Blockchain is one of the most unique industries in the world. Built on the foundation of a novel but innovative technology, the blockchain industry is worth billions and has broken boundaries over the last decade and a half. As it progresses, businesses in the space have to deal with the complexities of blockchain sponsorship.
Sponsorship, as we’ve noted in a previous blog post, is a great way for businesses to gain support, publicity, and sales. But as a blockchain business, how do you decide what Industries are worth sponsoring and which should be ignored? This is important as it will determine what influencers, organizations, events, and so on you will put your money into or not. In this article, we’ll touch on some of the factors to consider.
Audience Overlap
The first thing you need to consider for blockchain sponsorship is whether there is an overlap in audiences/customer bases between the two Industries. Take the growing sponsorship of sports teams by blockchain and crypto companies. People who are passionate about sports tend to enjoy online betting, and that is a common use case for cryptocurrency.
This means, essentially, that the blockchain industry has something to offer those who enjoy sports. If you’re considering any industry, create a profile of your average customer and ask yourself if this person also patronizes that industry. If the people who tend to buy blockchain wallets have zero interest in makeup or pets, you also have no business sponsoring such an industry.
Use Cases
A major benefit of blockchain is that its use cases are varied, and this means there is a world of industries that it could possibly collaborate with or sponsor. We’ve touched on how blockchain-based assets can be used for sports betting, which makes it compatible with the Sporting industry. Cryptocurrency can also be used within industries like aviation, food, entertainment, gaming and so on.
Having a use case of blockchain for an industry means that sponsorships will make more sense and can be used long-term. Take the gaming industry, for example. GameFi and the overall use of blockchain for gaming mean that many gaming companies have collaborated with/taken sponsorship from blockchain companies, and this will continue into the future. On the other hand, an industry where blockchain cannot be applied at all does not make much sense in terms of blockchain sponsorship.
History of Blockchain Sponsorship
Perhaps the easiest way to choose an industry for blockchain sponsorship is to look for one that already has a history of this. As a blockchain company, it isn’t hard to decide to sponsor a sports team or a gaming tournament because several of these have already taken sponsorships from your industry. This history means that there is already audience overlap, brand synergy, proven results, and so on.
A bit of research will show you some of the Industries that are most heavily collaborating with blockchain these days, and it would be best to start from there. Of course, an industry with a history with the blockchain sector doesn’t mean that every business or personality within it will be a good fit.
Gaming companies might collaborate with blockchain companies, but each gaming project you consider has to be vetted on its own merit. If possible, look into the specific businesses or personalities that have collaborated with blockchain and find out how successful said partnerships were.
Upcoming Events
Another way to decide which Industries to sponsor is by considering which ones have major events coming up. The sports industry has various tournaments that happen throughout the year, gaming companies have major tournaments or game releases, clothing companies have seasonal launches, and so on. Industries that regularly have events and other things to look forward to offer ample opportunity for collaboration.
When these developments occur, their audience will be hyper-receptive to any new product or services, and this means that marketing your company to them will be easier.
Willingness of Stakeholders to Collaborate
The ease of launching a blockchain sponsorship in any industry ultimately depends on the willingness of stakeholders on both ends to collaborate. For example, you might want to sponsor an entertainment company but find that influencers and other stakeholders in the space aren’t willing to collaborate with a blockchain company or don’t quite know how to go about it.
On the flip side, you might find that certain industries are especially eager to collaborate with a blockchain company. Keep in mind that cryptocurrency and other blockchain-based assets are on the rise, and this means that Industries from art to logistics are employing more of the technology.
Reach out to various businesses in different industries and see what the likelihood of collaboration is. Likewise, if you find yourself approached by companies in different industries, consider these collaborations and see if something can come out of them.
Innovation
Sometimes, succeeding in the blockchain space means moving away from your comfort zone, and this can involve collaborating with unexpected Industries. For example, Coachella leveraged NFTs years ago to make ticketing and accessing benefits easier, and this broke new ground for the industry.
If your business has a unique application of blockchain or a special selling point that consumers can tap into, feel free to approach Industries that haven’t yet collaborated with a blockchain company for partnership. You might just find that both the companies you are approaching and their customers are eager to embrace new things.
Conclusion
Blockchain sponsorship is an amazing way to drum up more support for your business, drive more sales, and ensure more visibility. This means that the Industries you choose to put money into for sponsorship are very important. As we’ve highlighted in this article, deciding what Industries to put money into depends on several factors.
Ideally, you’ll want to engage with an industry that has already partnered with other blockchain projects or one that is willing to take the leave. By ensuring audience overlap and offering innovative product sun services to users across both Industries, the sky is the limit.
