About The Sponsorships

Sonoma County Tourism (SCT) has a mandate to promote Sonoma County as a destination, with an emphasis on incremental room night generation.  To encourage Sonoma County event producers to join us in that mandate, SCT established a Special Event Sponsorship program.  The program provides funds for eligible Sonoma County projects that demonstrate the ability to draw visitors to Sonoma County including overnight stays.

Eligible Events

  • Organizations, both for profit and nonprofit, that are producing events in Sonoma County during the eligibility period, that advance the stated Sonoma County Tourism mandate.
  • Organizations that have a track record of producing the named event at least once in the past 3 years.
  • Individuals, via a Fiscal Sponsor, who have submitted the signed Fiscal Sponsor Commitment Form as part of the application.

Ineligible Events

  • Organizations that have received SCT Sponsorships for 3 consecutive years.  These organizations will be eligible again after one SCT Sponsorship cycle has been completed for which they did not apply.
  • Individuals without a Fiscal Sponsor.
  • Sonoma County Chambers of Commerce and Visitors Bureaus.  (These entities are funded through a separate Sonoma County Tourism program.  Please reach out to Tanya Rainey at trainey@sonomacounty.com.)

Grant Awards

The total funding for any application will not likely exceed $15,000.  Typical awards will range between $5,000 and $10,000.

Evaluation Criteria

1. Anticipated Marketing, Advertising and Promotional ROI

a. Value of media activities (paid, earned, owned) to Sonoma County as a destination for the event.

      1. Paid media is defined as any advertising or promotional materials that are purchased/paid for.
      2. Earned media is defined as unpaid editorial coverage via both traditional and nontraditional channels e.g., magazine, radio, television, etc.
      3. Owned media is defined as any promotional activities that occur on organizational owned media (websites, social media sites, etc.)

b. Clearly articulated marketing and advertising plan

2. Tourism Impacts

a. Potential to drive visitors to Sonoma County including overnight stays
b. Number of attendees, anticipated ticket sales, visitor origination, etc.
c. Clearly articulated description of how this data is collected and tracked

3. Seasonal Emphasis: Special consideration will be given to events that:

a. Occur between November 1 and April 30
b. Are held midweek (Monday-Thursday)

4. Need: Impact of SCT sponsorship funds

a. Need will be measured based on applicant’s demonstrated ability to maximize the potential impact of SCT funds on the overall success of the event – for the current year and potentially years to come.
b. Regardless of the size of the producing organization or the event, all applicants must demonstrate that they have support through anticipated or secured attendees, financial backing from other sources, etc.

5. Mission Alignment with SCT: Demonstrated and tangible marketing benefits that will accrue to Sonoma County Tourism, the Sonoma County tourism sector, and Sonoma County generally by virtue of its association with the event.

a. Opportunities for SCT in event-related PR activities, particularly those with major outlet or national media coverage
b. Other promotional opportunities as available from Applicant.

6. Capacity: Demonstrated ability to produce the event effectively.

7. Completeness and Clarity of Application

 Promotional Partnership

Awardees will be required to provide name and logo recognition to Sonoma County Tourism on all physical and digital materials for the event.  Additional promotional opportunities that are not required, but appreciated include:

  • Creation of a Sonoma County landing page with destination information, links to lodging partners, etc.
  • 1 or more post-event communications with customer/attendee list with a message encouraging return visits to Sonoma County, written in partnership with Sonoma County Tourism.
  • Complimentary tickets for qualified travel media, influencers, writers, and other VIPs
  • Other as conceived by Applicant.

Event And Budget History

Applicants will be asked to provide a copy of the entity’s full organizational budget (Revenue/Expenses) for the most recently completed Fiscal Year.  Additionally, Applicants will be asked to provide the Revenues and Expenses totals for the most recently completed event, if different than the organizational budget. A line-item breakdown is NOT required for past history.

Timeline

After careful consideration, our Board of Directors and Marketing Committee have made the decision to pause event sponsorship funding for Fiscal Year 2026/2027 (July 1, 2026 - June 30, 2027). As we navigate this fiscal year, our available marketing budget is being prioritized towards initiatives that will support a new brand and directly drive overnight visitation to Sonoma County.

We recognize the value that local events bring to the visitor experience and the costs associated with conducting an event. Please be assured this decision was not made lightly as we do want each event to be successful. If additional funding becomes available during the fiscal year, we will reassess the program and communicate any updates.

While we are unable to provide financial support this fiscal year, SCT offers many ways to help promote your event through a variety of marketing channels. We encourage you to:

  • Submit your event through the hospitality hub for exposure on SCT’s event Calendar
  • Tag @sonomacounty on your social media posts so we can help share and amplify your message
  • Notify us of what is new/happening with your event by contacting our PR team for earned media support
  • Contact us for potential video content support

We sincerely appreciate everything you do to showcase Sonoma County. Thank you for your understanding and we hope to pick this program back up next fiscal year.

Contracts, Payments, Final Reports

Sponsorship funds will be sent to awardees within thirty (30) days of receipt by SCT of signed agreements and a Purchase Order or Invoice from awardees.

Final reports forms will be required of awardees to be submitted within 60 days of completion of the sponsored event.  Failure to complete and submit a final report will render awardee ineligible to receive future sponsor awards.

How To Apply

FY 2026/27 Event Sponsorships are currently paused. We will continue to support events through promotional opportunities including our Events Calendar, social media amplification, PR, and video content assistance.

For More Information Contact:

Robert McGuigan
Design Marketing Manager
rmcguigan@sonomacounty.com / Phone: 707-522-5825