You gotta start where you're at

You gotta start where you're at.

That may sound overly simplistic, but my experience is that many people, especially in fundraising, want to start way ahead of where they actually are.

Here's some of the things I've heard: she gives everything away... Don't undervalue your program... You should be able to get at least $10,000 for that.

The truth is what you are selling is worth exactly what people are willing to pay and not a penny more.

A few years ago, I was selling sponsorships in the County's annual Outlook Calendar. Each sponsor got an ad across the bottom of a month in the calendar.

Before I started working there, someone had assigned a value for each sponsorship at $550.

The prior year's calendar only had one ad in it so, theoretically, the calendar only generated $550 - hardly enough to offset the cost of printing, which was the point of having ads in the first place.

I decided I was going to do whatever I had to do to sell each and every month.

I started selling them for $100 each, two for one, an ad bundled with an event sponsorship... Whatever I had to do to fill those slots.

I sold them all. I think I ended up raising about $2200 for that calendar - not a lot, but a 300% increase over the previous year.

But if I had stuck with the initial estimated value of $550 a page, I probably wouldn't have sold any of them.

I had to start where I was at to set. That way, I could set myself up for a fantastic finish.

How to get more TV coverage - Part 1

I rarely EVER go it alone.

And by going it alone, I mean doing an event without knowing I will have a TV partner with me on the day of an event.

And I'm talking about FREE media, or 'earned media,' as we call it in corporate America, not paid media or media buys.

So how do I get earned media for almost every event that I do?

Back in the day when I was a reporter at the Business Journal, I used to also read the business news on WBT-AM with Mike Collins, a former weather guy for WBTV. I asked Mike over lunch one day, 'How do you get a TV personality to show up at an event?'

Mike said, 'Just pick someone in TV who you would like to meet and email them. The worst they can do is say 'no.''

So I started doing that.

The best part about asking one TV personality to come and emcee your event, announce something at your event, or do something fun at your event, is that a TV camera almost always comes along. It isn't a guarantee, but it is as close to a guarantee as you will get in the TV news business.

You are also doing your TV partner a favor; they love coming to community events and that helps them promote their station. It is a win-win.

Your event will make one of that evenings' newscasts.

Even a verbal commitment from a TV personality to emcee your event will make your sponsorship efforts easier. Sponsors like to be associated with events that are going to be seen on the evening news.

It almost goes without saying that if your event is scheduled for the morning, ask someone on the 5 or 6 pm news; if your event is in the early evening, ask someone from a morning show. Also, give them a month or two of notice. Don't ask if your event is just one or two weeks away; you'll look unprofessional.

In Part 2, I will share some other strategies I've used with great success to get earned media.

Five powerful minutes - Part 2

Last week I wrote about how to get five minutes with a prospective new sponsor.

This week, I'm writing about what to do - and not do - when you get those five powerful minutes.

As I mentioned in last week's blog, do not ask for anything and do not hand your prospective new client anything to read. It will likely be dropped on top of a pile of other things he or she has been given and hasn't had a chance to read that have not yet made it to the trash bin. Or it will just go right to the trash.

You can give them those things after and only after you've established a relationship.

Tell the person you are meeting with briefly why you got involved with the organization you are working for. Make it personal.

And then ask your new contact a powerful question - one that in my experience seldom gets asked - but should:

"What are your biggest challenges for the next six months and how can I help you achieve them?"

Your new contact will quickly become your new friend.

One of the reasons I was so successful finding sponsors for Mecklenburg County's programs and services during the Great Recession was because I did just that. I learned quickly that if I wanted sponsorships and if I wanted repeat sponsorships, I had better be prepared to deliver something to the companies I was working with. Something THEY wanted; not something we thought they wanted.

Generally, companies want people to walk in their doors and spend money. That's the only way they can stay in business, keep employees, and support community events. And they are faced with tighter operating budgets and more competition all the time.

That's where you come in.

Your job now is to come up with ways that you can get what you want by helping your new friend achieve some of his or her objectives.

It is not as difficult as it sounds. You can do it. And I will give you some ideas in Part 3.

Create winning partnerships with radio, television

I rarely do an event that doesn't have some sort of radio or television component as part of the communication strategy.

First, it increases your organization's profile. Second, having a radio or TV station logo on event collateral material is a great way to attract attention from additional sponsors and participants because it gives the signal that your event has some serious promotions behind it.

There are a number of things you can do to get free media to promote events - besides sending out news releases and hoping that the reporters cover it.

First, ask a local television personality to be your emcee. This practically guarantees that your event will make it on the evening news - if nothing else - the day of your event. Call the station a minimum of three to six months before your event and ask to be transferred to that personality directly. Leave that person a message with the basics - who, what, when, where, and why. If the event fits into that person's schedule, they probably will be your emcee.

Second, figure out what radio station's audience most closely aligns with the audience you expect to participate in your event. Make a call to the station a minimum of three to six months before the event and ask to speak to someone in promotions. Tell them about your event and ask them if they'd like to partner with you. You'll put their logo on your collateral, let them have a DJ speak on stage at the event, and give them space for a tent or a vehicle at the event to give out prizes.

If possible, tell the radio station's promotions person they can also get some of the station's business clients involved, put their logos on your materials, and give them spaces at your event. This will heighten their interest.

In return, they just need to give you spots in their inventory to promote your event. For most events, 20 to 40 spots on a radio station will do wonders for the profile of your event, in conjunction with the other suggestions in this blog.

Don't expect a live remote - that's difficult in the new economy with shrinking audiences and shrinking ad revenues. Besides, you need the promotional spots in advance of the event more than you need a live remote.

For larger events or events that attract more impressions, seek a radio partner that can give you 100 spots or more. They also will gladly post your event on their website.

The biggest mistake I see is organizations asking radio or television partners to get involved with their events three to six weeks beforehand, when it almost always is too late for them to get involved.

By following these rules, I have generated hundreds of thousands of dollars in free radio and television spots to promote event that I have worked on. You can do it too.