Guidelines for Calling Corporate Supporters - 1998 Education Banquet

Sales goal: 25 corporate tables. Corporate sponsor tables are $1,500, small business tables are $750 and regular tables are $500. Executive reception invitations are included with corporate sponsor and small business table purchases. 18 corporate tables ($27,000), 5 small business tables ($3,750) and 10 regular tables ($5,000) = $35,750 Purpose of the Call1) Obtain verbal commitment to purchase an Education Banquet table.2) Market BDPA and corporate relationship building.3) Correct address, title and phone number on database.

Scheduling and ReportingCorporate invitations are scheduled to be mailed the first week in May. It is suggested to make calls from 5/18/98 through 6/12/98.

As new information is obtained, send an e-mail to Milt. This includes address updates, when someone makes a verbal commitment or when someone declines participation. As soon as you know status, report it.

Contact People and “Hot Buttons”You will be provided with a list of companies, names of people who were sent invitations along with a history of participation in previous banquets and CIO receptions. It is entirely possible that the names on this list have changed. People move around, so if the list is outdated, you may have to ask for new contact information for the CIO, the IT Recruitment Officer, the Foundation Officer or the Corporate Relations Officer.

When you talk to these corporate representatives, be prepared to give an overview of the BDPA organization and programs. Consider the following perspectives and “hot buttons” as you make your sales pitch:

1) CIO and IT Managers - Interested in professional development for employees, student internships and tapping into a pool of IT professionals for recruitment.

2) Human Resources Officer for IT Recruitment - Interested primarily in recruiting IT professionals. Current facilities are announcements at program meetings and postings on BDPA Chicago web page (www.bdpa-chi.org). Also, ads can be placed in the Awards Banquet Book and in the Professional.

3) Foundation Officer - Interested in supporting community outreach programs (High School Computer Club and High School Computer Competition) and school to work transition programs (Summer Intern Program).

4) Corporate Relations and Community Relations Officer - Interested in a positive image in the minority community as a corporate supporter. This is effected by advertisements in the Awards Banquet Book and The Professional.

Sales Pitch

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Be prepared to give an overview of the organization. The following script can be used as a guide. The best method is to use your own words.

Script: Hi, this is _________ from BDPA Chicago calling to announce our upcoming 9th annual Education banquet. It will be held Saturday, June 20th at the Holiday Inn City Center Hotel. The theme for this year’s banquet is “Education - The Key To Our Future” and the keynote speaker will be Paul Vallas, CEO, Chicago Board of Education. Did you receive an invitation. Can we count on your support? How many tables would you like to purchase? Thank you for your help and support.

Note: Corporate sponsor tables are $1,500, small business tables are $750 and regular tables are $500. With the corporate table comes an invitation to the complimentary Corporate Reception and a full page advertisement in the Education Banquet Book. If the Banquet book is not produced, ads will be granted in The Professional. With the small business (under 7.5 million in annual sales) table comes an invitation to the complimentary Corporate Reception. Ads in the Education Banquet Book are available at The Professional rates: Full page $500, Half page $250, Quarter Page $150, Business Card $25.

Response and Recommended Follow-up ActionsWhen you talk to the potential corporate supporter you can expect one of the following responses:

1) “I didn’t get the invitation” - For this response, verify the address information and send a request to Milt for an invitation resend.

2) “Yes” - Send Milt the verbal commitment amount (e.g. $750 or $1,500) and the person’s name and company.

3) “No” - Send Milt the name of the person and company that declined.

4) “Maybe, but need to think about it” - Thank the person for consideration and ask when the decision will be made and when it would be a good time to follow-up.

5) Message - Give your spiel and ask for a call back. Don’t be surprised if you don’t receive a call back. You may have to follow-up several times over the course of several days.

6) No answer - Make a note and call back.

Final Note: Questions regarding these guidelines should be sent to Milt Haynesday: 630-979-2893, eve: 630-961-1123, e-mail: mhaynes@lucent.com.

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