The D-backs Host a Most Valuable Partner Awards Night
Wednesday, January 18, 2012 at 09:53PM 
It has become a common practice in the sports space for teams to host Sponsor Summits to recap their seasons, share ideas, insights and best practices, drive B2B opportunities, and reward partners with a memorable experience that builds their connection with the team.
While most teams make slight tweaks to evolve their Sponsor Summits each year, the Arizona Diamondbacks have developed a new approach that could soon become an industry benchmark. The Diamondbacks recently announced that they will be hosting a Most Valuable Partner Awards Night on January 19th for nearly 300 corporate partners and select guests.
The team has planned a night filled with entertainment and celebration at the Wild Horse Pass & Casino for all their partners and extended family. The event will kick off with a red carpet event at 6pm, followed by an opening musical number and monologue, "DB Awards" given out by the team, and plenty of humorous vignettes produced by the Diamondbacks' Game Operations and Multimedia Productions department.
The Diamondbacks have called on Team President & CEO Derrick Hall to emcee the event, with assistance from several players, legends, broadcasters, and Managing General Partner Ken Kendrick.
Throughout the night, the Diamondbacks will celebrate their partners' "business wins" with DB Awards representing eight different categories:
- Luis Gonzalez Gonzalez Community Champion Award - Given to the partner who truly makes a difference in the local community
- Brand Integration Award - Given to the partner that best uses the D-backs brand or logo to sell their product or seperate themselves from their competition
- D-backs Ambassador Award - Given to the company that best embraces the partnership by exposing it to their employees and customers
- Marketing Activation Award - Given to the partner who creates an innovative D-backs promotion to help build their brand or create direct response (either marketwide or in Chase Field)
- Rookie of the Year - Given to a first-year partner who immediately embraced the D-backs partnership culture and maximized their affiliation
- Lifetime Achievement Award - Given to a team partner who has been aligned with the team throughout its existence and helped define partnership as the team knows it.
- Most Valuable Partner of the Year - Given to the partner who encompasses everything in each MVP category (the award is given at a Silver Slugger Division level and a Gold Glove Division level)
The event serves as a great way to build relationships, incent partners to enhance their partnership efforts, and position the team as a first-class partner in Major League Baseball and the Phoenix DMA. It will be very encouraging to see how partners respond to the event and look to elevate their partnerships during the 2012 MLB season! Congrats to all involved on creating such a terrific concept.