Top tips for working with brands
In June, we hosted our first Resilient Communities Series workshop - in partnership with YHA Outdoor Citizens and supported by the Sport England Together Fund - on the subject of Routes to Funding for Outdoor Communities.
For this event, we had a panel of four wonderful experts that provided their advice, experience and top tips to help leaders from across the All The Elements community to access funding options that they may not have considered before.
Sabrina Pace-Humphreys from Black Trail Runners joined us to share her experiences as a community working with outdoor brands.
Sabrina is a Social Justice Activist, Author and Co-Founder and Trustee of the Community and Campaigning Charity, Black Trail Runners. The charity was launched in July 2020 with the mission to increase the inclusion, participation and representation of Black people in the activity of trail running.
You can find out more her work by visiting Sabrina’s website or the Black Trail Runners website.
“Your mental health comes first, both when looking at funding and also building your community. Funding rejections and people not wanting to engage with you are not a reflection on you – you must remember that! Building a community can take a lot of energy from you, so your mental health must come first. There will be lots of ups and lots of downs, but remember the power of community and reaching out and asking for help is ok. Sometimes you need to pause and take a step back to be able to move forwards.”
At our Resilient Communities funding event, Sabrina shared some of her tips on working with brands. We have captured some of her top tips below.
What does working with brands involve?
Working with brands can mean a variety of things, from having them sponsor or partner with you, to providing you with financial support. Some brands might support you for specific projects by donating kit or campaign support.
It’s a two-way relationship that benefits the brand by showing that they are committed to the values of a community and what that community represents (basically they get to access your audiences to promote their product or service, which is a huge benefit to them, whilst also showing they support your mission), and it benefits you as you get the opportunity to use that brand’s platform to share the work you are doing - as well as gaining financial support and representation.
What are the benefits of working with brands?
· You can share your story, the good work you are doing and your mission with new audiences.
· You can get financial support.
· It could lead to more opportunities with other brands.
· There is the opportunity to lead positive change for your community in a brand that shares your values.
Important things to consider when working with brands
· Ask them hard questions before you consider introducing them to your community to ensure they are committed to your mission, aims and values.
· Do not rush into anything. Think about which brands truly represent your community and make sure you know your non-negotiables!
· Think about your governance structures and how a partnership might impact those.
· Ensure this is a two-way relationship and you are not just being dictated to – think about how this going to benefit your community and make sure that they fit your criteria and you’re not just trying to bend to fit theirs.
· Understand and know your worth! Put the £££s next to your worth and don’t back down. They are approaching you because you’re doing well and they want a piece of your PR and to access your audiences because they don’t know how to – so know your worth.
· Work with a brand that is in it for the long run.
Top tips for working with brands
· It’s quite common for people to leave positions at brands and move onto somewhere else or switch departments, it’s therefore really important to grow your network at the brand and know more than just one person, so that if someone leaves you don’t have to work on building another relationship with a new person from scratch. It’s quite a common thing to happen, so don’t get stung by it!
You can find out about other funding options by watching the Resilient Communities Series: Routes to Funding as part of the YHA Outdoor Citizens x All The Elements CIC Resilient Communities Series 2023, funded by the Sport England Together fund here.
Are you looking for more funding advice or other support to help you scale?
All The Elements offers a range of support for those working on diversity in the UK outdoors, including one-to-one calls, in-person and online events, online resources, online directory and consultancy. If you’d like to find out more, please contact us and tell us about what you need to scale your impact!
Did you miss our Resilient Communities event on funding?
You can watch the funding event below or watch all of our event recordings on the All The Elements YouTube channel. Other events have included volunteer management, organisational structures and governance, and event organisation.
This content was produced as part of our Resilient Communities Series 2023 - a partnership event series organised by YHA Outdoor Citizens x All The Elements CIC and funded by the Sport England Together fund.
