There is no question the events industry has undergone a whirlwind of enormous change. We may have said farewell to the lunch buffets and handshakes for now, but virtual event exposure and sponsorships are still incredible avenues to promote your brand and drive leads and partnerships. Without the costs of travel and booth materials, plus the ease of meeting fellow attendees with just a few clicks, virtual sponsorships offer a plethora of new opportunities and benefits.

We’re breaking down the top benefits of digital sponsorships allowing you to generate new business leads, build brand awareness, and attract a larger audience in an ever-changing digital world.

Reach a Wider Audience

As the majority of the population works from home with easier access to the world’s most coveted events, we’re seeing increased participation across the globe! Sponsors are not only gaining more leads, but are now speaking to a more diverse audience than ever before. Virtual events allow for easy access to attendees allowing sponsors to take immediate action with their audience. With a click of a button, sponsors can view attendee profiles, schedule meetings, and communicate with multiple leads at once.

credTip: Encourage attendees to visit your virtual booth by taking advantage of gamification features. Ask your sponsorship contact about incorporating a “Passport Challenge” where attendees receive a virtual stamp at every booth they visit. Attendees with every booth stamp receive a prize or are entered into a lottery. Not all virtual platforms have these capabilities, so get creative by offering gift cards or raffle prizes to anyone who visits your booth.

More Bang for Your Buck

All event organizers are adjusting their sponsorship packages for digital with increased benefits and flexibility. A package that may have included only one speaking opportunity may now include two and there’s a chance you’re getting more tickets than you probably would for a live event or more access to attendee info. These additional perks are great reasons to revisit that event you’ve been eyeing to partner with. Communicate with your sponsorship contact to negotiate the package that works best for your goals.

Increased Attendee Metrics

As a sponsor, demonstrating your impact and the number of qualified leads generated is critical to measuring success. With virtual events, we are still able to measure interactions and report on several additional metrics that we might otherwise miss out on when dealing with a live event.

Whether your event is big or small, here are some new metrics that sponsors are finding most helpful:

Who downloaded your materials?
Who watched your video content?
Who visited your booth, and how many times did they come back?
How long did an attendee stay for your session?
How many people attended your session?
How much interaction did they have with your session (Q&A, polls)?

Brand Awareness

Just like with live events, brand recognition is still one of the biggest advantages to sponsoring a virtual conference and digital environments offer new and creative ways to position your brand. For example, sponsors are further promoting themselves. A few opportunities to consider are hosting networking happy hours or fun virtual activities like a cocktail-making or cooking class in conjunction with a larger event, and sending participants’ lunch with an e-gift card, and participation in a digital swag bag.

With so many ways to interact digitally, the sky's the limit with how you can connect with event participants. Creativity wins for memorable experiences so think of how you would have engaged at a live event and adjust virtually to ensure attendees remember your brand.

Interested in learning how you can make the most of your next sponsorship opportunity and secure the best package for a virtual or virtual event? Get in touch!