Dhani Jones

Local events provide unique opportunities for small businesses to capture excitement – and increase sales. The story of my career is filled with such events. Before beginning my journey as an entrepreneur, I played professional football for 11 heart-thumping seasons. In fact, in 2005 with Philadelphia, we made it to the Big Game. Today, as a business owner, I seize opportunities like big football games – and other, local events – to create an uptick in awareness, engagement, and sales.

Let’s face it: being a small business owner is tough. It’s a full-time responsibility and like playing professional football, it takes commitment and discipline to succeed. During a recent visit to Winter Village at Bryant Park in New York City, I hit the Holiday Shops with entrepreneur and travel expert Lee Abbamonte – who visited every country by the time he was 32 – to talk with small business owners about the challenges they face.

As a small business owner, there are likely a lot of people, institutions and groups that target your business as a potential sponsor of their group or event. Whether it is a local youth sports league or a concert in the park, groups target small businesses because we have 1) a built-in audience, and 2) the perceived financial wherewithal to help underwrite the event. But even though they want you, the question is, do you want them? The answer should probably be yes, for six very good reasons: 1.