helps you with your pageant goals write them a personal thank you note. This not only expresses gratitude in a sincere way, but you are setting yourself up to potentially have a continued sponsor next time you do a pageant.

This is the basic way to get your pageant efforts completely funded. You can be highly successful in receiving all that you need for your pageant if you will connect with people, build relationships, be organized, and stay persistent with your sponsorship goals.

Elizabeth Hughes is a makeup artist and pageant coach based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Specializing in weddings, pageants, and other special events she can cater to your cosmetics and styling needs. Elizabeth Hughes pairs her seven years of pageant experience with her professional education to coach clients from all over the nation to be skillfully polished in the areas of communication and makeup application. Amaranth Collection is Elizabeth Hughes’ own line of cosmetics and accessories geared towards the elite pageant contestant and high fashion woman. From offering makeup lessons, on site hair and makeup to on-stage modeling lessons, interview coaching, and wardrobe styling Elizabeth is the jack of all trades in the pageant industry.

Find out more at:

http://www.amaranthcollection.com

http://www.facebook.com/amaranthcollection

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Elizabeth_A_Hughes