Sponsorship Measurement Guide: What Properties Need to Know
Unlocking the full potential of sports sponsorships starts with measuring effectiveness through all segments of the sports marketing funnel. By tracking KPIs and sponsorship ROI at each stage, brands and teams gain deep insights, enabling them to calculate the value and reach of their investments. Armed with accurate information, they can refine strategies and maximize long-term impact.
Partner with SponsorCX to gain powerful insights into sponsorship measurement and maximize your ROI. Discover the strategies and tools that will elevate your results at each stage of the sports marketing funnel. Connect with us today and request a no-obligation demo.
The Sports Marketing Funnel
The sports marketing funnel includes five critical stages for evaluating sponsorship effectiveness.
- Awareness focuses on increasing visibility and audience reach. This KPI is often measured through impressions and brand recall.
- Consideration assesses engagement metrics like website traffic or social media interactions.
- Purchase examines conversion KPIs, such as ticket sales or product purchases driven by sponsorship.
- Retention tracks customer loyalty through repeat purchases or ongoing subscriptions influenced by sponsorship.
- Advocacy evaluates how sponsorships inspire fans to promote the brand through reviews or referrals.
Measuring sponsorship effectiveness at every stage of the sports marketing funnel will provide a comprehensive understanding of how sponsorship impacts the customer journey. Each stage — awareness, consideration, purchase, retention, and advocacy — plays a distinct role and serves a focused purpose. Each stage requires specific sponsorship KPIs to evaluate success.
Awareness may focus on impressions or brand recall, while the purchase stage emphasizes conversions and sales data. Tailoring sponsorship measurement to each stage reveals where investments deliver ROI and where adjustments are needed. This funnel-based sponsorship measurement approach enables brands and sports organizations to optimize strategies and achieve measurable results throughout their campaigns.
Let’s briefly review each stage or group of stages in the funnel.
Top of the Funnel: Awareness
Awareness is when potential customers first encounter a brand, product, or service.
Goals
- Maximize reach or the total number of individuals who see the message.
- Provide sufficient frequency or the number of times an individual sees the message across all channels. Marketing strategists believe a prospect must be exposed at least three times to a message.
- Create a share of mind or the level of awareness a brand holds in the minds of its target audience when considering a product or service.
Key Metrics
Key metrics for measuring sponsorship effectiveness at the awareness stage include:
- Impressions and reach: Impressions track the total number of times the sponsor’s message is displayed across media channels. Reach measures how many unique individuals were exposed to the message.
- Brand recall and recognition: Pre- and post-event surveys can track changes in audience awareness and perception of the sponsor’s brand and if share of mind has been established. While impressions and reach provide insight into how widely the message was seen, survey data measures its impact.
Pro Tips for Maximizing and Measuring Brand Awareness
- Leverage multiple channels: Use a mix of digital, broadcast, and in-person platforms to expand reach. Track impressions and engagement on each to measure effectiveness.
- Utilize social listening tools: Monitor online conversations and hashtags to gauge brand sentiment, mentions, and audience reach on social media.
- Conduct pre- and post-event surveys: Evaluate brand recall and recognition changes by comparing audience awareness levels before and after a campaign.
- Optimize visual placement: Position logos and branding strategically in high-visibility locations like broadcast frames, event signage, and digital content to maximize impressions.
Middle of the Funnel: Consideration & Purchase
In the consideration stage, potential customers evaluate the brand’s offerings, comparing them with alternatives to decide if they meet their needs. This stage focuses on building trust and providing information through content, reviews, and personalized communication.
The purchase stage is where prospects become customers by completing a transaction. The focus here is on streamlining the buying process by offering incentives and providing an easy and painless experience that will encourage conversion.
Goals and Objectives
- Engage prospects by building trust and demonstrating value.
- Build an emotional connection by providing education and social proof.
- Persuade prospects to complete a transaction.
- Provide incentives and an easy, painless purchase experience.
Key Metrics
Key metrics for measuring sponsorship effectiveness at the consideration and purchase stages include engagement metrics such as:
- Social media likes, shares, comments, click-through rates, and participation in on-site activations like contests and booths.
- Lead generation and customer interest measurements can be assessed by counting visits to landing pages, completed contact forms, and email signups connected to the sponsorship.
- Conversion rates and actual sales results.
Advanced Tactics for Consideration and Purchase Stages
Try these tactics for enhancing the consideration and purchase stages of your funnel:
- Meet-and-greets can deepen audience engagement
- Sponsored podcasts provide targeted messaging to build interest and trust.
- Offer exclusive merchandise to incentivize participation and drive conversions.
Bottom of the Funnel: Retention and Advocacy
The retention and advocacy stages of the sports marketing funnel focus on maintaining customer loyalty and turning satisfied fans into brand advocates.
Goals and Objectives
- Foster ongoing interactions.
- Encourage referrals.
- Encourage repeat purchases through exclusive offers.
- Amplify positive sentiment to create brand loyalty and brand advocates.
Key Metrics
Measuring sponsorship effectiveness in the retention and advocacy stages involves tracking customer loyalty and brand promotion metrics.
- The repeat customer rate will demonstrate how the sponsorship contributes to customer loyalty and repeat sales.
- The net promoter score (NPS) is a widely used metric that measures customer loyalty and satisfaction by assessing the likelihood of customers recommending the product or service to others. NPS surveys ask respondents to reply to questions using a scale of 0 to 10, 0 being definitely not likely and 10 being very likely.
- Customer testimonials and social proof. Positive reviews, user-generated content, and endorsements reflect audience satisfaction and trust. They demonstrate the impact of sponsorship on brand perception. These sponsorship KPIs help evaluate ROI by highlighting customer-driven promotion.
