The Process of Acquiring Sponsors

Hello everyone! In this blog post we are going to take you through the journey of developing a sponsorship packet, formulating email drafts, and ultimately acquiring the sponsorship.

The first step in this process is to create a sponsorship packet. In creating this packet, one must think about what they want to show to the world about their team. Ultimately we broke it up into 4 categories: About Us, Our Subteams, Sponsorship Details, Contact Us. To organize the packet, we included a table of contents with each of the categories.

The most challenging part of the design process was making sure that we had a design that was inclusive to all while being aesthetically pleasing. Our main colors are dark red, black and white. This was tricky because for some, the dark red is not visible over a black background. Furthermore, sticking to a black or red background with white text was rather mundane. So we used a tool to figure out which colors are definitely visible over certain backgrounds. In the process we realized that it is not necessarily about the color, rather the contrast.

In the process of experimenting with different colors and contrasts, we ended up introducing gold and blue, as represented on the 'Who We Are' page to the left. The image we used is a picture from our first team social. In addition, the pie chart is included to let potential sponsors aware of the breakdown of the team.

Expressing the team's work in a creative way was key for this project! To emphasize the subteams, we kept the words on each page minimal. On each page there is a brief (1-3 sentences) explanation of the sub-team. We made sure that this was new information that differed from what is on our website. On each page we also highlight a project that the team is currently working on. This includes a brief description and an engaging image. This way potential sponsors can get a better understanding of what each subteam is doing and the impact they are making. Furthermore, for aesthetic purposes, we rounded the edges of the team pictures and gave a shout out to the team lead!

The last main design aspect included the sponsorship details. Ultimately, we decided that the best way to approach the sponsorship benefits was to have each tier mutually benefit the sponsors and students. Some of these benefits include hosting recruitment events, access to our resume book, and a social media spotlight. In terms of tiers, we wanted to go with fun names that reflected the team. From the least to most expensive tier the names include: Solder, Iron, Copper, and Silicon. Obviously Silicon is the best tier because we are Cornell Custom Silicon Systems. To display this information, we created a checklist with X and check icons for each benefit.

Furthermore, when we decided to reach out to companies in hopes of getting sponsorship, it was important for us to be clear, concise, and professional. To do this we came up with a template that resembled those ideas and began by introducing ourselves and the team's initiatives. We then explained why we were reaching out and the ways the company could contribute if it wished to do so. We asked companies to contribute in two main ways, the first being a monetized sponsorship to help the team with its chip-design initiatives. The second form of sponsorship is an in-kind sponsorship. This would allow the company to contribute by offering goods or services (in the forms of machines or specific hardware/ software that we may use). We then went on to outline the benefits the company will receive by sponsoring our project team; by the means of tax deductions for the sponsorship amount, the ability to host recruitment events for our members, and a spotlight for the company via our website/ social media. We also made sure to provide clear details for the benefits the company received on the sponsorship package we were offering by designating tiers for the sponsored amount of funding. Finally, at the end of the email, we expressed our gratitude for the company's consideration and provided our contact information for further communication. By creating this template, we were able to increase our chances of securing a successful sponsorship and have reached out to over 120 companies in total over the past few weeks.