Title: Reimagining Online Event Sponsorships Author: Jonathan Bossenger Published: July 16, 2020 --- [ ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/psykro/) [Jonathan Bossenger](https://profiles.wordpress.org/psykro/) 1:58 pm _on_ July 16, 2020 Tags: [events ( 29 )](https://make.wordpress.org/community/tag/events-2/), [WordCamps ( 247 )](https://make.wordpress.org/community/tag/wordcamps/)    # Reimagining Online Event Sponsorships As we [start reimagining what online events look like](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/13/reimagining-online-events/), so might we also have to reconsider our sponsorship packages and the perks we offer to our sponsors. Online events do not incur such a high cost as in person events do, so the requirement to gather large sponsorship funds to make a successful WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). no longer exists. This might mean that WordCamp organizers don’t feel the need to reach out to existing sponsors, and get them involved. On the other hand, with online events, companies could possibly sponsor many more events worldwide, instead of focusing their sponsorships to local only events. So the possible reach of a sponsor could be wider. It is important to remember that the option to sponsor a WordCamp has traditionally been with the agreement that sponsors don’t receive any “pay to play” type benefits. So typically sponsor perks have included things like advertising at key locations around the event, and sponsor booths/tables to interact with attendees and hand out swag. In an online event, this is not possible, so WordCamps have had to adapt. One such example is the option of a Virtual Sponsor booth, where attendees can log in to a virtual room to chat with sponsors. This is something that is already being made available at existing WordCamps. This is equivalent to offering a sponsor a physical booth/table in the general sponsors area at a WordCamp, typically in a space where attendees are very likely to walk past and therefore interact with sponsors. The problem with such an option is that, if attendees have to log off the regular WordCamp platform, then go find some other link to the Virtual Booth, the experience becomes arduous and full of friction for the attendee making, it highly unlikely they’ll attend. This ends up meaning that the Virtual Booth has no real benefit to sponsors, and as such, may opt out of choosing a higher tier sponsor package, that would include such a perk. This post serves to open a discussion around the concept of sponsorships for virtual WordCamps, how they might need to change to fit into the new world of the all online event, and how we can better marry the needs of sponsors to the needs of attendees, to make an online event successful. Please leave suggestions/ideas as comments on this post, which I will leave open for one week until [Thursday 23 July 2020 at 3:00pm UTC](https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html?iso=20200723T1500). After that I will filterFilter Filters are one of the two types of Hooks [https://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API/Hooks](https://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API/Hooks). They provide a way for functions to modify data of other functions. They are the counterpart to Actions. Unlike Actions, filters are meant to work in an isolated manner, and should never have side effects such as affecting global variables and output. the comments in a follow up post, where we can discuss them in detail, with an aim to turn them into an actionable plan for sponsorships of our online events. _Thanks to [@hlashbrooke](https://profiles.wordpress.org/hlashbrooke/) for reviewing this post and making sure I don’t sound foolish 🙂_ [#events-2](https://make.wordpress.org/community/tag/events-2/), [#wordcamps](https://make.wordpress.org/community/tag/wordcamps/) ### Share this: * [ Threads ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/16/reimagining-online-event-sponsorships/?share=threads) * [ Mastodon ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/16/reimagining-online-event-sponsorships/?share=mastodon) * [ Bluesky ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/16/reimagining-online-event-sponsorships/?share=bluesky) * [ Facebook ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/16/reimagining-online-event-sponsorships/?share=facebook) * [ X ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/16/reimagining-online-event-sponsorships/?share=x) * [ LinkedIn ](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/16/reimagining-online-event-sponsorships/?share=linkedin) * [Login to Reply](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fmake.wordpress.org%2Fcommunity%2F2020%2F07%2F16%2Freimagining-online-event-sponsorships%2F%23respond&locale=en_US) 1. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/6c573cb7b9fc191efca3ceaee2479d21ca526f89efe8774df6e995dbf7487f3c? