About the Sponsorship Opportunity Index (SOI)
Understanding the methodology and process behind the index
The Sponsorship Opportunity Index (SOI) is designed to evaluate and compare sponsorship opportunities using a rigorous, data-driven approach. It moves beyond outdated metrics like Advertising Value Equivalent (AVE) by focusing on strategic alignment and the true quality of exposure.
1. Strategic Alignment (Brand Needs)
The foundation of the SOI is the strategic alignment between the brand's needs and the property's capabilities. We assess 8 business needs:
- Awareness & Salience
- Engagement & Experience
- Demo & Trial
- Sales & IP Value
- Hospitality
- Stakeholder Engagement
- Image & Equity Transfer
- Purpose / CSR
The tool weights the business needs based on an audit of brand stage using publicly reported data. Users also have the option to manually refine the weighting of these business needs. Properties are scored on their ability to deliver against them, and the resulting alignment score represents how well the property matches the brand's strategic objectives.
2. Exposure Quality Coefficient
Alignment is multiplied by the Exposure Quality Coefficient. This moves sponsorship into the same measurement frame as advertising: reach and frequency, not cost equivalence. Binet & Field's IPA Databank analysis found reach explains roughly 83% of the variation in media effectiveness — a far more defensible currency than a made-up pound value. This coefficient reflects the actual value of the audience exposure based on:
- Reach: The size and scale of the audience.
- Frequency: How often the audience is exposed to the sponsorship.
- Attention (Placement): The quality of the placement (e.g., on-body vs. perimeter).
- Receptiveness: How open the audience is to brand messaging in this context.
- Fan Engagement: The depth of the audience's connection to the property.
Where do these scores come from?
Reach, Frequency, Receptiveness & Fan Engagement: For benchmark properties, these scores are drawn from syndicated measurement bodies (such as Nielsen Sports, YouGov), property-reported figures, and established consumer research panels. When you use the tool to analyze a custom property, our AI agent aggregates publicly reported statistics to estimate these values, explicitly flagging the data source and its freshness (as-of date) in the evidence breakdown.
Attention: This score is derived internally based on the specific sponsorship deal placement type you select (e.g., naming rights vs. in-broadcast graphics vs. perimeter boards). This reflects the inherent visibility and cognitive focus the placement demands according to established media principles, rather than relying on external third-party data.
3. Composite Score
The final Composite SOI score is calculated by multiplying the Strategic Alignment score by the Exposure Quality Coefficient. This provides a holistic, single metric to compare disparate sponsorship opportunities fairly and accurately.