How much money do I need?
The next One Young World Summit will take place in Manchester, United Kingdom. The fee for a Delegate (someone who has not previously attended a Summit) is £4,210. The fee for a Returning Ambassador (someone who has previously attended a Summit) is £2,880.
Please enquire with us regarding VAT queries.
These fees cover:
- Hotel accommodation
- All catering
- On-the-ground transport
- Access to the Summit
- All hand-outs and support materials
- Access to the One Young World Community
Please note that flights are not included in the delegate or Ambassador fees. All attendees must organise flights themselves. This should be taken into account when planning your fundraising campaign.
Before approaching anyone for sponsorship, work out exactly how much money you need.
Can One Young World sponsor me?
One Young World is a non-profit organisation and does not have the resources to sponsor delegates, completely or partially.
We are constantly in discussions with potential sponsors whether they are corporate, governmental entities, universities, or foundations and we may recommend candidates when potential sponsors have sought advice, if, for example, they are looking for a candidate who is active in a specific sector.
Who should I approach for funding?
Local companies and organisations:
We suggest that you only approach local companies, organisations or SMEs who you have a strong connection with e.g. you work for or have previously worked for.
“Essentially, I approached various different companies who donated small amounts. I also raised money by asking students with whom I study to contribute on campus - every little bit helps!” - Kirk-Anthony Hamilton, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Jamaica.
Universities:
Some universities will provide students with funding for courses, training and experiences. Please enquire with your Student Career services.
NGOs:
You could approach an NGO that you have a connection with or an NGO whose aims align with your own.
How many people/companies should I approach?
Individuals:
Try approaching people you have a relationship with, whether it be family, friends or colleagues.
“Once I got accepted to One Young World, I started talking to a few close friends about the Summit and asking if they would support once I got the campaign going. This allowed me to gain some early momentum once I got going.” - Kirk-Anthony Hamilton, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Jamaica.
“I approached family, friends, and ex-teachers and colleagues: people who knew me, my goals and my character well and realised that their money would be going to a good cause.” - Martina Buchal, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Canada.
Who should I ask for sponsorship?
Our best advice is that you create a list of people that you think would be likely to sponsor you to attend the Summit. List the people/companies in an order starting with those who are more likely to sponsor you at the top of the list and those less likely at the bottom. On this list note down their contact details (phone number and email are the most important details to have).
Bear in mind that you do not need to receive the full amount from one sponsor. It is possible to receive partial sponsorship from different people as long as you collect the funds yourself in an orderly manner and present us with a breakdown of where the full fee came from.
Approach them in order and work your way down the list. The bigger the list and the more people you approach the higher the chance of you getting sponsorship.
“I would say I approached approx 300 people directly. I received donations from 108 people. A few people donated without me making the direct request by seeing the link to the campaign on my Facebook timeline.” - Kirk-Anthony Hamilton, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Jamaica.
“Collectively, with the help of my family and friends, we approached over 100 people.” - Martina Buchal, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Canada.
How should I ask for sponsorship?
There are many ways to ask for sponsorship.
The first step in your approach should be a phone call, though it’s a good idea to send some information via email beforehand. This will help your potential sponsor to understand why you are calling. Make some notes about what you are going to discuss before you pick up the phone.
We will provide you with a sponsorship appeal letter from the Co-Founders to prove that you have been accepted as a candidate to the Summit and to provide your potential sponsor with more information about One Young World.
Tell them why sponsoring you would be beneficial to them as well as yourself. All sponsors’ company logos can be featured on our website along with other printed material. Explain what your attendance at the Summit will do for you. If you are approaching someone you work for, explain how your attendance could benefit the company, organisation or NGO. If it is a university or media company, you could offer them something in return e.g. write for them about your experience.
Once you have made contact by phone you can follow up with an email a couple days later containing the main points you made on the phone.
It may be worth thinking about how much money you are going to ask each person for. You may want to ask one person for the full amount.
“I shared my story and my goals with potential donors, noting how important it was to me to attend as well as what it could mean for me in my future endeavours. Most people did not want anything in return, though I had offered to put a company logo on my sponsorship t-shirt for anyone who donated $50 or more. I also gave everyone the appropriate credit and gratitude for their donation via a personal e-mail and a social media shout out.” - Martina Buchal, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Canada.
