---
aliases: ["2026 Sponsorship Pipeline"]
Is A: Project
Belongs to: "[[25q4]]"
Advances: "[[responsibility-sponsorships]]"
Status: Open
Owner: "[[person-luca-rossi]]"
---
# 2026 Sponsorship Pipeline

## Overview

This project focuses on pre-selling Q1-Q2 2026 sponsorship slots before December 31, 2025, targeting 80% of available inventory sold in advance. Pre-selling provides revenue predictability, reduces the need for reactive outreach early in the new year, and allows sponsors to lock in current rates before any potential 2026 rate adjustments. It also demonstrates business maturity to sponsors, who appreciate the ability to plan their marketing budgets in advance.

The pipeline effort builds on the CRM infrastructure from [[24q2-sponsor-crm]], the dashboard from [[24q4-sponsor-dashboard]], and the expanded verticals from [[24q3-new-sponsor-verticals]]. [[person-matteo-cellini]] is leading outreach with a focus on renewals first (highest conversion probability), followed by upsells (sponsors moving to higher tiers), and finally new prospect acquisition. The [[procedure-quarterly-sponsor-outreach]] workflow drives the execution.

## Goals

- Pre-sell 80% of Q1-Q2 2026 sponsorship inventory (newsletter + podcast) by December 31
- Secure renewals from at least 85% of existing H2 2025 sponsors
- Upsell at least 3 sponsors to higher tiers (e.g., Spotlight to Deep Dive)
- Acquire 5+ new sponsors from outreach (targeting AI/ML and cloud infrastructure verticals)
- Set pricing for 2026: evaluate a 15-20% rate increase based on audience growth and performance data

## Key decisions

- **Renewals first, then new business.** The renewal pipeline is the most efficient revenue source — existing sponsors already understand the value, and the CRM tracks their performance data. Starting renewal conversations in October gives sponsors 2+ months to approve budgets. New prospect outreach begins in November once the renewal pipeline is established.
- **Bundle pricing for annual commitments.** Offering a 10% discount for sponsors who commit to 6+ months upfront. This trades a small rate discount for significant revenue predictability and reduced sales overhead (one contract instead of monthly renewals).
- **2026 rate increase evaluation.** The audience growth from [[25q2-reach-70k]] and the push toward [[2025-reach-85k-subscribers]] justifies another rate adjustment. Planning a 15-20% increase for 2026, applied to new bookings and renewals after March 2026. Existing annual commitments honored at current rates.

## Notes

- Early renewal conversations (started in October) are going well. Three sponsors have already verbally committed to H1 2026 renewals. The performance dashboard from [[24q4-sponsor-dashboard]] is proving invaluable — sponsors can see their own data and self-justify the renewal internally.
- [[person-matteo-cellini]] is running the outreach systematically through the CRM, with weekly pipeline reviews. His expanded role (agreed during [[24q4-annual-review-process]]) is paying off — he is now handling the full sales cycle from prospecting to contract, not just initial outreach.
- The AI/ML vertical continues to be the fastest-growing sponsor category. Several AI tool companies that sponsored [[25q3-podcast-season-4]] are expressing interest in annual newsletter packages. The thematic alignment between content and sponsors creates natural demand.
- Pipeline tracking against the 80% target happens weekly. Current projection (as of mid-November) suggests the target is achievable, though some deals may slip into early January. The key risk is budget freeze season — many companies pause new commitments in late December.
- This project directly feeds into [[2025-reach-22k-mrr]] and sets the revenue foundation for 2026 planning. The combination of rate increases, new sponsor acquisition, and high renewal rates should push [[measure-sponsorship-mrr]] to new highs.
