How to write to businesses

You might be surprised by how many businesses are interested in providing support to schools, financial or otherwise. They may be large corporations or small local businesses; both have something to gain by giving money or help.

Before you start

You should think about getting in touch with your local STEMNET contract holder before approaching businesses. They will already have links with businesses interested in supporting education in your area. Your local STEMNET contract holder can advise you on:

  • STEM Ambassadors; volunteers within local or regional businesses who can contribute time and expertise to your club
  • Local or regional businesses that would be suitable for your school to visit as part of an enhancement and enrichment activity

STEM Club business approach

The goal of your letter

The goal of your letter is to inspire the recipient to want to get involved, find out more and ultimately help you and your students. 

This might be because they want to inspire students with STEM, because it would provide a great photo opportunity in the local paper, because their board of directors would be impressed, because it would provide opportunities for development of their own staff or simply because they are passionate about what they do, and are keen to share this passion with others.

Writing frame for a sponsorship letter

Because each sponsorship letter should be so carefully tailored to each business that you approach, it is difficult to provide a single template letter. However, we have provided an outline for your letter. Before you start writing, think about the following points:

  •  If you have a contact at the business, address the letter to this person
  • Be concise; keep the letter to two sides, preferably shorter
  • Be clear about what you need support for and describe your project clearly
  • Make it very obvious to the reader how the project is relevant to their organisation

Armed with these considerations, begin your letter: 

1. Opening paragraph - introduction and purpose of the letter

  • Introduce yourself and your school.
  • Explain why you are writing - outline that you would like the business to support your STEM Club, or a project that your Club is running. That the goal is to enthuse and inspire your students/ or that you want to inspire them to consider a career in engineering by partnering with this local engineering firm. If it is a project that you would like them to support, it should be obvious from your description how the project is relevant to the company. This should inspire them.
  • If you have a connection to the business (such as a parent who works for the business), mention it here

2. Second paragraph - background and 'setting the scene' 

  • Provide some additional information about your Club and highlight that you are one of a large network of clubs across England.
  • Give details of previous successful projects that you have run.
  • Include facts that show your Club is successful; for example: "each week you have 30 students attend your club", "you have competed in competitions, such as the CREST Awards or Planet SciCast", "uptake of science subjects has increased since your club has been running", or "grades in science subjects have increased"

3. Third paragraph - more information about why you need support

  • Give details of the project you would like to do. 
  • Explain why you feel this project is important. 

4. Fourth paragraph - how much support you would like 

  1. Explain why you need support for this project.
  2. Say what support you would like; for example, money, equipment or to arrange a visit.
  3. If it is money, say how much money you need. You should clearly account for where the money will be spent (this could be a table)
  4. If it is equipment say what equipment you need and how much of it.

5. Fifth paragraph - why you would like to work with this organisation

  • Give details of why you think this would be a good opportunity for this organisation; for example, visibility within the local community or encouraging students to pursue a career in the business's area.
  • Try and use an example of where this business has supported something similar.

6. Sixth paragraph - sum up 

  • Thank them for their time in reading the letter.
  • Sound enthusiastic about the possibility of working with them.
  • Offer to meet them or the chance for them to see your Club in action.
  • Do not sound pushy (for example, avoid "I look forward to hearing from you soon").

This is just a guide for how to set up your letter; it can be flexible!

Above all, be enthusiastic about your project and the possibility of working with this organisation, and be explicit about what you are doing and what you are asking for. 

Do's and don'ts 

Do:

  • Find an ally or a contact within a business, perhaps a parent or someone who has been in the local paper.
  • Phone businesses and try and have a chat with someone before you write to them. They might be able to tell you straight away whether it's worth writing. Say you are interested in partnering with a local business to help inspire your students with science/ technology/ engineering or maths (use one depending on the business).
  • Try and approach a business that might have an interest in your particular project.
  • Find out about the business that you are writing to. For example, have they supported schools before; do they have a community relations or corporate social responsibility department? If not think of another way in (for example marketing or head of technical services) and tailor your approach to who you speak to.
  • Just whet their appetite on the phone and say you will send letter with all the details
  • Tailor your letter for each particular business that you approach.
  • Consider asking for support other than financial support, such as equipment, or STEM Ambassadors.

Do NOT:

  • Do not write a generic 'begging' letter and send it round to all your local businesses. It just won't work.
  • Do not approach businesses completely 'cold'.
  • Do not approach a business that will have no interest in your project. For example, do not approach a sports goods manufacturer if your project is on chemistry - unless you are wanting students to explore the amazing new materials used in sportswear and equipment.

General considerations

As with large charitable trusts, large businesses may have departments dedicated to taking care of giving money to schools, or other organisations with a role in education. For example, AstraZeneca (a large pharmaceutical company) has an independent Trust (AstraZeneca Science Teaching Trust) that awards money for educational projects. These large organisations will often have application forms for you to fill in

Consider what else a business might be able to contribute to your project other than just money. For example, if you want to do a project involving chemistry, you might write to a company and ask them whether they could donate laboratory equipment or consumables to you. Or you might ask to visit their laboratories and for them to cover the costs involved.

Think about whether you might be able to take advantage of staff from within a relevant business. Remember that your local STEMNET contract holder will already have established relationships with a number of local businesses.

You must do a bit of research about the business you wish to approach. Where possible, you should try and approach businesses that might have an interest in your project. You should also think about finding out whether you know of any parents who work in businesses that might be able to support you. For example, you could approach your school’s Parent Teacher Association to get links directly into businesses. Having ‘someone on the inside’ can be an extremely useful way of making contact.

Remember:

  • As with all projects, try and think collaboratively
  • If you can involve other local schools it will be more attractive for the business since their money will go further
  • Think of the aims and objectives of the business and how your project ties in with them


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