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 2. [Carike](https://profiles.wordpress.org/carike/) 2:17 pm _on_ July 16, 2020 3. Adding this here as well, as requested: 4. The initial conversation was in SlackSlack Slack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform [https://slack.com/](https://slack.com/). The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at [https://make.wordpress.org/chat/](https://make.wordpress.org/chat/). You can find it here (you need a Slack account to view the logs): [https://wordpress.slack.com/archives/C02RQC7RN/p1594892487487100](https://wordpress.slack.com/archives/C02RQC7RN/p1594892487487100) The conversation was also added to the Re-imagining Online Events post. 5. [@carike](https://profiles.wordpress.org/carike/) [code] Adding this here so it does not get lost in a thread: I’ve been pondering product sponsorship options instead of only financial tiers. Have WCs (or perhaps meetupsMeetup Meetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our [Meetup Organizer Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/).) tried this in the past? [/code] 6. [@sippis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) [code] What do you mean with product sponsorships exactly? [/code] 7. [@carike](https://profiles.wordpress.org/carike/) [code] Online events are going to need different things to in-person WCs. There are already quite a few hosting providers that offer hosting for KidsCamps. Some companies may be much more willing to sponsor a few premium packages than they able to make a large financial contribution. For example, some stores may be willing to provide better headsets and microphones for the speakers. [/code] 8. [@sippis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) [code] Oh, I understand now– so in-kind sponsorships. It’s a hard topic! [/code] 9. [@carike](https://profiles.wordpress.org/carike/) [code] Some telecom companies may be willing to provide temporary access to better internet. Some countries have very unreliable internet in general – so that could make a HUGE difference to the quality of the event. When the quality of your presentation is capped at the speed of the participant with the slowest internet. [/code] 10. [@sippis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) [code] Money sponsorships sets all the sponsors to the same level and treats them equally. With in-kind sponsorships it’s sometimes hard to say the (monetary) value of their sponsorship and place the company to right “tier” next to others. [/code] 11. [@carike](https://profiles.wordpress.org/carike/) [code] All of those packages have open-market values. It should be their normal selling price as advertised for the product. (Bundled rate, if bundled, since that is generally less.) [/code] 12. [@sippis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) [code] Sponsorships should also benefit the whole community, not individuals. I can see how temporary better internet can be argued to do that, but sending better gear to speakers is most of all profit for small group of individuals. Assuming that they own the gear after receiving it. And if we would have equipment that is sent to speaker from speaker (like we do with camera kits for in-person WordCamps) – that would be something for central to handle instead of individual sponsor in my opinion. Having a event with only few or only in-kind sponsorships to make things lot easier! Then it wouldn’t probably be so challenging to try to find the right sport for mentioning the in-kind sponsors. [/code] 13. [@carike](https://profiles.wordpress.org/carike/) [code] There are lots of unique challenges in developing countries – the cost of internet access probably being the biggest one. Since this is a huge opportunity to work on D&I, it is important to realize that YT may not be the best platform choice. Better choices may include podcasting platforms, because audio takes less data and if it is just people sitting around in their living rooms and chatting about cool things, it isn’t actually necessary to see them. There are also community radio stations that have provided free airtime to initiatives like these in the past. So, for example, when you are looking at teen initiatives, they could listen to the material on the radio and save their data for the actual practical stuff that they need it for. [/code] 14. [@sippis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) [code] Idea about centralised gear that would be shipped to speakers if they need better camera or microphone is actually very interesting! Something to propose in comments on this post. There might be logistical difficulties tho now that coronavirus has affected reliability of postal services as well. [/code] 15. [@carike](https://profiles.wordpress.org/carike/) [code] Yes, sharing gear would be more complicated during a pandemic because many ports of entries are closed and that is affecting the delivery of goods. Courier services are mostly uninterrupted in many countries though (and even at a higher alert level, computer equipment was classed as an essential service because people need it to be able to work from home). For the current situation, having those things sponsored locally ( on-loan if need be) is more practical. Some companies may also be willing to sponsor cheap flash drives for participants, which means over the longer term, we could send them their notes (even on CD if need be) so they can follow along with any visual material if they are not able to access YT. Some cellphone companies have zero-rated access for educational institution websites in the past. Again, in the longer term, it may be possible to get a WC site added to that list directly, or to partner up with an accredited university. But they are not going to zero- rate YT. [/code] 16. [@harishanker](https://profiles.wordpress.org/harishanker/) [code] You basically recharged my brainstorming muscles, @Carike! 