Solicitation Plan

Prior to Event-

MountainFest Motorcycle Rally is unlike any other event that takes place in the state of West Virginia. The rally offers so many activities and entertainment for patrons, over a three-day period. The event provides a number of these assets to sponsors that allow them to increase brand awareness, shape consumer attitudes, merchandising opportunities, showcase products, drive sales and more. Assets of the event that are appealing to sponsors include:

• VIP tent area
• Ticket trailer
• Main act
• Coal Bucket Saloon act
• Honorable mention act
• Micro wrestling
• Lingerie wrestling
• Comedian acts
• Poker Run
• Biker Parade
• Main stage
• Coal Bucket Saloon Stage
• Transportation
• Entrance gate
• Volunteers
• T-shirts
• Tickets
• Wristbands
• Rally cups

Sponsors are interested in MountainFest’s audience characteristics. This is important to them when deciding whether or not to sponsor an event. MountainFest’s audience is made up of two components, the “bikers” and the “music lovers”. The bikers are the main audience that attends the event. Their age ranges from 38-55, while approximately 1 in 3 own a motorcycle. They are typically blue collar workers with an income of $40,000 or more a year. They reside in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, Kentucky and Ohio. The music lovers are considered the secondary audience that attends the event. They come for the entertainment, with the age range being 32-45. They most likely reside in the state of West Virginia.

Possible sponsor categories for the event include: Local Businesses ,Restaurants ,Beer Companies & Motorcycle Companies.

Businesses are motivated to sponsor MountainFest when they are provided opportunities that benefit them and their brand. Some of these motivations include:

• Visibility
• Opportunity to shape consumer attitudes
• Opportunity to establish relationships
• Opportunity to showcase product attributes
• Opportunity to differentiate from competitors
• Opportunities for merchandising
• Opportunity to drive sales
• Opportunity to entertain clients
• Opportunity to recruit and/or retain employees

It is crucial to develop relationships with potential event sponsors, when attempting to secure a sponsorship opportunity for MountainFest. This can be done in a few simple steps:

1. Prepare and research before reaching out to potential sponsors
2. Contact potential sponsors via email, phone or both
3. Schedule a meeting time that is convenient for them
4. Listen to the potential sponsor
5. Make it personal- this person will most likely be your main point of contact, this means you should take the time to get to know them as a person beyond his or her profession
6. Follow up with potential sponsor after the first meeting

During Event-

It is necessary to show sponsors you care and appreciate their efforts for the duration of the event. This can be done in steps that assure the sponsor has a high quality experience at the event.

• Greet the sponsor at their specified location
• Make sure the sponsor has everything they need/everything that was promised under the sponsorship agreement
• Offer to grab the sponsor anything they may need
• Periodically check on the sponsor during the event
• Make them feel important
• Remind the sponsor of the impact they’re making on the beneficiaries

After Event-

It is important to keep relationships with sponsors after the event, in hopes they will become recurring sponsors for MountainFest in the future. Procedures should be done as follows:

1. Send a thank you to all participating sponsors. The letter should include the money raised, an attendance count, sponsor merchandise sales and images from the event.
2. Schedule a time for a follow-up call with the sponsor for a debrief of event
3. Create a newsletter to send to sponsors in the months after the event
4. Periodically check in with the sponsor

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