Enhance Loyalty Through Sponsorship
Try these advanced tactics for enhancing loyalty through sponsorship:
- Exclusive loyalty rewards: Offer tiered loyalty programs where customers earn points for purchases or engagement, redeemable for branded merchandise, event tickets, or special discounts.
- VIP events: Host private meet-and-greets with athletes or influencers, giving loyal customers unique access to brand ambassadors.
- Early access content: Provide subscribers or long-term customers with early access to exclusive content, such as behind-the-scenes videos or product previews.
- Personalized thank-you campaigns: Send customized thank-you gifts or messages to loyal customers, reinforcing their value to the brand. Monitor metrics like referral rates and repeat purchases to evaluate effectiveness.
Advanced Techniques for Holistic Sponsorship Up and Down the Funnel
Holistic sponsorship measurement requires advanced techniques to track effectiveness across the sports marketing funnel. They include:
- Multichannel attribution models to identify which channels drive results at each stage.
- Real-time data and tracking technologies instantly monitor audience engagement and interactions, allowing for timely adjustments.
- Integrating CRM and analytics tools provides a centralized view of sponsorship KPIs, enabling deeper insights into customer behavior and ROI.
By leveraging these advanced methods, brands can optimize their investments and measure sponsorship effectiveness precisely throughout the funnel.
Using Insights to Improve Future Sponsorship Strategies
Using insights from sponsorship measurement allows brands to refine future strategies.
- Evaluate performance at each funnel stage. Identifying areas where KPIs fall short can focus efforts on improving performance at each stage.
- Experiment and employ iterative testing. Tweak messaging or activation tactics to ensure strategies evolve based on real data.
- Align sponsorship goals with broader business objectives. Driving sales, enhancing brand perception, and entering new markets goals must be congruent with sponsorship activity to achieve meaningful outcomes.
Using these insights, brands can optimize sponsorship ROI and create more impactful, goal-driven campaigns for future initiatives.
Real-World Examples: Successful Sponsorship Throughout the Funnel
Case Study #1: Raising Awareness Through SoFi Stadium Naming Rights
SoFi, a personal finance company, partnered with the Los Angeles Rams and Chargers to secure naming rights for SoFi Stadium. The goal was to enhance brand visibility and align with a premier sports venue hosting major events like the Super Bowl and high-profile concerts. The sponsorship utilized the stadium’s extensive media exposure, in-game mentions, and large-scale events to drive awareness.
Sponsorship Measurement Tactics
- Impressions: Tracked millions of views from broadcasts, social media, and live attendance.
- Engagement: Monitored interactions tied to SoFi Stadium across social platforms.
- Brand Recall: Pre- and post-sponsorship surveys indicated a substantial increase in audience awareness.
Outcomes
The naming rights deal boosted SoFi’s brand recall by 28% and positioned it as a household name in personal finance. These results, tracked through sponsorship KPIs, demonstrated a successful ROI and long-term value in the sports marketing funnel.
Case Study #2: Driving Consideration with Branded Content Series
Under Armour launched a branded video series, The Only Way is Through, to deepen fan engagement during the consideration stage of the sports marketing funnel. The series featured top athletes such as Stephen Curry and Tom Brady, sharing personal stories of perseverance and commitment. The goal was to inspire audiences while aligning Under Armour’s brand values with those of elite athletes.
Sponsorship Measurement Tactics
- Engagement metrics: Tracked social media shares, comments, and likes for each video to assess fan interaction.
- Click-through rates: Measured traffic from video links to the Under Armour website.
- Sentiment analysis: Monitored positive mentions and conversations across digital platforms.
Outcomes
The campaign saw a 40% increase in website traffic from the video series and a significant boost in audience engagement. By using sponsorship KPIs to measure fan interactions and brand alignment, Under Armour demonstrated sponsorship ROI and advanced its position in the consideration stage of the funnel.
Case Study #3: Enhancing Advocacy Through a Sports-Themed Loyalty Program
The Chicago Bulls launched the Bulls Membership Program, a loyalty initiative designed to deepen fan connections and boost advocacy within the sports marketing funnel. The program offered exclusive rewards like behind-the-scenes access, player meet-and-greets, and early ticket purchasing opportunities, encouraging long-term engagement.
Sponsorship Measurement Tactics
- Membership growth: Tracked the number of program sign-ups and renewals.
- Advocacy metrics: Measured social sharing and referral rates as fans promoted the program to others.
- Engagement rates: Monitored participation in exclusive events and redemption of rewards.
Outcomes
The program increased fan retention by 25% and generated significant word-of-mouth referrals, reinforcing fan loyalty. By evaluating sponsorship KPIs like membership activity and advocacy actions, the Bulls demonstrated how loyalty programs can effectively enhance sponsorship ROI while driving fan engagement.
The Bottom Line
Effective sponsorship measurement requires a thorough understanding of the sports marketing funnel, clear sponsorship KPIs, and advanced tools to track ROI at every stage. By leveraging data-driven insights, brands and sports teams can optimize strategies to achieve their objectives. From awareness to advocacy, SponsorCX provides the expertise and tools needed to evaluate sponsorship effectiveness across all funnel stages to maximize ROI and strengthen partnerships.
Contact SponsorCX today for a demo or to learn how our solutions can boost your sponsorship strategy to the next level. You can also learn what sponsors value most in their partnerships by checking out “Key Metrics and Strategies for Sponsors Measuring Sponsorship Success,” a deeper dive into sponsor priorities.