🙂 You’re right, as we iterate, we should definitely re-evaluate our sponsorship options. Many camps already do in- kind sponsorships, but since we’re making changes to the program in itself, I think unique events (such as the workshops that you have in mind) could benefit from unique sponsorships. I think this would work in a case-by-case basis, but it would be nice to bring all ideas on to the table to see which one would work best! :100: [/code] [code] I agree. Our existing online WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). program is dependent on the online WordCamps that we’ve approved so far. But as the program evolves, the tools/guidelines will also evolve. If YT proves to be a barrier for doing sessions in a developing country, we must definitely find an alternative. The challenge is to find a service that’s also accessible, and usable. But as we’re in the experimenting state, I think that’s something we can work on as well! 🙂 [/code] 17. [@sippis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sippis/) [code] Yeah – different kind of events than basic WordCamps can leverage from in-kind sponsorships in very different way than WordCamp would! For example organising standalone virtual Contributor DayContributor Day Contributor Days are standalone days, frequently held before or after WordCamps but they can also happen at any time. They are events where people get together to work on various areas of [https://make.wordpress.org/](https://make.wordpress.org/) There are many teams that people can participate in, each with a different focus. [https://make.wordpress.org/support/handbook/getting-started/getting-started-at-a-contributor-day/](https://make.wordpress.org/support/handbook/getting-started/getting-started-at-a-contributor-day/) could benefit from having a development/testing setups provided by some hosting company. [/code] 18. [@carike](https://profiles.wordpress.org/carike/) [code] For some type of contributions( reviewing themes), it may be beneficial to partner with local dev setup providers. Those can be much harder to set up and learn how to use, than learning how to review a theme is. It basically all depends on the specific needs of the topic and the resources of the participants. Not all teams will need the same type of sponsors. [/code] 19. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/c8091d1ddd1fb207bb9c5015c2869bae9a2f03bd1378d11cd5ec0edc076bb2cd? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 20. [Matt Cromwell](https://profiles.wordpress.org/webdevmattcrom/) 3:34 pm _on_ July 16, 2020 21. Thanks Jonathan for this post. I’ll reiterate a bit what I’ve said via other channels( SlackSlack Slack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform [https://slack.com/](https://slack.com/). The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at [https://make.wordpress.org/chat/](https://make.wordpress.org/chat/)/ Twitter mostly). 22. In the absence of a better platform that can consolidate sponsor rooms for higher visibility and minimum friction to attendees, it’s on the organizers to proactively highlight how virtual sponsor booths would be made attractive and easy for attendees to attend in addition to the main sessions. 23. That goes equally for sponsor presentations. 24. This year in particular, the addition of several new layers and benefits were added last minute to the WCUSWCUS WordCamp US. The US flagship WordCamp event. sponsor offerings. The new options were priced very high. Tier 3 being more than the Silver Sponsorship last year. In terms of benefits, those two tiers (2019’ s Silver versus 2020’s Tier 3) both provided sponsors with “face to face” options with attendees. But since doing virtual events at this scale is unprecendented for WCUS it’s understandable there’s no easy apples-to-apples comparison. In that vein though, it feels that additional care should be provided to sponsors to ensure they get the face-to-face value that is crucial to sponsorship. 25. Additionally, you said Jonathan: 26. > Online events do not incur such a high cost as in person events do, so the requirement > to gather large sponsorship funds to make a successful WordCampWordCamp WordCamps > are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. > They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach > one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). > no longer exists. 27. With that in mind, it’s striking that the 2020 Tier 3 is more expensive than the 2019 Silver while also looking like there would be a net loss in face-to-face value. 