Sponsorship/Overview

Sponsoring UKNOF

Please email admin@uknof.org.uk to discuss sponsoring a meeting, social and/or being an annual patron sponsor.

UKNOF (a not for profit organisation) relies on sponsors to help with costs for its tri-annual conferences as well as the costs of managing ongoing communications and promoting our and your Corporate Social Responsibility goals. There are a number of ways to participate as a sponsor - further details further down this page.

Generally, UKNOF meetings are free to attend and this is thanks to our meeting sponsors. No other meeting exists like us as we do not charge the majority of registrants any attendance fees. It is all about being open and transparent and giving everyone a chance to attend. Other similar meetings tend to be closed affairs or charge hefty fees.

What we do is allow anyone with an interest to attend. We don’t just get the “usual suspects” from the global Internet meeting circuit at UKNOF, but a real cross-section of the UK Net Ops community – we can use UKNOF to bring the best of the content (and well known speakers) from the global circuit to a UK audience that can’t get to the bigger meetings, and cover topics which are closer to home and of specific interest to the local community.

UKNOF is about spreading the knowledge, the networking between people - to create a better informed industry.

UKNOF offers a range of sponsorship options each with a number of benefits for the sponsor. These include opportunities to present to the UKNOF attendees in the meeting and live webcast plus the regular promotion of your brand in event communications in online and print media where applicable.

Sponsorship Opportunities in 2014

This year, UKNOF is offering the following sponsorship opportunities:

• Individual Meeting sponsorships
• Individual Meeting Social Recognition sponsorships
• Annual Patron sponsorships.

Further details are given below.

Meeting Roadmap

UKNOF runs three main meetings per year - generally in January, April and September - around the UK. There are also plans to run "UKNOF On The Road" meetings in collaboration with other organisations.

For 2014, the meeting roadmap currently looks like:

• UKNOF27 - 21 January - Manchester
• UKNOF28 - 24 April - Reading
• UKNOF29 - September - specific date and venue TBC

UKNOF may also have 2 "On The Road" meetings.

A Note About Sponsor Presentations

As of currently (18 September 2013), UKNOF meetings have the following limit on sponsor presentations:

• Maximum 3 sponsor presentations per day

and

• Maximum 40-45 minutes in total per day

This translates as follows:

• 2 x Platinum/Host Sponsors (both with presentations) = 40 minutes in total
• 1 x Platinum/Host and 2 x Gold Sponsors (all with presentations) = 40 minutes in total
• 3 x Gold Sponsors (all with presentations) = 30 minutes in total

All Sponsor slots are on a first come first served basis. Those Platinum and Gold Sponsors who are unable to get a presentation slot may either receive a discount on their sponsorship, or alternatively opt to sponsor a future meeting with presentation slots available.

Although it is expected that a sponsor presentation is to be a sales or promotional pitch, the best way to reap the most benefit from the sponsorship is to target the presentation to the audience. In our experience, an out-and-out blatant sales pitch will turn the audience off. However, giving an interesting technical presentation that has a sales or promotional element to it will most likely keep the audience engaged and asking questions to find out more.

Individual Meeting Sponsorship

Various sponsorship opportunities exist, each with different levels of benefits. Sponsorships contribute toward meeting running costs.

All sponsorship levels listed above allow for multiple sponsors per meeting. If you are interested in sole-sponsorship then please contact us.

UKNOF appreciates the support of the sponsors regardless of whichever meeting sponsorship level is chosen.

Meeting Sponsor Standard Benefits

• Public recognition during the meeting, opening and closing remarks
• Recognition on the UKNOF mailing list and social media channels
• Your logo on the meeting microsite linked to your own website.
• Your logo on applicable slides in the meeting and meeting webcast.
• Your logo on event banners/event t-shirts/event give-away bags if and when applicable

Additional benefits are listed in each subsection below.

Support - £1200

This sponsorship allows you to be creative. Examples include: lunch, breakfast, coffee breaks, barrista, T-Shirts, delegate badges
If you have any other ideas, do let us know. All creative ideas must also incorporate the UKNOF logo. Final idea/design will be reviewed and must be approved by UKNOF.

Note: The Sponsor is responsible for costs and production of the creative idea. All designs and ideas will be reviewed and must be approved by UKNOF in advance.

