So, this week I’ve been helping the lovely Gem with getting some sponsors interested in Barcamp Blackpool 3.
So far I’ve sent off a handful of emails and have already had an encouraging response from the local college, and am awaiting responses from a few local businesses.
I’m really passionate about Barcamp Blackpool, and feel really honoured to be allowed to help in organising stuff for this year’s event. I think Barcamps are a fantastic way to bring together like minded people to share their knowledge. At the last Barcamp organised by Gem, I learned about bitcoin, artificial intelligence, knitting, tattooing and soldering and that was just during the talks. In the evening I got chatting to some new and familiar faces and discussed everything from the pros and cons of Google+ to the difference in the taste of water between Lancashire and Yorkshire!
I’m really hoping that lots of people from the local community will come along to this year’s Barcamp, and as a result those people will also get to hear about Blackpool Geek Up, which I blogged about earlier this week. To be able to convert some of the attendees into regular Geek Up goers is my personal goal for the weekend!
What Barcamp Blackpool is lacking at the moment, is not the people to attend the event, or the talks to engage the attendees, but the funding to keep those people fed and watered for the weekend. The sponsorship that we’re hoping to raise will help further establish the importance of Barcamp Blackpool to the local community and hopefully engage new people with our existing events, like Geek Up!
So what will sponsors get? The sponsorship packages are available to view on the website, but more than just having your name or company logo around the venue, you or your staff get the chance to engage with local people who are potential customers for your business. Explain to them what it is you offer and how that can be of benefit to them in a relaxed and friendly environment. Set to rest any worries people might have about your products or services and most of all have fun!
Barcamps isn’t a trade show, and the attendees shouldn’t feel like their being sold to but equally, it’s a great platform to spread brand awareness. In the last 12 months alone, I’ve taken home branded merchandise from eBuyer, Brightbox, North51, Esendex, Adobe, Minutebox & Starbucks not to mention many more, and as a result I now know what those companies do and have even recommended them to people off the back of being sponsors for some great events!
So don’t hang about, get in and sponsor a great community event and reap the rewards!
Email gemma.cameron@gmail.com, call 07766695302 or tweet @ruby_gem
The sponsorship packages are as follows;
£50 – Funny Girls Logo on opening and closing presentation
£100 – Winter Gardens As above with link and logo on website
£200 – Pleasure Beach As above with logo displayed on schedule and around venue
£500 – Golden Mile As above with thank you tweets before, during and after the event and logo prominently displayed around venue. Also logo prominently displayed on back of t-shirts (should enough funding be raised)
£1000 – The Big One As above, with additional link & logo on eventbrite page and option to set up tradeshow signage and/or a small booth/stand at the event
Lally.
edit; There are a handful of tickets left for this event, which you can register for here