“I just messaged people lots of people on Facebook and by email. I also posted my campaign progress on my timeline every day. I had various tiers for rewards - including postcards and acknowledgement in a video which I am putting together via clips from the Summit. The biggest mistake I made was under estimating how much people would be willing to give. So the highest tier I had was $100 - this automatically set a limit in peoples’ minds. When I got started I expected the majority of donations to be $5 or $10. The majority of donations ended up being $50 to $100.” - Kirk-Anthony Hamilton, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Jamaica.
Are there any tools I can use?
A sponsorship appeal letter from the One Young World Co-Founders
This letter states that you have been approved as a candidate for the One Young World Summits and provides your potential sponsor with information on what One Young World is about in detail.
Please send a copy of your resume, a letter of recommendation and a copy of your passport to [email protected] and you will be provided with a sponsorship appeal letter.
One Young World One-Pager
This is a document that you can either present to potential sponsors or use as a template while talking with sponsors over the phone. To be sent a copy of this document, please reach out to [email protected].
Fundraising platforms
There are a few fundraising platforms you can use to help you manage your sponsorship
Kickstarter: Kickstarter is the world’s largest crowdfunding platform. Anyone can register and launch a project on Kickstarter as long as it meets Kickstarter guidelines which you can find here: http://www.kickstarter.com/help/guidelines
On Kickstarter you will need to set a funding goal and deadline. Funding on Kickstarter is all-or-nothing - unless the funding goal is achieved in the set time no money will be received. All-or-nothing funding might seem daunting, but it’s amazingly effective in creating momentum and rallying people around an idea. To date, 44% of projects on Kickstarter have reached their funding goals.
GoGetFunding: GoGetFunding is a crowdfunding website that lets you raise money for anything that matters to you. From personal causes and events to projects and more. We've helped people from all over the world raise millions online.
They have been recognized by Forbes as one of the top global crowdfunding websites and their campaigns have been featured in a vast number of leading press publications.
Indiegogo: “I used Indiegogo, I would recommend it to others because they allow you to collect on your funds even if you are unable to raise the full amount. There are some hidden fees which people need to be mindful of that stem from donors using credit cards.” - Kirk-Anthony Hamilton, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Jamaica.
GoFundMe: “I used www.gofundme.com. I would recommend it to others who are keen and committed to attending the One Young World Summit but it is worth noting that a small fee is deducted from every transaction, so be sure to keep that in mind when selecting your financial target!” - Martina Buchal, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Canada.
How long does it take to secure funding?
Depending on who you ask, funding can take months to be secured.
“I raised funds for two months up until the week before the Summit. I would recommend that people start earlier, but crowd funding platforms tend to have limits on the amount of time campaigns can run.
Following the Summit I have continued to work on the positive brand building for One Young World in Jamaica and the Caribbean - I have had a few features in print media and should be doing radio and TV. I am hoping to make the road a lot easier for others next year - I hope it will be easier for me as well.
Ironically, the most likely institution to sponsor (my university) said no, which forced me into quite a rushed state.
The best advice I would have going forward is to personally approach people. I feel that emails are not personal enough and large corporates will not spend the time analysing the opportunity. Personally approaching people worked a lot better for me.” - Kirk-Anthony Hamilton, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Jamaica.
“With a lot of hard work and dedication, we raised $7100 from 75 donors in one month.” - Martina Buchal, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Canada.
What problems to candidates face?
Time can be one of the biggest problems when it comes to getting sponsorship. We advise that you try your hardest to gain your funding as soon as possible. This way, when it will be cheaper for you when it comes to booking air tickets.
Sometimes people can promise to fund you, but never actually get back to you. Make sure that you give them space and that you do not hound them. Give them time to get back to you. If it’s been over a week since you’ve asked for something and had no response give them a call or drop them a friendly e-mail.
“The biggest problem I faced was a general lack of awareness as to what One Young World is about, having never been I myself was a bit unfamiliar. I realised I had to do some brand building, so in order to raise positive awareness I approached the managing director of a local newspaper, which then published an article about my acceptance the summit, what it was all about and my desire to crowd fund - it is below. I was able to share this on Facebook and get my network excited about the opportunity. From there I just sent messages to people on my Facebook and through email.” - Kirk-Anthony Hamilton, 2013 One Young World Ambassador from Jamaica.
Ambassador tips
Ambassador from the Bahamas, Ashleigh Rolle has very kindly provided us with her advice on how to get sponsorship in a very clear and concise article. Ashleigh is an inspirational Ambassador who has attended three Summits to date.
Read her blog here.
Any other questions?
If you have any further questions about gaining sponsorship, please feel free to email [email protected].
Thank you to all One Young World Ambassadors who contributed to this guide.
