Local sponsorship for small businesses under £25 a month

Most small businesses want to support their local area but do not have a large budget. If you have £20 or £25 a month to spend, where does it do the most good? Here are three common options and an honest look at each.

Option 1: sponsor a team's kit

Your name goes on shirts or a banner. It is visible at matches, and it makes players and parents feel supported. The catch is that it is usually a one-off or yearly cost, and the audience is limited to the people who turn up.

Option 2: an advert in a programme or newsletter

This puts your business in front of a defined local audience. It works best when you have something specific to say, such as an offer. It can be short-lived, because programmes and newsletters are read for a moment and then thrown away.

Option 3: help fund a community website

A website is something a group uses every week and, unlike a leaflet, it stays useful. It helps people find the hall, the club or the class, and makes life easier for volunteers.

When you give to the Supporting Communities pot, you are listed on the Our supporters page with a link, and every website the pot funds carries a thank-you to the community sponsors. You are not buying advertising, and the listing is plain and factual.

A fair comparison

Visibility: kit and adverts can be more eye-catching. A website listing is quieter but lasts.
Usefulness to the group: a working website is a tool the group uses all year round.
Commitment: the pot is a monthly amount you can stop at any time, with no contract.
Reach: because the pot is shared, your support helps several groups, not one.

There is no right answer. Many local businesses do a bit of each. If you want to help groups get properly online, the pot is a simple way to do that.

You choose the amount

You do not need to give £20. Any amount goes into the pot, and every £20 a month of unused support in it funds another community website. Set amounts are £5, £10, £20 and £50 a month, and other amounts can be agreed. You may share a preference for a type of group or an area, and I will take it into account, but I cannot promise the money reaches one particular group.

To see how it works, read Supporting Communities, or go straight to the business sponsor page.