In addition to the standard benefits:

• Attendance for two (2) delegates at the UKNOF meeting within the sponsorship provided, for members of your team to have access to the attendees throughout the event, including meal/coffee/social breaks.
• Your logo and branding on the creative idea agreed

Bronze - £1500

In addition to the standard benefits:

• Attendance for two (2) delegates at the UKNOF meeting within the sponsorship provided, for members of your team to have access to the attendees throughout the event, including meal/coffee/social breaks.

Silver - £3000

In addition to the standard benefits:

• Attendance for up to three (3) delegates at the UKNOF meeting within the sponsorship provided, for members of your team to have access to the attendees throughout the event, including meal/coffee/social breaks.
• Space for one floor standing banner and poser-style/small table in sponsor exhibition area
• Opportunity to supply up to a total of two pieces of your own literature and/or promotional items in your sponsor space and if applicable, in UKNOF gift bags.

Gold - £7000 (with presentation) ; £6000 (without presentation)

In addition to the standard benefits:

• Attendance for up to five (5) delegates at the UKNOF meeting within the sponsorship provided, for members of your team to have access to the attendees throughout the event, including meal/coffee/social breaks.
• Option of presentation of up to 10 minutes duration (including questions time), and thus one (1) extra delegate
• Space for two floor standing banners and medium size table/booth in sponsor exhibition area. One banner may be in meeting reception area.
• Opportunity to supply up to a total of three pieces of your own literature and/or promotional items in your sponsor space (space permitting, one may be in meeting reception area) and if applicable, in UKNOF gift bags.
• A pre-list of delegate names and organisations attending the UKNOF meeting. This will be issued approximately one week before the meeting takes place to ensure that the list is as up to date as possible.

Platinum - £14000 (with presentation) ; £12000 (without presentation)

In addition to the standard benefits:

• Attendance for up to ten (10) delegates at the UKNOF meeting within the sponsorship provided, for members of your team to have access to the attendees throughout the event, including meal/coffee/social breaks.
• Option of presentation of up to 20 minutes duration (including questions time), and thus one (1) extra delegate
• Space for multiple floor standing banners throughout meeting venue and large size table/booth in sponsor exhibition area. One banner may be in meeting reception area and one banner may be in the meeting room.
• Opportunity to supply up to a total of four pieces of your own literature and/or promotional items in your sponsor space and delegate tables/chairs (and space permitting, one may be in meeting reception area) and if applicable, in UKNOF gift bags.
• First refusal on additional meeting support sponsorship, where available
• First refusal on additional social sponsorship, where available
• A pre-list of delegate names and organisations attending the UKNOF meeting. This will be issued approximately one week before the meeting takes place to ensure that the list is as up to date as possible.

Host - £18000 (with presentation)

In addition to the standard benefits:

• Hands-on involvement in organisation and running of meeting. See Host Responsibilities (‡) below.
• Attendance for up to twelve (12) delegates at the UKNOF meeting within the sponsorship provided, for members of your team to have access to the attendees throughout the event, including meal/coffee/social breaks.
• Option of presentation of up to 20 minutes duration (including questions time), and thus one (1) extra delegate
• Space for multiple floor standing banners throughout meeting venue and large size table/booth in sponsor exhibition area. One banner may be in meeting reception area and one banner may be in the meeting room.
• Opportunity to supply a total of up to five pieces of your own literature and/or promotional items in your sponsor space and delegate tables/chairs (and space permitting, one may be in meeting reception area) and if applicable, in UKNOF gift bags.
• Includes cost of Delegate Badges and Lanyards with sponsor logo and UKNOF logo
• First refusal on additional meeting support sponsorship, where available
• First refusal on additional social sponsorship, where available
• A pre-list of delegate names and organisations attending the UKNOF meeting. This will be issued approximately one week before the meeting takes place to ensure that the list is as up to date as possible.

(‡) Host Responsibilities: Venue hunting (to UKNOF's requirements), venue hire (with UKNOF's approval), all technical and other meeting facilities, full catering, assistance with finding accommodation for delegates, constant point of contact in the run up to the meeting, during set up and the meeting day (eg, running registration desk) and pro-active marketing of the event.

Individual Meeting Social Recognition sponsorship

If you wish to sponsor a UKNOF Social Event then this is the section for you. This contribution to UKNOF ensures the social event will be officially recognised and be supported by UKNOF.

The following opportunities are covered under this:

• Pre-meeting dinner (traditionally is a curry) or other pre-meeting social event
• Post-meeting social

Note: The Sponsor is responsible for costs and planning of the social event. Site selection and social event idea will be reviewed and must be approved by UKNOF in advance. UKNOF may be able to suggest social venues. The Social must be open to all UKNOF attendees.

