ROI stands for Return on Investment. On OpenSponsorship, it measures the value you received from a sponsorship deal relative to what you spent.
How it's calculated:
ROI = Total Value Received ÷ Total Spend
Total Spend = cash paid + product value given to the athlete
Total Value Received = based on actual post engagement — specifically, the impressions, likes, comments, and reach generated, benchmarked against the athlete's expected performance and comparable athletes in their sport and tier.
What a good ROI looks like:
- ROI above 1x (or 100%) means you got more value out than you put in — a positive return.
- The OpenSponsorship platform average across 8,000+ brand deals is 7x ROI.
- Micro-athlete campaigns tend to deliver higher ROI than macro campaigns because of stronger engagement rates at lower cost.
Why ROI varies:
- Post timing (in-season vs. off-season matters)
- Content quality and authenticity
- How well the athlete's audience matches your target customer
- Whether the campaign had a clear call-to-action
If your ROI is lower than expected, check out: https://opensponsorship.com/help/articles/763076-how-do-i-make-posts-more-successful