The Smell of September 4th September, 2017

September is my most favourite month at Slingshot – mainly because it is the kick off of our busiest quarter and ‘buying season’.  Over 80% of big brands purchase their sponsorship deals in this period, which means if you are in sales, the majority of the quarter is spent closing everything you’ve worked so hard on for the calendar year thus far.  For those less cut-throat, it is also the time when your ideas and pitches finally come to fruition.  Outlining execution and following through on the deliverables of programmes, it’s when creativity comes alive.  It is both the most commercial and creative quarter of the year – which is where Slingshot as an agency excels and when our clients truly feel our value to their bottom line.

Many people assume that our success lies in our ability to close deals, when in actual fact it’s how we combine our creative flair for partnerships into a commercial deal.  This synergy is the reason closing becomes easy.  There are better ways to sell sponsorship than cold calling and I truly believe sponsorship deals cannot exist without understanding both the commercial and creative value.  Yet most of the sponsorship industry is still wholly divided with activation agencies and sales consultants.  What makes Slingshot’s strategies work time and time again is understanding the client’s vision and finding the right brands to partner with where both visions align.  Insight and foresight is incredibly important to create the lasting partnerships that are necessary in this churning industry.

If you haven’t ever seen them or need a refresher, I encourage you to have a look at our latest case studies here.  And if you ever want to have a cup of coffee to discuss how we do what we do, I’d love to.  You can reach me at [email protected] subject ‘Coffee Break’.

It’s September after all.