28. While we were disappointed in how this all rolled out with WCUS this year, I’m never disappointed in the community or our ability together to work things out constructively. I appreciate the thought going into this at this point, though it now seems a bit too late. 29. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/a7873a730eebbbf667e941eaefba2f3f16ee7fe49a5661507569ada7f46b94dc? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Birgit Pauli-Haack](https://profiles.wordpress.org/bph/) 9:29 pm _on_ July 16, 2020 * Just for clarification: 2019 WCUSWCUS WordCamp US. The US flagship WordCamp event. Sponsorship levels Tier 1: $75,000 Tier 2: $35,000 Tier 3: $15,000 Tier 4: $ 5,000 Tier 5: $ 1,500 * 2020 WCUS Sponsorship levels Tier 1: $25,000 Tier 2: $15,000 Tier 3: $ 8,500 Tier 4 $ 1,500 - ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/c8091d1ddd1fb207bb9c5015c2869bae9a2f03bd1378d11cd5ec0edc076bb2cd? s=32&d=mm&r=g) - [Matt Cromwell](https://profiles.wordpress.org/webdevmattcrom/) 10:11 pm _on_ August 6, 2020 - Thanks Birgit. I had the Tier names wrong. But the comparison is between 2019 Tier 4 (which provided the smallest physical presence/table) and 2020’ s Tier 3, which was the lowest tier to offer Sponsors a presence with attendees. So going from $5K to $8.5K for the closest similar benefits, but paying more, and really actually get less attendee presence is part of the problem. 30. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/6dde16cbcd21e956e216d5320b8b52a1a1704ed9d412d8fdbd6d289a6ea3f588? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 31. [Stephanie Brinley](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sbrinley/) 7:51 pm _on_ July 16, 2020 32. As a WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). Organizer, Sponsor WranglerWrangler Someone, usually a person part of event organizing team, who looks after certain things like budget or sponsors., and friend of sponsor employees, I agree that we can’t make an apples-to-apples comparison with the Virtual Booth. I see the physical comparison as being closer to having a WordCamp on one floor of a building, and the sponsors all in separate rooms on the second floor. 33. I would definitely like to hear from past sponsors if they have any suggestions on how to improve the online experience from their side, while still staying within the spirit of WordCamp Guidelines. There may be a need to veer from the actual letter because unique challenges of an online event. 34. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/a7873a730eebbbf667e941eaefba2f3f16ee7fe49a5661507569ada7f46b94dc? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 35. [Birgit Pauli-Haack](https://profiles.wordpress.org/bph/) 9:35 pm _on_ July 16, 2020 36. I am very much impressed how [WordCamp Philly](https://philadelphia.wordcamp.org/2020/call-for-sponsors/) thought this through with scheduling breaks so attendees can move about the sponsor rooms, and offering sponsors a separate calendar should they want to have special events at their zoom space. There is a lot of inspiration coming about. 37. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/6c573cb7b9fc191efca3ceaee2479d21ca526f89efe8774df6e995dbf7487f3c? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 38. [Carike](https://profiles.wordpress.org/carike/) 5:27 pm _on_ July 17, 2020 39. I think a part of the problem is also that anything commercial is immediately regarded as “bad”. That is **not** what transparency and accountability (and fairness) are about. It is a very difficult topic to discuss: I actually think some of the talks in sponsors’ virtual booths may have been more value and less self-promotional than some of the talks in the main line-up for some virtual events. Perhaps it is time for us to really re-evaluate “rewards” in the WordPress ecosystem from the ground up. We may need to start by recognizing the hard truth that passion for and genuine interest in the community’s well-being and one’s own reputation/ career advancement / commercial interests are not necessarily mutually exclusive. 40. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/b97bf3c15798d1fc6470de85f1cea115a22d810679ba5f97e4632ac5245ed156? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [megabyterose](https://profiles.wordpress.org/megabyterose/) 6:49 pm _on_ July 17, 2020 * I agree – sponsors get a bad rap and speakers can be just as “salesy” (if not more). * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/ec06da98bebb8a8eadba0f26b10797332ef270c505be28d216d167d8b24b86fe? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Adam W. Warner](https://profiles.wordpress.org/awarner20/) 4:29 pm _on_ July 20, 2020 * I’d like to take a moment to speak to this, from my perspective as a long time user and contributor (2005), and now someone who has worked for two sponsor companies since 2016. * First, thanks for pointing this out. The rules of sponsorship are very clear, just as the rules for speakers, organizers, and anyone else involved in putting on an event are clear. WordCamps are not meant to be commercial events, in the traditional Trade Show sense. * The expectation is set, that as a sponsor, you are _NOT there to sell_. You are there **as a fellow member of the WordPress community** to help attendees’ understanding of WordPress (the software) and