Sponsorship – Advice / Opinions ?

We’re not sure if we’ve got this wrong here, but we’re after some advice/opinions!

Sponsorship, It shouldn’t just be about the FREE things’!? OR are we just being tight? Yes, the FREE items are great, and an amazing incentive to the sponsored riders! But it should be a 2-way thing? Wouldn’t being a selected company rider would be an honer alone?
Being a small and new business we simply don’t have the budget to give away FREE things all of the time.

Muddy-Footprints have a number of different types of riders,
from young, local level riders – riding because they love it! To top level, European riders, riding for their country & career. Therefore, we understand all riders needs are different and each sponsor is treated personally.


There are so many people out there looking for sponsorship, so if you’re lucky enough to be selected, please don’t forget that!
When sponsors are selected, we don’t expect much, It isn’t all about the competition results – although this is obviously a bonus! But it isn’t about winning week in, week out. Communicating with us is the best thing! Social Media updates (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter etc.) Word of mouth recommendations and even product or social media reviews. Our sponsors are a very import part of our team and we value each and every one! Working with the right riders is essential for sponsorship & relationship success.

If one of our sponsors has other sponsor/s we completely understand the need to promote both/all of their sponsors! – This goes without saying! However, another thing we don’t particularly understand is when sponsors advertise rival companies? We’ve spotted this too many times on Social Media. To us, being a sponsor should mean giving
everything you can to make a difference to that particular business.

If you’re looking for sponsorship don’t just sell the success, don’t promise red rosettes and competing at a high level. Sell the journey! The fact you have a good social media following or very active on Social Media? The fact people will follow you through the highs and the lows! A great read and something to learn from – https://ridingwithcharlotte.wordpress.com/ ‘ We All Fall Down’ by Charlotte Gomez. Make yourself stand out! Remember, companies receive sponsorship requests on a daily basis! (Even if they’re not looking!)

We thought sponsorship would be an amazing opportunity for both Muddy-Footprints, as a business, and young riders that are passionate about their hobby and career! We’re trying to promote our sponsors and help them as much as possible, while they promote us in return as a small and new business.

We’re absolutely loving our ‘Sponsorship journey’ and the relationship with our new sponsors! However, we wanted to know if you think we’re getting it right? Are we thinking the right way, should we be giving more? What are your thoughts and opinions?

Muddy-Footprints x
www.muddy-footprints.co.uk

8 Replies to “Sponsorship – Advice / Opinions ?”

  1. Absolutely not!!
    It’s about not it’s a two way street. It certainly isn’t about getting everything for nothing. Its about partnering up with different people of different abilities and supporting them in different ways and in return they support you.
    If you wanted to just give freebies to people constantly then you would just sponsor one person at the very top of their game who are very high profile and in the media spotlight.
    Other people have to earn that privilege. It’s very annoying that people think sponsorship means freebies!!
    I know a 14 Year old that BE events successfully and would be so grateful
    To be able to carry a company logo and wouldn’t dream of asking for freebies.
    Carrying anybody’s company logo and trying to help promote and support that company should be done with pride and respect and being given discount codes and incentives is perfect. X

  2. If youre honored enough to have received a sponsorship then you should go out of your way to promote the company. I have no sponsorship but I always make sure I mention products that I have bought or companies that have helped me. If I was to get sponsorship I would then stick to my sponsor. Especially if the other companies were in conflict. It’s all about helping each other. It seems some people just go hunting for freebies.

  3. No it’s not all about freebies!! I personally am so grateful for you sponsoring me. I admit I probably haven’t promoting you as well as I could, however I always try to share your posts to my friends to widen your audience! Currently I only ever see my horse in the dark which doesn’t make for very exciting photos and he is only walking and trotting getting back into work. Once he is out and about doing more work at home etc the posts will be much more frequent. I have my eye on a few things on your website I would love to buy too however sadly the January lack of funds has hit…. I will have to wait for payday! i will be sure to review/ recomend said products! I have ordered some lorry stickers of your logo to go on the ramp gates so your logo will be seen at competitions not only via my lovely saddle cloth but also in the lorry park. If there is anything you would like me to do differently I am open to suggestions. This is all completely new to me so it is hard to know how much is too much or not enough. Hope this helps, restore a little faith! Thanks as always xxx

  4. You’re so right. It has to be a 2-way thing and certainly at lower levels it has to be about the journey and not the successes alone. Most riders are envious of the successes and truly interested in the journey! Free stuff is a great bonus but actually that’s the incentive for the returns and the research material for the mentions- which are the social media activity, product plugs etc.

  5. I definately agree with you. A two way street is a must you are assisting them for a reason its not a free giveaway! I would of thought there would be some sort of agreement to blog about a product at least once or twice a month or some sort of promo at the minimum, thats what I would expect to be doing if I were lucky enough to be in a position of being sponsored.

  6. I totally agree, being sponsored is not all about freebies! I’m so grateful that I was lucky enough to be selected to be sponsored as I know how many wonderful people apply so that alone is an honour. However, this time of year is possibly the hardest due to the dark nights however I try my best to promote your company online and around with family and friends as well as out and about competing and to me it is fun and in no way a ‘chore’. Like you have said, sponsorship is a two way thing so improvements and suggestions are crucial as well as gaining trust and having good communication. After all you are putting faith in your sponsors to promote your business that you have worked so hard with! Yet again I would just like to say a big thank you! Xx

  7. Firstly, I would like to say a massive thank you for showing my blog “We all fall down”. Riding is naturally a dangerous discipline and we should always remind ourselves that no matter how experienced we are, there is always a chance of something going wrong!

    Secondly, Sponsorship is absolutely a two way street. From a business perspective is should be about choosing a team of riders/ rider who have demonstrated their passion and determination to succeed and achieve. It is most likely that someone who demonstrates these qualities are likely to promote the business with a genuine enthusiasm and it will not appear forced. I believe a sponsor should be willing to give something in return for the efforts of the sponsee and this should be regulated often. For example, the best scenario would be someone with a high following, who posts about the brand atleast twice a month. The worst scenario would be a sponsee who doesn’t show a genuine enthusiasm for the brand and only posts when forced by the sponsor. It is important from a business perspective that the sponsee feels valued and appreciated for their hard work and that they are being treated fairly. Perhaps having a file that measures how each sponsee is performing and how often they are promoting the brand (are they posting etc). Therefore, for a successful partnership it is important that both brand and sponsee feel appreciated and valued.

    From a sponsee point of view, you should feel a genuine sense of honor and pride to be sponsored by a brand you love (I mean this). There is no point applying and getting a sponsor for the sake of it. It’s a long and steady road that requires consistency and passion. To be a sponsor in my eyes means you don’t forcefully make a post because you haven’t done one in a long time, it should be something that comes naturally because you are a genuine user of the brands products/ services and you want to share that enthusiasm with others. Being a sponsor means you incorporate the use of supplied products/ services in your everyday life and post about how they have benefited you!

  8. My Facebook and twitter feed is full up at the moment with pro riders thanking their sponsors for the pre season gifts and presents that they have received. In some cases large boxes of boots, hats, saddles etc. At no point have I ever read that these pros have bought any of these items so it would be very easy to assume rightly or wrongly that these things were freebies! Of course sponsorship is and should be a 2 way thing. No one should expect something for nothing….but I can quite see how people think that it is all about the freebies! Best of luck with your Journey muddy-puddles. I’m sure you’ll have a positive experience supporting your riders and your riders supporting you! X

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