Mobile apps are playing a bigger role than ever in how guests engage with cultural attractions. Sponsorship, where a corporate or philanthropic partner helps fund the app in return for branding and other benefits, poses an effective, mutually beneficial solution.
This guide explains how to approach sponsorship as a sustainable funding model for your application. We’ll review real examples of sponsorship programmes at attractions, partnership strategies, what sponsors are looking for, and key ethical and legal considerations worth considering.
Across the sector, we're seeing more and more attractions partner with sponsors to bring digital experiences to life. Here are a few standout examples showing a range of sponsorship approaches:
Check out the National Zoo's Panda Cam above:
Nashville Zoo’s Attractions.io mobile app is sponsored by Truist. Thanks to the bank’s support, the Zoo has been able to completely replace printed maps with a more sustainable interactive, in-app map.
National Zoo’s PandaCam (USA) – While not a mobile app, the PandaCam deserves a special mention. It’s a great example of creative sponsored content. Boeing covers the streaming costs, and in return, gets high-visibility branding on one of the zoo's most-loved experiences.
Honolulu Zoo’s mobile app was funded in partnership with SSA Group, the zoo’s concessions operator. SSA benefited from in-app e-commerce tools that boosted sales, and the zoo got a guest-facing digital platform at no upfront cost.
For museums, zoos and cultural attractions, app sponsorships unlock a whole host of benefits:
1. They fund innovation: Sponsorship funding can cover development, content, maintenance, or future enhancements of your digital technology, making it possible to adopt new tech without pulling from programme budgets.
2. They levels up the guest experience: Offering interactive maps, real-time updates, audio guides, scavenger hunts and more, a well-designed app transforms how people explore your space and helps you further educational and accessibility goals.
3. They gives you more, high-quality data: Apps generate insights into guest behaviour, like how people move through your venue, what they engage with, and when they visit. That data can shape everything from exhibit planning, audio guide points and future sponsor incentives.
4. They help you reach beyond your venue: Apps extend your mission. Whether that's through remote access, multilingual content, or inclusive design, you're able to engage more people, meaningfully, with support from the sponsor who made it possible.
Corporations and individual philanthropists have strong incentives to support cultural attractions. Understanding their motivations can help you craft attractive sponsorship programmes that work both ways.
Here’s what to pitch to make your propsoed partnership appealing to funders:
1. Brand visibility with great context: Cultural attractions like zoos and museums attract families, students, and community members. An audience most brands would love to connect with. Sponsored logos, banners or callouts in-app ensure visibility in a feel-good environment.
2. CSR and values alignment: Supporting a non-profit attraction gives sponsors a clear story to tell around social impact, conservation, or education, helping them meet their CSR goals meaningfully.
3. Creative marketing opportunities: Apps offer more than just logo placement. Think: branded maps, interactive features, or sponsor-led scavenger hunts. Done well, these activations are far more memorable than traditional advertising. Honolulu Zoo shouted about their new, SSA sponsored app so loudly, they even made the national news! Check out the coverage below:
4. Measurable returns: Sponsors can track clicks, engagement, and action rates when they advertise via your mobile app. That makes the spend more justifiable than traditional sponsorship campaigns, and often easier to renew year on year.
In some regions, tax incentives are part of the appeal, too. Sponsors may be eligible for tax relief or deductions when supporting non-profit organisations. These incentives vary by region, but often apply when the sponsorship is classified as a charitable contribution or marketing expense.
When preparing your pitch, it's worth checking with a local tax advisor or referencing government resources (such as HMRC in the UK, the IRS in the US, or national charity registries) to see what benefits might apply. Highlighting potential tax advantages can be a compelling addition to your proposal, especially for corporate partners looking to maximise their social impact budget.
Securing sponsors requires you to build long-term partnerships with brands and philanthropists who would be a great fit for your organisation. Here's our recommendations on how to do that well:
1. Find the right fit: Look for partners whose brand and values align with your mission. That alignment will be key to building a sustainable relationship that stands the test of time.
2. Create a clear, thoughtful proposal: Show your vision. Outline the app’s impact, how the sponsor’s funds will be used, and what they get in return. Use real data on app usage or projections to paint the picture.
If you don't have a proposal already, here's one we've created to use as a starting point.
3. Lean into your numbers: Share guest demographics and app engagement stats. Make it easy for sponsors to see that they'll easily reach their target audience.
4. Offer flexible packages: Not every sponsor will want the same level of visibility. Tiered options give businesses of varying sizes more ways to get involved.
5. Report back regularly: Use your app's analytics to provide updates on performance. Demonstrating ROI is key to keeping sponsors engaged and committed.
6. Set clear boundaries: Don’t compromise your values for funding. Partner with sponsors whose ethos complements yours, and be transparent with your audience about who's backing your app.
Attractions.io offers non-profits several high-impact, guest-friendly ways to feature sponsors in their branded mobile apps:
1. Sponsored Icons: Sponsor icons appear as custom buttons on the app's homepage. They're tappable menu items that link to a webpage or destination, and they see high engagement.
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2. Home Page Banners: Great for visibility, homepage banners can be co-branded with your venue or styled as a "powered by" strip.
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3. Splash Screens: A splash screen is the loading page users see for a few seconds before the homepage. It offers a full-screen branding moment that’s ideal for top-tier sponsors. Sponsors with a bold brand message (like sustainability) often use this space to great effect.
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4. Map Branding: Your interactive map is the heart of your mobile app and is heavily used by guests. Sponsorships can include logo placement near key POIs or co-branding on the map UI. Because guests return to maps often, it's a high-frequency touchpoint.
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5. Push Notifications: Push notifications offer direct engagement with guests and great reporting clarity. Used sparingly, they're an effective way to surface sponsor-aligned content or events. You can even share the click-through and action rate with your sponsor, just like with digital ads.
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Add-on Incentives
Make sure all benefits are clearly documented in the sponsorship agreement, and only promise what you can really deliver.
For operators, sponsorships can help deliver a modern, mission-driven digital experience and prevent the need to dip into essential budgets. For sponsors, it's a chance to make a visible, value-aligned impact on the community they serve. When structured well, these partnerships benefit everyone: the institution, the guest, and the funder.
Our team has helped numerous institutions design in-app sponsorship programmes tailored to their audience, goals, and values. If you're thinking about sponsorship, reach out. We can support you, even in the early stages of planning.
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