Social Sponsor Standard Benefits

• Public recognition during the meeting, opening and closing remarks
• Recognition on the UKNOF mailing list and social media channels
• Your logo on the meeting microsite linked to your own website.
• Your logo on applicable slides in the meeting and meeting webcast.
• Your logo on event banners/event t-shirts/event give-away bags if and when applicable
• Branding opportunities at social venue for the duration of the social event
• UKNOF can help with initial mail-out for social event attendance confirmation numbers, where required.

Additional benefits are listed in each subsection below.

Single Sponsor - £1200

In addition to the standard benefits:

• Option of placing up to a post-card size information card with your logo regarding the social, in the meeting reception, where applicable, to be produced and printed by the sponsor
• Attendance for up to two (2) delegates at the UKNOF meeting within the sponsorship provided, for members of your team to have access to the attendees throughout the event, including meal/coffee/social breaks. There is no limit on numbers of your colleagues attending the social event.

Multiple Sponsors - £600 each co-sponsor

In addition to the standard benefits:

• Up to 4 co-sponsors per social event - co-sponsors to be sourced by the sponsors themselves.
• Option of placing up to a post-card size information card with your logos regarding the social, in the meeting reception, where applicable, to be produced and printed by the sponsor
• Attendance for one (1) delegate per co-sponsor at the UKNOF meeting within the sponsorship provided, to have access to the attendees throughout the event, including meal/coffee/social breaks. There is no limit on the numbers of co-sponsor colleagues attending the social event.

Patron Sponsorship

This sponsorship shows your support of UKNOF over a period of a calendar year (3 meetings plus any extra meetings that may be held) and enables UKNOF to be more effective in being able to offer it's unique service to the community.

Patron Sponsor Standard Benefits

• Collective public recognition during the meeting, opening and closing remarks
• Collective recognition on the UKNOF mailing list and social media channels
• Named recognition on the UKNOF website/wiki

Additional benefits are listed in each subsection below.

Individual Patron - £250

In addition to the standard benefits:

• Free attendance for the individual at UKNOF meetings in 2014, as long as registration is received at least two weeks before each meeting.

Organisation Patron - £2500

In addition to the standard benefits:

• Free attendance for up to five (5) delegates from the Patron Sponsor organisation, at UKNOF meetings in 2014, as long as registrations are received at least two weeks before each meeting. This is in addition to any Individual Meeting Sponsorship delegate allocation you may have for a specific meeting.

Note: Any additional attendee spaces above these allocations will be subject to the standard fee as listed in the Sponsorship Terms and Conditions

Sponsorship Comparison Table

Quick Comparison

	Host	Platinum	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Support	Social
Delegates	12	10	5	3	2	2	2
Recognition: meeting, opening/closing remarks, mailing list, social media	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Logo: meeting microsite, applicable slides and webcast, other areas	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Sponsor Marketing and Branding	Meeting Venue	Meeting Venue	Meeting Venue	Meeting Venue	Meeting Website	Creative Idea	Social Venue
Exhibition Table	Large	Large	Medium	Poser
Banners in Meeting Venue	Multiple	Multiple	1	1
Banners in Social Venue							✔
Total number of pieces of sponsor literature and/or promotional items	5	4	3	2
Meeting reception area literature or promotional items	✔	✔	✔	✔
Gift bag contents (if, where and when applicable)	✔	✔	✔	✔
Delegate name and organisation pre-list	✔	✔	✔
After-event follow up email	✔	✔	✔
Option of presentation	up to 20 minutes	up to 20 minutes	up to 10 minutes
Literature and/or promotional items on delegate tables/chairs	✔	✔
First refusal on additional Support sponsorship, if available	✔	✔
First refusal on additional Social sponsorship, if available	✔	✔
Cost of 'sponsored' delegate badges included	✔
Hands-on involvement in organising and running the meeting	✔
PER MEETING SPONSORSHIP AMOUNT (+VAT)	£18,000	£14,000 / £12,000	£7000 / £6000	£3000	£1500	£1200	£1200

Sponsorship Terms & Conditions

1) All sponsorship amounts quoted are exclusive of applicable UK Value Added Tax and are payable without deduction.

2) All agreements to sponsor a UKNOF event or provide Patron Sponsorship to UKNOF, are binding and non-refundable.

3) Once an invoice for sponsorship has been raised by UKNOF, or a Purchase Order raised by the Sponsor, it is deemed to be an agreement to sponsor UKNOF.

