I remember when I was trying to plan the Boston to Austin tour. I thought getting $30k would be easy. Money is scarce out there, especially with the economy the way it is. However, the way Louis Marks, the CEO of Ropeadope, put it to me, Adidas is better off giving $50k to 20 bands than having one $1M campaign. It comes down to their Return on Investment (ROI), which can be quantified in many ways (i.e. amount of people does your band reach and the variances of those demographics).
When approaching potential sponsors (if you can actually get through because you know a guy who knows a guy) you gotta be honest with them because they want to know four main things: what are your fan’s demographics, how many people come to your shows, what are the stats for your website, what is your band’s growth potential, and what is your budget for spending their money (i.e. frivolous spending or straight back into the band like an investment). They want to know that you’re serious and treat your band like a business. They can sense bullshit, so there is no sense in fluffing anything.
Knowing which brands to approach will save you tons of time. For example, if you’re vegan and your fans are disproportionately vegan, don’t approach Land o Lake or Board’s Head.
During the panel, Andre Gaccetta of George P. Johnson said that is needs to be an “organic fit”. Does your band have knowledge of the brand? Do they use the goods of the brand on a habitual basis? Does your audience use the brand?
Another phrase that Maurice Berstein of Giant Step threw around was “strategic alliance”. Will a potential relationship with a brand be symbiotic and develop in the long term?
However, how does a newly formed or up and coming band get a hold of this precious sponsorship money? Simple answer: you probably won’t. You gotta develop your band’s image and sound as well as create buzz, so the brands come to you or you have the balls to confidently approach them. Regardless of who contacted who first, you need to make them need you, not the other way around because once the cards flip, it’s on their terms.
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