WordPress (the community). Most sponsors understand this completely, and for those new to sponsoring WordCamps it’s not uncommon to hear comments indicating surprise that “competitor companies” are so friendly and interactive with each other. * Yet these companies, especially global sponsors, are investing a lot financially into supporting the WordPress project via sponsorships, event teams, travel costs, and even hiring [people to contribute to WordPress full-time](https://wordpress.org/five-for-the-future/pledge/godaddy/) with very low expectations on a return on their financial investment. * The people leading these companies have recognized the value of _participation_ and the importance of being visible to the community of people that will need their products and services in their website journey. Brand recognition for 37% of the web would be silly for a business to ignore. * They are playing the long game financially. * Sponsoring companies are just as much a part of the WordPress project and community as individual people are,**_because in many cases (if not most), the people representing these sponsors at events are community members and contributors themselves._** * Yet, as someone who works for, and represents a sponsoring company at events and within the community, there’s an expectation to show progress and report on feedback from users in order to ensure our products/services are meeting the needs of our current/potential customers. * Online Events: * The move to online events has been interesting, and we’ve learned a lot of what works and what doesn’t in terms of _actually engaging attendees and having meaningful interactions._ * One of the most important things we’ve learned is that we can’t simply translate the approach we used at physical events into the online format. Namely, the organic conversations that happen as people meander through the sponsor area and stop to listen in on a conversation already happening or a sponsor rep who sits at a lunch table and listens, learns, and shares with the others at the table. * As I mentioned in the [Reimagining Online Events post](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/13/reimagining-online-events/#comment-28417), one of the main hurdles we faced immediately with online events was the lack of visibility that sponsors were participating and available for attendees. As I also mentioned there, when sponsors were promoted more regularly and given more visibility on schedule, watch now, and track pages, we saw an increase in visits to our virtual booths and therefore, more meaningful interactions with attendees. Traditionally, this increased sponsor promotion could have been seen as “too salesy” but I believe this example proves that we can find the balance. * It’s also up to us, the sponsors, to up our game in what we’re providing attendees at our virtual booths. In order to do so, we need to partner with more organizers to offer unique benefits as we’re starting to see with events like WC Denver, WC Philly and WCUSWCUS WordCamp US. The US flagship WordCamp event. offering options that benefit both the sponsor and attendee and foster opportunities for connecting… - Dedicated time on the schedule for attendees to visit sponsors - Encouragement to visit sponsor booths pre/post sessions - Sponsors scheduling relevant activities at certain times in booth, and organizers putting these in front of attendees via email, official schedule, etc. ( products demos, help desks, Q&A, 10-minute lightning talks, etc.) * In Summary * Online events are not going anywhere, even when we can all meetupMeetup Meetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our [Meetup Organizer Handbook](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/meetup-organizer/). physically again. If sponsors are going to continue to be included in these events, especially global sponsors, we’ll need to continue to focus on the purpose of these events…and the purpose is this as written by [@andreamiddleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) below: * > …helping people to use and contribute to WordPress (while connecting and > inspiring WordPress enthusiasts) * Let’s figure out how to make the most of these online events with the above goals in mind, but let’s also include how sponsors can continue in helping to achieve those same goals. * After all, we’re all part of the same community of WordPress users with the same goals of continued participation in the project so it persists for years to come. - ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/b97bf3c15798d1fc6470de85f1cea115a22d810679ba5f97e4632ac5245ed156? s=32&d=mm&r=g) - [megabyterose](https://profiles.wordpress.org/megabyterose/) 10:42 pm _on_ July 20, 2020 - <3 it, Adam! * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/a8a3c44a68937ee1996ba1bd3325126c4fd962f20b60acc16988dea6b527d14c? