Cumbersome, consistent advertisements. Lack of imperative school funding. Money problems for once-flourishing companies. These issues have deep roots in the system of an establishment – many of which are hidden from the eyes of the public. These issues arise in a community with the lack of outside support from corporations or organizations. Corporate sponsorship, the marketing or a certain company in exchange for recognition, has acquired a bubble of tension regarding its policies.
An ongoing argument, concerning whether or not corporate sponsorship should be allowed within schools, debates on the negatives and the positives of permitting extraneous companies within our children’s learning environment. Is their lasting impact worth it? Signs begin to point toward yes. Not only are corporate sponsorships a necessity for 21st-century, “cash-strapped” schools, they provide benefits far beyond the universal goal of advertising. First, the negative views of corporate sponsorship in schools are indeed powerful.
Yes, the idea of inflicting advertisements on a daily basis to our children in environments that should be nurturing, not imposing, sounds wrong. Corporate sponsorship, some may argue, can target the teenagers – the audience within schools – negatively. Coca-Cola banners hung in cafeterias may convince the students to purchase soda instead of water in the lunch line. Students in schools may also become focused on the ads and flyers and billboards so much so that their studies or athletics could be interrupted.
After all, school should be focused on learning with rigor and determination and athletics should be dedicated on becoming better with practice and perseverance. Additionally, some may argue that the numerous amounts of sponsorships in schools defeat the entire purpose; so many advertisements would make none of them stand out to the viewers. Although these negatives of corporate sponsorship seem accurate, the overall result provides various benefits that are unquestionable to any school or corporation. Despite the perceived “negatives” of corporate sponsorship, it positively benefits the school and improves the general environment.
To begin with, corporate sponsorships generate money for the schools that otherwise would have been difficult to raise. These companies, such as Soprano’s Pizza who has sponsored the Mill Creek Magic Miles for the past several years, donate or pay often whopping amounts of money to schools to have their company’s name on the back of t-shirts, signs, logos, or announced. The money, such as in the Mill Creek race of Central Bucks South’s Run for the Heart 5k, goes toward funding the race in circumstances where the money needed might not have been financed, which is just one way the funds raised can help.
Likewise, the school can benefit from improvements or advantages of the company’s brand. If a technology company sponsors a school, its sports teams, or a fundraising event, chances are that the company will endorse replacing the computers in the building for brand-new ones, each representing that company’s name. An event such as this occurred with Central Bucks South girls’ lacrosse. With Under Armour as a big-bucks sponsor, the team received new, pristine uniforms to replace the shabby older ones, and they were additionally given a discount toward Under Armour merchandise, embroidered with South’s logo, their names, or a symbol.
Sales increased due to the discount, and Under Armour became am even more recognized brand among athletes and students in the school’s community. Mass sponsorship is one way a corporation can sneak its way into a school’s environment and make money within just one are, and also branch out. Just like the supposed negatives of corporate sponsorship, many people may assume that these companies would take advantage of the fact that they could target their teenage audience in the wrong ways. However, we have to consider what any fruitful, high-achieving school would allow within their walls.
Corporations promoting negative actions or impressions would not be allowed, and the positive images put in schools could have lasting impacts. At a family friend’s all-girls school in Gwynedd Valley, Pennsylvania, Nike sponsored several sports teams and consequently ran a “positive body image” campaign throughout the school to further support their products and brand. Posters saying, “Make Yourself Strong” or “Make Yourself Proud” not only promoted Nike as a company, but also encouraged exercise, anti-body shaming, and boosted product sales in the school’s apparel store.
Teenagers, through their “wired” lives on iPhones, iPads, Twitter, and the Internet, are exposed to “negative” advertising every day. With all these harmful influences, wouldn’t you want to know that your child is being exposed to some positive ones? Although corporate sponsorship indeed benefits the company, the betterment of the community is cared for as well. Furthermore, not only do the schools benefit, corporate sponsorship enriches each company’s welfare as well. First, companies know that when sponsoring a school, they are broadcasting to a very specific audience: teenagers.
In situations such as commercials on TV or the radio, it may be difficult for some corporations to reach the younger audience. Once in a school, they can tailor to the audience, whether it is young or old. For example, many sponsors at Relay for Life catered their banners and advertisements toward the younger crowd, while at the same time, they took the opportunity to promote business information or speak at chaperone meetings with adults in the community. Such contributions included an air conditioning company’s large banner with an endearing cancer-ribbon mascot.
The company received feedback from youths and many of us went away from the event remembering the sign. Subsequently, this method of advertising can generally be less cheap than other mainstream ways. A school, for example, will not charge or request as much as a larger corporation would, such as a ballpark, stadium, or movie theater, to have their banner hung up. Companies can still reach large audiences with events where people young and old attend. Due to this advertising to certain audiences, the corporation can increase its sales and promote its brand.
If a local pizza shop sponsors a school’s baseball team or robotics club, it will gain recognition when parents, students, and teachers continuously see that name advertised. In contrast, think about unrecognized places that do not advertise, such as smaller, much more unknown family restaurants. Their “appeal” is not as strong, and they do not do as successfully. As American consumers, we tend to gravitate toward what we know and trust – not something we have never heard of. Even the sponsorship from a local pizza shop to a sports team can increase sales because many begin to e the name.
Similarly, corporations can use this method to portray a good image on the brand. The better the image, the more customers the company will draw. Sponsoring teams or a school at Relay for Life would not only allow the company to target specific audiences, but also portray a positive image on itself that could led to future assumptions about the company’s brand. If Joe’s Shoes supports cancer awareness, wouldn’t they support animal shelters or raising money for autism as well? This “positive” image for the corporations extends far into the consumers’ perceptions.
Finally, corporate sponsorship for companies can allow them to receive tax benefits for their contributions to helping the community. A situation much like this of corporate sponsorship is the solar panel incentive in our 21st century society. Tax breaks from income taxes for many middle-class families were given when solar panels were installed as a form of alternative energy. As well as increasing sales and promoting the business, corporate sponsorships can also save companies money. When considering the assets of corporate sponsorship through the companies themselves and he schools, it proves to be prosperous for everyone. Cumbersome, consistent advertisements.
Lack of imperative school funding. Money problems for once-flourishing companies. These issues and more could be solved with influential corporate sponsorship within schools, as well as benefit the community around us. The downfalls of sponsorship, although daunting, do not meet the extensive positives of the action. In order to positively enrich schools and communities around us, as well as the children we are running through these schools, shouldn’t the benefits of corporate sponsorship be taken advantage of for a better society?
