I am still waiting for the day when an agency of record or top marketing executive for a major company tells me that he/she has funds from a special naming-rights budget to enter into a long-term agreement.
A naming-rights budget — who ever heard of such a thing? That is why selling naming rights is so unique and so challenging.
I’m often asked what type of characteristics one should look for in a brand that
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could be a prospect to invest in a long-term naming-rights agreement. Here’s my take: Look to find C-level executives who have the vision, passion and authority to reallocate naming-rights dollars from multiple budgets, which may include out-of-home, traditional media; online/social media; community relations; hospitality; human resources; and, the most underappreciated, reinvestment of direct business dollars.
Here are 10 characteristics that are essential in uncovering a naming-rights prospect:
Strategy
■ Aspires to be a dominant local market leader (top corporate citizen)
■ Has a vision to differentiate and build a loyal fan base
■ Has a large amount of employees, vendors and customers to leverage venue usage
Sales/business development
■ Seeks an opportunity to use the venue as a sales channel and showroom for products/services
■ Wants access to the team, venue and owner’s business network
■ Has the propensity to reinvest direct and indirect net revenue back into the partnership
Marketing
■ Is looking for tremendous brand exposure
■ Spends significant advertising dollars across multiple product and service lines
■ Entertains and invests a considerable amount of money on corporate hospitality
Other
■ Has a CEO who wants to make a statement
Ironically, the CEO may just be the one person in the company who controls the sacred naming-rights budget. So, be prepared to build a business case, not just a marketing solution, that cuts across multiple divisions to justify and prove that a company’s “advertising dollars” can be stretched and repurposed much more effectively with a naming-rights partnership.
Jeff Marks (jeff@premierpartnerships.com) this year completed the naming-rights deal for O.co. Coliseum in Oakland, home of the MLB Athletics and NFL Raiders. In addition to his role at Premier, he is a professor in the sports management program at the University of San Francisco.
