Advertising in high school sports is about to get competitive. With rising inflation, budget cuts, and policy changes that support athlete recruitment, the pressure is on to find new revenue streams. But don't sweat it! Today's post breaks down a simple framework to help you build a successful sponsorship program and get ahead of the competition — we're calling it the 3 P's.
The traditional approach to athletic sponsorships — think banner ads in the gymnasium or print ads on roster sheets — still has its place, but the real value today is in digital advertising. And it goes well beyond your scoreboard.
Start by taking stock of all the resources at your disposal. Once you know what you're working with, you can build sponsorship packages that reflect real value and align with what your program can realistically deliver.
Before you approach a local business, you need to understand what you're actually able to offer. Successful programs start by honestly assessing what they can provide — then use that foundation to confidently position themselves in conversations with potential sponsors. This is also where you can get creative.
Start with a list of where ads can be shown:
Each of these may have multiple ad placements available. You can download our inventory checklist to determine everything you might have available.
Once you've taken inventory, you can begin to create packaged offerings. The most common is three to four tiers, with the top tier being a title sponsor. To assemble each package, review your inventory checklist, determine your average fan attendance, and then decide which package it best fits into. Selecting what ads belong in what tier should be based on visibility and audience reach — the more eyes on it, the higher the tier it belongs in.
This is your premier package and should feel like it. The title sponsor gets the most prominent placement across all of your assets. Because this package offers the most visibility, it also commands the highest price.
What you might include:
The gold package is a strong mid-tier offering for businesses that want solid visibility without the full title commitment. It's often the easiest sell to local businesses because the price feels accessible and the return is tangible.
What you might include:
Silver sponsors get meaningful recognition without the premium placement. This tier is perfect for smaller local businesses — a neighborhood restaurant, a family-owned shop, or a local service provider — who want to show community support without a big budget.
What you might include:
Don't underestimate this tier! A lot of teams leave money on the table by skipping it. Bronze is a low-barrier entry point that works great for businesses new to sponsorship, and a great way to build relationships that may grow into bigger sponsors down the road.
What you might include:
You've built your packages — now it's time to find businesses that want in. The good news is that you don't need to be a seasoned salesperson. At its core, sponsorship sales is really just about having genuine conversations with people who already care about your community.
Keep this in mind before you start: people don't buy products, they buy outcomes. A local business owner isn't excited about "a banner at the gym" — they're excited about their name being seen by hundreds of families in town every week. Lead with what they get: visibility, community goodwill, and a direct connection to their customers.
Start with who you already know
The easiest place to start is your existing network. Think about businesses your school families already frequent — the pizza place near campus, the local gym, the car dealership with a parent on the booster board. Make a list of 10 to 15 businesses to approach first, and tap your coaches, parents, and booster club for warm introductions. A personal connection goes a long way.
Show up in person
Face-to-face conversations are far more effective than emails that are easy to ignore. Bring a simple one-page sponsorship menu and keep it low pressure — you're there to plant a seed, not close a deal on the spot. Try something like: "We're building a sponsorship program and wanted to share it with businesses we think would be a great fit. No pressure — just take a look and let me know if anything interests you." Then follow up a week later.
Use social media to build credibility
Make sure your team's social media presence is active and looks good before you start reaching out — a business owner on the fence will often look you up first. Once your program is running, publicly celebrate your sponsors by tagging them in posts and thanking them by name. It delivers on your promise to current sponsors and shows prospective ones exactly what they'd be getting.
Be genuine, be prepared, and make it easy for people to say yes. Most local business owners want to support their community — sometimes they just need someone to ask.
Landing a sponsor is a big win. But keeping one — and growing your program year over year — comes down to how well you follow through on what you promised. This is where a lot of programs drop the ball, not because they don't deliver, but because they never show sponsors that they did.
Deliver what you promised
Before the season starts, make a simple checklist for each sponsor outlining exactly what they purchased — program ads, social media posts, scoreboard ads — and check items off as the season progresses. A spreadsheet works just fine.
For scoreboard and digital display ads, ScoreVision makes this effortless. ScoreVision's advertising software lets you upload each sponsor's ad, organize them, and set them to automatically rotate during games all season long. No manual management — the system handles it for you.
Track your impressions
An "impression" is simply how many times someone saw an ad. You don't need to overthink it — multiply your average home game attendance by the number of home games in the season, and you have a solid estimate to share with sponsors. For scoreboard ads, ScoreVision automatically tracks when and how often each ad plays and compiles that data into a proof of performance report you can download straight from the cloud.
Send a recap to your sponsors
At the end of the season, send each sponsor a simple one-page recap: how many games their ad was displayed, an estimated impression count, photos of their signage, and any social media posts that featured them. For scoreboard sponsors, attach the ScoreVision proof of performance report. Having actual data to back up your delivery is the kind of professional touch that makes a business owner feel like they made a smart investment.
Use it to renew (and upsell)
Your end-of-season recap is also your best sales tool for next year. When sponsors can see exactly what they got, renewal becomes a much easier conversation — you're showing them receipts, not asking them to take a leap of faith again. It's also a natural moment to mention an upgrade: "We'd love to have you back. If you're interested in more visibility, we have a few spots open at the next level." A lot of sponsors will say yes simply because you asked.
The programs that grow their sponsorship revenue year after year aren't necessarily the ones with the biggest audiences. They're the ones that treat sponsors like partners, follow through on their commitments, and make it easy to say yes again next season.