STORY SELLING
There is much more that stakeholders up and down the ecosystem can do, experts told CNA.
Mr Oon suggested that SportSG set up a national sponsorship platform, describing it as a unified, government-backed vehicle to match sponsors with teams, athletes and events.
It would be a centralised source of information, guidelines and opportunities – streamlining the sponsorship process and lowering barriers for new entrants, he said.
The golf association’s Mr Ho called on NSAs to view sponsorships less as “one-way support” and more as partnerships.
“NSAs need to communicate the value of sponsorships clearly and show how they can value-add in creative ways,” he said.
One way his association has done so is to organise introductory golf sessions for sponsors’ clients and employees, conducted by the sponsored athletes.
“Through such activities, athletes also have the opportunity to share their personal journeys, helping sponsors and their stakeholders better understand the dedication and challenges in an athlete’s career,” said Mr Ho.
The stories behind each athlete and sport are pivotal – with or without the medals to accompany them, said those who spoke with CNA.
Mr Walton from Deloitte, which used to sponsor the football Women’s Premier League, said: “Storytelling around adversity, challenges, triumph, teamwork, diversity, opportunities for youth, bringing the community together – all of those are in my branding strategy”.
Singapore Athletics said it has seen a “significant” increase in interested corporate sponsors, with its number of partners growing from five at the start of 2023 to 11 today.
“This surge is fuelled by the outstanding performances of our athletes in recent years, including record medal hauls at major Games and a sharp increase in national records being broken,” said a spokesperson.
“Athletes such as Shanti Pereira have also risen to star status, putting our sport in the national spotlight and making it more attractive to potential partners.”
The rise of badminton world champion Loh Kean Yew has also helped the NSA, with vice-president Prof Tan calling it a “tsunami effect” that has attracted sponsors in its wake.
About 55 per cent of the badminton association’s annual income comprises funding from SportSG, with the rest sourced from corporate sponsorships and commercial revenues that include events and facilities’ rental.
At the sailing federation, which has benefited from kitefoiler Maeder’s rise to prominence, the goal is to showcase and tell the stories of all athletes, regardless of success.
“There’s also the story of trying to get to the pinnacle.. It’s not all podium and medals,” said Singapore Sailing CEO Mr Tan. “I’ve been trying to market or provide that story as well to other sponsors. It’s a continual search, I think it will take a particular type of sponsor who wants to get behind this story.”
Mr Fang, who had to canvass sponsors when he was an athlete himself, said sportspeople also need to be “proactive” about getting corporate funding.
“One big positive change has been social media. Now every athlete has their own platform, it’s just a question of how they want to optimise it to be of value for brands to want to associate themselves with the athletes as well,” said the director of local sports consultancy Novastella.
