Volusia County issued the following announcement on Nov. 12.
Volusia County launched a search this week for firms to market sponsorship opportunities and naming rights to county facilities.
While no one knows how much money the plan could generate, officials are hopeful that this new source of revenue for the county will help offset budget needs. The first step is finding one or more companies with the marketing expertise needed to assess available assets such as buildings, parks, trails and beach ramps and effectively market them to businesses or corporations willing to pay for the right to tap into the county’s image and identity for promotional purposes.
Last month, the County Council decided to seek the services of marketing firms rather than try to use county staff to seek out promotional opportunities. But the county isn’t just looking for any marketing firms. They’re seeking statements of qualifications from interested firms with a track record of successfully generating sponsorship and naming rights revenue for cities or counties similar in size to Volusia County.
“We’ll be looking for people that have a record of success,” County Manager George Recktenwald told the council in an update on Nov. 2.
That could mean one firm to handle both sponsorships and naming rights or multiple firms, depending on how much interest the solicitation generates. Any firm the county hires would get to keep a percentage of the revenue generated as their commission. The amount hasn’t been decided. But council members said getting a firm with proven experience is worth the cost.
“We give up a little bit of money hiring a consultant,” County Chair Jeff Brower said at the Council’s Oct. 19 meeting. “But we gain all the expertise.”
Added Councilman Danny Robins: “I think we’re on the right track.”
The county put out the request to interested marketing firms on Monday. The selected firm or firms would be required to have at least five years of experience in sponsorship and naming rights placement. The selected firm or firms would have several tasks, including determining the value of the county’s assets, developing a naming rights and sponsorship policy, marketing the county’s assets and negotiating the contracts. Another task would be ensuring that the corporate mission of any brands interested in a sponsorship or naming rights deal is consistent with the county’s mission. Pursuant to the proposal, the county retains final approval authority over all naming and sponsorship decisions.
The deadline for submissions by interesting marketing firms is Dec. 7.
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