Hi guys!
Before i start writing, i want to apologize to moderators if this is a wrong board!

Today, I want to discuss a one important thing that is a huge step for everyone who has a website..
Experienced users who are running portals with a lots of members will know what i am talking about..

In webmaster`s life there is a point where he needs to decide what to do with his site! Is he going to continue with development of a website and drive more users to his site, or he will stop with development and maybe lose the members that he already has..

There are a lots of things important when choosing your path, but few important ones are:
1. support of the community ( users contribution, if you don`t have anyone to help you you are in deep $#!7)
2. financial support

Running a portal can be very expensive and very stressful.. How many times have you found yourself sitting in a front of a computer and trying to solve some database problem, or any other website related problem? Oh, did i mention, that you do that in 3AM? I know i did...

Financial support is something that i want to point out today and ask you for your help... Hopefully you`ll know how to help me!

Well, if you are working for a company and they pay you for running and administrating their website, than you have no problems!
But if you are enthusiast, and you started a website about music because you wanted to help other people to discover the greatness of music, your job(if you are a student) can`t cover everything that you want to do with your site.. I currently have a lots of ideas how to improve the site but a lack of money is stopping me..

So we decided to find a few sponsors to help as at least with our hosting and few contest awards which we run annually in order to motivate people to help us!

Currently we have 2 music shops sponsoring us but personally i think that we should have at least two more.. One music shop and maybe one hosting sponsor..

I m in charge for technical things(implementing new features on site, modifying templates, hosting problems) so it`s my responsibility to find a hosting provider (in my country) which will best suit our needs..

Since i have never asked anyone to sponsor us, and i don`t want to send them email:

"Will you please be our sponsor? Please please please... "

I m asking you T-members to help me how to successfully write email to our possible hosting sponsor!

What should I include in my mail? Number of members, ALEXA rating, current hosting package etc..?

Sorry for this long post.. I didn`t want to focus on just one thing(getting sponsor) but to show some of the problems that webmasters are facing every day!

Hopefully someone will have enough time to reply on this!
Cheers

a straight-forward exposition of your site and membership strengths should be included in your sponsorship request letter. you're on the right direction so far with the ratings stuff of your site, but do an extensive list first of these strengths so you can better incorporate them in your letter. think of it as a bait for your sponsor, and your sponsor as the fish you intend to catch. be truthful of course, and don't oversell your site with something which your site does not possess.

it would be important to include also the benefits your prospective sponsors can achieve by sponsoring your site. sponsors weigh these benefits carefully before they even think of sponsoring you. maintain the mentality of a quid pro quo; something for something; you scratch my back and i'll scratch yours; give and take. they will just brush your request aside if they realize that they are not getting something in return for the sponsorship, since some sponsors cannot be all that altruistic or charitable.

btw, there's a thing as a "lockdown" which you can dangle to your sponsors. if sponsorship is "substantial" (you need to determine this value yourself), then you can pronounce a lockdown so that no other sponsorship from a competing product or service will be entertained to sponsor your site as well. this usually moves them into sponsoring you so that you don't approach their competition, which could be detrimental to their business. this is usually done if you expect a really, really substantial offer for sponsorship. of course, other sponsorships can still be allowed after a lockdown, just that it is NOT with a competing product/service of the one who already agreed to sponsor you.

it would also be useful to arrange your sponsorships into hierarchies: major sponsors, minor sponsors, etc. this way you can further hook your prospective sponsors with such rankings. you just need to determine and enumerate which benefits goes with each ranking. and if you promise them anything, it is without saying that you should deliver on your promised benefits.

in any case, make a compelling case of your site. hopefully, they'll be able to see why they shouldn't miss sponsoring your site, your community, and its activities. keep your fingers crossed, and good luck!

Thanks serverph for a useful tips..

I also thought of this letter as a bait for possible sponsors.. I think i can offer lockdown for hosting sponsor as far as they suit our needs and they can help us with our humble requests.. But i don`t know with what should i scratch their back?
What should i offer them along with a banner on our site, and i m not just talking about the homepage banner?

As for the music sponsors, well.. I think that i can(`t) bypass the lockdown because one music shop has fender guitars and other has gibson guitars.. It depends on how do they look on it.. I see them as two different shops with different gear, but i think that they wouldn`t share the same view.. they see themselves as a competitors...

really tough situation..

I think what server means by "scratching" their backs is this.

Something like: "If you do decide to sponsor us, you can expect increased purchases due to our site being music based. Numerous music enthusiasts come to our site and may be persuaded by your references on our site, which will lead to web page views, in the end a result of increased purchases!"

correct me if I am wrong server, but I think this was one point you were trying to make.

And of course lockdown, which is a big scratch if you give them a broad basis like ALL musical related companies, but not so much if it is just a certain guitar company.

Hope I have been able to clear stuff up.

i was talking about the hosting sponsor.. i dont think they`ll feel increased sales coming from my site..

something to that effect, damen, you are correct.



if not increased sales, perhaps you can explain an additional exposure for their hosting service. you can promise also an extended exposure, like a 6-months to one-year frontpage link or banner. these can be converted to sales especially if they can offer special discounts to your members/visitors and their prices and services are competitive.

the banner will stay on our page for as long as they are our sponsors..

should i go with pretty popular hosting company or should i give a chance to a less popular?

i'd say as long as it sponsors your site, then it won't matter much if it's a popular or a less popular one. the downside for a popular one is it could be harder to persuade them to sponsor your site to gain advertising mileage. a less popular one could just be the opposite, easier. but in terms of branding, it would be nicer to associate your site with the most popular one. you just have to push yourself further in getting the sponsorship you want.