Sports Marketing Surveys and SponsorMetrix are combining their sponsorship expertise, media data and research capabilities to provide the industry with unique and robust sponsorship valuations.
At the heart of the co-operation is the SponsorMetrix valuation model, already established as an essential pre-contract evaluation tool providing sponsorship rights package valuations based on both media return and intangible assets.
The partnership with Sports Marketing Surveys will provide for additional, independent and comprehensive media and research data to be incorporated into the valuations, ensuring that the results stand up to rigorous analysis. The partners also plan additional enhancements and refinements to the modelling process, based on a survey examination of sponsors’ requirements and perceptions in relation to rights packages.
Designed originally as a marketing tool for rights sellers, the model has in recent years been used by a growing number of sponsors, rights owners and marketing agencies to examine the value of their sponsorships. While its main use is in relation to sponsorship sales, acquisition and contract negotiations, the overall valuation process has also proved beneficial to clients in the refinement and enhancement of their rights packages.
Recent applications have included several domestic (UK) and international football tournaments, Formula One teams, a Premiership Rugby Union club and venue installations in both football and cricket. Feedback from clients has been encouraging, confirming the valuable contribution of the model to the rights marketing process:
Jon Robinson, MCC head of sales & marketing, said, “Having worked with Sports Marketing Surveys Ltd for many years, we required a specific valuation for a unique and globally recognised part of Lord’s Cricket Ground. In partnership with SponsorMetrix, and using this model combined with the Sports Marketing Surveys cricket exposure and broadcast and audience information has allowed MCC to go to market with a robust, reasonable and measured valuation. The model is comprehensive and complex, but the simplicity of the report and the valuation has enabled us to approach experienced and new sponsors with great confidence and knowledge. A valuable tool and result that shows how far sponsorship accountability by rights owners has come.”
Patrick Wendt, business development, marketing & communications, Toyota Motorsport GmbH, said, “In association with our marketing consultant, Infront Sports & Media, Toyota-F1 has examined the value of various sponsorship opportunities associated with the team, at different levels of involvement and commitment, and with varying rights package compositions. To do this, we used the SponsorMetrix rights valuation model, which helped us at two levels; first, to place relative values on the package variants and second, to position the merits of each sponsorship opportunity to prospective sponsors in terms of the inherent marketing value. The SponsorMetrix report was helpful in not only determining the value of each set of rights being offered, but it also demonstrated Toyota-F1’s firm commitment to delivering a good service and high marketing value to our commercial partners, at a fair market price.”
In announcing the partnership, Stephen Proctor, managing director of Sports Marketing Surveys commented, “Establishing a fair and realistic price, using a transparent methodology is a key step in growing the sponsorship market. With accountability comes credibility, and this moves the industry a long way further down that road.”
Adrian Hitchen, managing director of SponsorMetrix, also welcomed the new partnership, saying “The wealth of media and survey data available through Sports Marketing Surveys, covering virtually all sectors of the sports sponsorship market, will be of immense value to future SponsorMetrix valuations, making our model, I believe, the most comprehensive, customised and research-based rights valuation tool available on the market today”.
Sports Marketing Surveys Ltd www.sportsmarketingsurveys.com