4) All sponsorship opportunities are on a First Come First Served basis.

5) Sponsors are allowed to offer sponsorship for single or multiple sponsorship slots and events in addition to being Patron Sponsors.

6) All sponsors are supportive of UKNOF and it's mission

7) Once sponsorship for a UKNOF event is agreed, the sponsor must immediately provide an image of their logo (in high resolution EPS, JPG, PNG) and other details required for invoicing purposes (eg, company name, contact details, email address)

8) Once sponsorship is agreed, an invoice will be raised and this must be paid by return and at most within 30 days of invoice date, by Bank Transfer in Pounds Sterling, with all applicable bank charges paid by the Sponsor.

9) All event sponsorship must be received in cleared funds by UKNOF at least 2 months in advance of the sponsored meeting date or earlier where applicable.

10) All patron sponsorship must be received in cleared funds by UKNOF prior to the start of each calendar year.

11) Payments received beyond our agreed credit terms will be subject to an interest charge of 8% above the bank base rate on the entire amount including any VAT, as permitted under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, as amended. We also reserve the right to charge an additional compensation claim of £70 or £100 (depending on the amount due).

12) For UKNOF event sponsorship, sponsor branding, logos and recognition will come into effect after sponsorship is received in cleared funds by UKNOF.

13) All applicable sponsorship materials must be submitted within the production schedule.

14) Where a sponsor benefit includes a presentation, this abstract/topic must be submitted at least three months in advance of the meeting for approval. The presentation must be in line with UKNOF's mission and not be an out-and-out sales or promotional pitch.

15) The sponsorship fee does not include free conference registration unless specifically stated as a sponsor benefit. Number of reserved meeting attendance spaces available to sponsors is dependent on their level of sponsorship and no exceptions will be made. Other/extra spaces will need to be paid for at the current rate of £100 + VAT plus admin fee.

16) Details of attendees (where included as a sponsor benefit) must be submitted at least a month in advance of the meeting.

17) All parts of the UKNOF website, UKNOF Meeting micro sites, and UKNOF Wiki, including the attendee lists are copyright and must not be used for non-UKNOF purposes (such as marketing by sponsors) without the express written permission of UKNOF.

18) All public, targeted, press and news announcements and marketing are subject to approval by UKNOF.

19) Subject to Clause 18 above, Sponsors are encouraged to promote UKNOF and it's events, in addition to inviting their customers to register for attendance.

20) Sponsors may not sublet, assign or apportion any part of the sponsorship nor represent, advertise or distribute literature or materials for the products or services of any other firm or organisation except as approved in writing by UKNOF.

21) These Terms and Conditions are governed by and are to be construed in accordance with English law, and UKNOF and the Sponsor will submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.

22) UKNOF will not be liable for damage or loss to sponsors properties by fire, theft, accident, or any other cause.

23) No part of an exhibit and signage or other materials may be pasted, nailed, or otherwise affixed to walls, doors or other surfaces in a way that mars or defaces the premises or equipment and furnishings. Damage from failure to observe this notice is payable by the Sponsor.

24) Sponsors indemnify and hold harmless UKNOF for any actions, causes of action, accidents, injuries or claim that may be alleged or asserted by any party arising out of the particular sponsorship or sponsored event and/or use or utilisation of Sponsors products and/or services and any negligence of employees, officers and agents of the Sponsor.

25) If any clause in these Terms and Conditions is held to be invalid or unenforceable in whole or in part, the invalid or unenforceable wording shall be deemed to be omitted.

Sponsorship Opportunities in 2015

For 2015, the meeting roadmap currently looks like:

• UKNOF30 - 22 January - London - date and venue TBC
• UKNOF31 - April - specific date and venue TBC
• UKNOF32 - September - specific date and venue TBC

UKNOF may also have "On The Road" meetings.

For 2015, we are currently looking for Host sponsors and venues which can accommodate at least 300 people in cabaret style seating (8 people per table) or Classroom style.

Although we have no plans to change the types of sponsorship we have, UKNOF is a dynamic organisation, implementing changes with feedback received from the community, and the types of sponsorship may change.

It is likely that sponsorship amounts will rise by 10% over the 2014 rates. However, we should be able to keep to 2014 sponsorship amounts as long as any sponsorships for 2015 are paid in full by 31 July 2014.

Please email admin@uknof.org.uk to discuss sponsoring a meeting, social and/or being an annual patron sponsor.