ROI - tries to measure the amount of return on a particular investment, relative to the investment's cost. To calculate ROI, the benefit (or return) of an investment is divided by the cost of the investment. The result is expressed as a percentage or a ratio.

Ok, now we know what ROI means. But what's the ROI on sponsoring a spoken word poetry event?

Permit me to use an event I am used to, (i.e. War Of Words - Slam Poetry Competition), to illustrate the ROI of sponsoring a spoken word poetry event, using the following metrics:

1. Brand visibility/ Brand equity - how much would a brand spend to produce over 100 professional videos within 2 months? As well as, upload and share on major social media channels. Each video would have a backdrop with the brand's logo, and/ or product placement. Also, more than half of the 100 videos would be themed (i.e. based on the sponsor's slogan). The themed videos are infomercials for the brand.

1. Content strategy - daily uploads and shares of video clips, pictures, audio content, and words that generate controversy, conversation, and engagement.

1. Targeted marketing - the consumers in this niche can be termed "mass literates." And we know 90% of sales are mainly about the heart and not logic. The art form creates an emotional bond between the mass literates and the brand.

1. Consumers' perception - it makes the sponsor be seen as the "great" one who aided the birth of a "new" industry. An industry that entertains, educates, and elevates (i.e. via employment, entrepreneurship, emotional intelligence, emotional therapy, etc.).

Other metrics of stating the ROI of sponsorship include community goodwill, efficient lead generation, sales goals, audience insights, and business relationship/ collaboration.

I hope you were able to decipher the sense in all that I stated. If not, we can sit down over a bottle or two and I will further break it all down into Naira and Kobo for easy comprehension.

Signed

Olumide Holloway (King Olulu)