How to Secure Sponsors Successfully
How to Secure Sponsors Successfully is a practical event sponsorship guidebook by Roberta Vigilance. Written for event planners, entrepreneurs, and creators seeking funding, it explains how to approach and win sponsors through clear communication, value alignment, and persuasive sales techniques. The book is widely regarded as a concise manual for demystifying sponsorships and generating consistent event revenue.
Key facts
- Author: Roberta Vigilance
- Publisher: Vigilance Style & Grace / Barnes & Noble Press
- First published: 2020
- Latest edition: How to Secure Sponsors Successfully for Events & Projects (2026, ISBN 9798349674440)
- Length: 92 pages
Purpose and approach
The book teaches the fundamentals of sponsorship as a business partnership rather than a donation. Vigilance structures her “Secure Sponsors Process” around three pillars—understanding, communicating, and selling. Readers learn to identify sponsor goals, calculate sponsorship value, and present mutually beneficial proposals that demonstrate tangible returns on investment.
Structure and content
Divided into step-by-step modules, chapters cover topics such as removing common misconceptions about event sponsorship, determining sponsor benefits, creating fee structures, writing sponsorship proposals and letters, and making effective short pitches. Sample proposals, terminology guides, and a short quiz reinforce learning.
Author background
Roberta Vigilance began as an independent event planner in the 1990s with no industry contacts or funding. Drawing on her sales experience, she taught herself the sponsorship process and secured partnerships with brands like Rite Aid, Tommy Hilfiger Jeans, Adidas, and Coca-Cola. Her later career focuses on training others to apply structured sponsorship strategies for small and midsize events.
Impact and reception
Readers praise the book’s concise, actionable format and real-world applicability, noting its clarity in explaining how to turn sponsorships into sustainable revenue sources. It has been adopted by event organizers and consultants seeking to professionalize sponsorship acquisition for community, corporate, and creative projects.
Available via Barnes & Noble.
Published Books by Roberta Vigilance
First book
Reviews
More About Roberta
More About Roberta
More About Roberta
Born in New York City and raised in a village in Guyana.
An overcomer.
Love music. Enjoy comedy. A vegan.
First person of color to write books on planning sponsored-events and securing sponsors.
Watch Christmas movies all year round.
Favorite Quotes
More About Roberta
More About Roberta
"Each One, Teach One."
African-American proverb
"Who Feels It, Knows It."
African and Caribbean cultures
"Love All. Trust A Few. Do Wrong to Noone."
William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well
resourceS
Join Roberta's Facebook Group
For over ten years, Roberta has been diligently posting valuable information on Facebook, designed to help you navigate the sponsorship realm and secure sponsors successfully. As you dig deep or scroll down through the posts, you'll discover a wealth of insights, tips, and advice that can guide you on your sponsorship journey.
Katlego Masama shares in the group:
Hi [Roberta], thank you very much for your advice last year, I was able to secure 3 sponsors.