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Jonathan Bossenger](https://profiles.wordpress.org/psykro/) 8:41 am _on_ July 21, 2020 * Adam, thank you for this insight. * I view sponsors from the point of view of both an attendee and a past WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. [Learn more](https://central.wordcamp.org/about/). organizer. I appreciate their willingness to (as you put it) play the long game, but I also value the fact that without sponsors, WordCamps just wouldn’t happen, especially on the level that they do. So I think it’s very valuable to hear these inputs. * I’m personally of the opinion that the organisers of the online event need to work with sponsors to come up with new ways to balance the attendees needs with the sponsor interactions. * I’m hoping this post will help surface these ideas, so that we can put together a list of ideas/suggestions, that future organisers of online events can use to find that balance. 41. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/d5c3f2d93d1a7622578bf02f19b91bce32e642cf2962e04ab559fbc0ae333359? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 42. [Andrea Middleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) 9:30 pm _on_ July 17, 2020 43. It’s so heartening to see this much appreciation for our sponsors. What would we do without the companies, WordPress-based or otherwise, that have helped make our in-person events possible for 14 years and counting?? My gratitude for all that support, over such a long period of time, is profound. 44. Here’s the thing, though: when I zoom out from the context of WordCamps, and really look at the financial requirements for running an online event program, I keep coming back to the same question: how much money will we **really** need from sponsors? And I keep thinking…. well, maybe actually not that much?? 45. Which is probably good, right? Because the online events we design — and, really, any of the events we design — must primarily serve the needs of attendees. The only way our speakers/sponsors/organizers can benefit from participating in these events, is if attendees want to join them (and keep coming back) in the first place. So while I think “how can we provide value for the money we’re asking sponsors to give,” is a very important question to ask… I’m not sure it’s the **first** thing we should try to get a definite answer on. 46. First, I think we should identify the financial requirements for the events that will achieve the goals of helping people to use and contribute to WordPress (while connecting and inspiring WordPress enthusiasts), and then we should settle on the best way to cover those costs. 47. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/a8a3c44a68937ee1996ba1bd3325126c4fd962f20b60acc16988dea6b527d14c? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Jonathan Bossenger](https://profiles.wordpress.org/psykro/) 8:43 am _on_ July 21, 2020 * Thank you for your input, Andrea * > First, I think we should identify the financial requirements for the events > that will achieve the goals of helping people to use and contribute to WordPress( > while connecting and inspiring WordPress enthusiasts), and then we should > settle on the best way to cover those costs. * That raises a good point, and I’m not sure that specific question is being discussed anywhere publicly (unless I’ve missed it). Perhaps it warrants it’s own post? - ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/d5c3f2d93d1a7622578bf02f19b91bce32e642cf2962e04ab559fbc0ae333359? s=32&d=mm&r=g) - [Andrea Middleton](https://profiles.wordpress.org/andreamiddleton/) 4: 57 pm _on_ July 21, 2020 - I was hoping to get that discussion started today or tomorrow, in fact! 🙂 Once people had a chance to share all their ideas/suggestions/thoughts on the [Reimagining Online Events](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/13/reimagining-online-events/) post. 🙂 48. ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/8e997e7b6570ba04b872e29f736ce77a396a6b024e434de7c82530456a253e65? s=32&d=mm&r=g) 49. [Courtney P.K.](https://profiles.wordpress.org/courtneypk/) 10:19 pm _on_ July 21, 2020 50. ICYMI, I want to mention this [discussion from a few months ago on a similar topic](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/05/01/how-could-we-acknowledge-sponsors-at-online-wordcamps/), as well as the resulting [handbook page on online WordCamp sponsors](https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/virtual-events/online-wordcamp-cost-guidelines-and-the-budget-review-process/online-wordcamp-sponsors/). 🙂 51. * ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/a8a3c44a68937ee1996ba1bd3325126c4fd962f20b60acc16988dea6b527d14c? s=32&d=mm&r=g) * [Jonathan Bossenger](https://profiles.wordpress.org/psykro/) 7:46 pm _on_ July 28, 2020 * Thanks [@courtneypk](https://profiles.wordpress.org/courtneypk/) it would appear IDMI 🙂 ### Leave a Reply 󠀁[Cancel reply](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/16/reimagining-online-event-sponsorships/?output_format=md#respond)󠁿 You must be [logged in](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fmake.wordpress.org%2Fcommunity%2F2020%2F07%2F16%2Freimagining-online-event-sponsorships%2F&locale=en_US) to post a comment. # Post navigation [← Supporting Black Voices in WordPress](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/15/supporting-black-voices-in-wordpress/) [Weekly Updates →](https://make.wordpress.org/community/2020/07/20/weekly-updates-180/)