Courting Potential Sponsors Is Exciting, Stressful

One of the most exciting aspects of working to become a professional angler is the process of courting a new potential sponsor. This process can also be very stressful and is often misunderstood.

In the short timeframe that I've been actively seeking sponsorship as a competitive angler, I've been fortunate to work with and promote such great companies as JetWorks Air Center, Business Air, Topwater Clothing and Secret Lures. Though I have been working with these companies for only a short time, I have learned a lot about how to attract and keep sponsorships, or as I like to call them, “mutually beneficial business relationships.”

Though I am in no big hurry to actively seek sponsors, recently I have been engaged in the process of courting a new company in hopes of working as a promoter of their goods.

As a marketing major at University of Central Florida, my formal education has helped me in my quest for sponsors. One of my favorite classes this semester, Professional Selling, has taught me a lot about how to sell myself as a valuable promotional asset to companies.

For the sake of this article, I will describe how some of the techniques in my Professional Selling text helped me in my quest to work with yet another company. However, I will not reveal the name of the company or what it makes. I will refer to it as Company X.

Making the Sales Call

My friends at Okeechobee Fishing Headquarters initially made me aware of the Company X’s interest in expanding its promotional staff. It was a new company and I hadn’t seen its product before, but after visiting its Internet site, I became interested in the product and wanted to learn more.

To me, it's really important to only pursue companies whose products and services you believe in, so my first move was to get the product in my hand to decide if I wanted to pursue a position on Company X’s promotional staff. I ended up getting the name and phone number of the rep in my area.

Using the opening method in sales calls known as the “referral opening,” I began the conversation by informing him that I was referred by my friends at Okeechobee Fishing Headquarters, and that I would like to try their product. The rep and I then set a date to get out on the water for a demo.

It wasn’t very difficult to entice the rep into a free fishing trip with me, especially since I was taking him to where I won a BFL Super Tournament the weekend before. We met up at Okeechobee Fishing Headquarters on a Thursday morning, and it was there that I was introduced to Company X’s product. I was immediately excited about using it on the water.

We got out on the Big O and reached the area where I had sacked more than 50 pounds over 2 days of fishing. We initially caught a bunch of fish, but weren’t able to get a big bite going until around 10:30, which was also my experience during the BFL the week before. I quickly developed confidence in the product after I caught several big fish, including one about 8 1/2 pounds and another over 7 1/2.

Strengthening the Presentation

After I felt confident that Company X’s product was in fact one that I would use in competition, I then began pitching to the rep what I could do if I was chosen to promote their products. I told him that I would:

> Be on hand to work industry shows, such as the Bassmaster Classic Expo, to help promote the products.

> Work with local retailers, with whom I've built strong relationships, to get the products within the reach of anglers.

> Increase awareness of Company X’s products by implementing my outgoing personality to show everyone I come across the features and the benefits of the products.

> Think of Company X whenever I had the opportunity to mention the benefits of their product through media outlets such as print, television and radio.

> In general, use all the tools at my disposal to increase Company X’s “bottom line.”

In essence what I was doing was giving what professional salesmen call my “value proposition,” which is defined as: The process of describing the way in which your services will meet the prospect’s (potential sponsor's) needs and how that is different from the offerings of competitors (other anglers).

I was careful to only mention things that I knew I could deliver, and the rep seemed very excited about the prospect of me joining the team. I then asked what Company X could do to compensate me for the service I was providing them.

I will not divulge the details of the rep's initial offer, but I felt that what I would offer the company was worth more than that. This is a common issue that a “small potatoes” aspiring pro such as myself is presented with, especially when I don’t have much credibility yet. I feel that the key is to come to grips with the fact that you will have to provide a valuable service to this company and approach it like you would any other job, and let the company know that you mean business.

I think most companies are used to anglers approaching them and asking “What can you do for me?” instead of first explaining what they (the angler) can provide for the company. It seems that companies in the fishing industry are approached by a lot of these people, and after they don’t see the return on investment they'd hoped for, they become sort of jaded about aspiring professional anglers and assume that most of them are out for a “free lunch.”

Responding to Objections

After the rep told me what the company was prepared to do for me initially, I wasn’t mad or discouraged, because I understood that I am still considered small potatoes and I needed to persuade the rep that what I can bring to the table was more valuable than what they were initially offering, which in professional sales is called “establishing the value.”

I again went over the service that I would provide the company and tried to establish my value. I even tried thinking outside the box to offer some unique ideas on how I could help move and promote the product and brand.

At the end of the day of fishing (and catching over 30 pounds of Big O bass), the rep and I parted ways and made arrangements to talk more later in the week after both parties thought about the offers we discussed.

I wish we could have reached a deal at that time because I loved the product. However, I wanted to make sure that I didn’t sell myself short, and that I was able to work a deal that both of us would be happy with. One of the hardest parts of working deals is to understand how much you are worth and make sure that you don’t overvalue or undervalue yourself.

I also wanted to have some time to brainstorm about things I could do for them, so I would have more to offer when we talked again.

Obtaining Commitment

After several days the rep I took fishing called and referred me to the “head honcho,” the promotional staff director for Company X. I then got in contact with him only after I thought about potential objections he might have, and thinking about paths the conversation might take.

To be honest, I don’t think I presented myself well during that first call. He was very direct and right off the bat asked me “What can you do for Company X?” He did exactly what he is paid to do.

I pretty much just talked a lot and kept repeating the same thing and never really got the main message out: That I would help them sell product.

I knew that question was coming and I'm usually good at explaining what I can do, but for some reason I was quite nervous when I talked to him. I felt like I was giving a plea bargain in a criminal trial.

After my conversation with the pro-staff director, I didn’t hold out much hope and was sure that I'd made myself out to be just another guy looking for a handout, which is far from the truth. About a day later, surprisingly, I received a phone call from him and he said, “Listen, we can’t give you exactly what you wanted.” Then he went into what they could initially do.

After a moment of careful thought, I agreed that that was a fair deal, and decided to sign on with Company X under one condition: That if I provide results for the company, I would be recognized for the effort and have the opportunity to move higher on the pro-staff. He agreed that was fair, and the deal was final.

Building Long-Term Partnerships

After it was all said and done, neither myself nor Comapny X got anything for free, and we both are engaged in a “mutually beneficial business relationship.”

Through my studies at school, I have found the most successful businessmen put a great amount of emphasis on building relationships with the companies they work with, and continually work hard to provide for those companies in order for both parties to grow together. That’s what I plan on doing for Company X.

As I said before, courting potential sponsors can be a stressful process – I think the hardest part is putting a price on what you can offer the company. Since we anglers are in the business of promoting goods and services through our exposure in tournaments and such, it can be hard (but not impossible) to show how many sales were influenced by our actions.

I do think that my education has helped me convey my personal value as a promoter, and I strongly believe that the most important thing I can do is to simply show each company I try to work with that I'm committed to moving their bottom line. I think that's the key to being prosperous in the business side of the sport.

I still have a lot to learn in this area and I know I'm going to make mistakes. I just hope that one day my business savvy will be as strong as my fishing ability, if not stronger, because when those little green fish stop eating, I'd like to keep on doing so.

Miles "Sonar" Burghoff is a student at the University of Central Florida and an aspiring professional angler who writes a regular column for BassFan. To visit his website, click here.