DrupalCon Rotterdam Playbook — Sep 28 - Oct 1, 2026¶
On site: Dan, Jens, Sinduri. Remote backup: Guzman (sponsor follow-ups), Josef (Dries and speakers). Goal: 20+ sponsor conversations, 10 warm leads with a named next step, the Dries video, and 30 ticket sales by Oct 11.
Related: GTM plan · Prospectus · One-pager · Pipeline · Social posts
Before you fly (by Fri Sep 25)¶
- Sponsor and ticket prices approved (core team, Thu Sep 24)
- Pretix shop live with voucher
ROTTERDAM(Dan) - Sponsorship page shows prices, the form and past sponsors (Jens + Guzman)
- One-pager PDF on your phone, ~30 prints (Guzman designs, Sinduri prints)
- Attendee cards: ~200 A6 cards (copy below) (Sinduri)
- Dries: announcement copy signed off, video ask agreed (Josef → Dries)
- Check the Rotterdam sponsor and exhibitor list in the DrupalCon app, and add any DACH company missing below to the pipeline
- Everyone has the pipeline open on their phone and knows the logging rule
Hit list: who talks to whom¶
Look for them at booths, sessions, the contribution room and socials. Warm first: people who already sponsored us.
| Company | Why | Last DMC | Owner on site | Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dries | Headline speaker | — | Dan | 15-sec "see you in Davos" video; OK to promote; reshare our post |
| Acquia | Dries' company, 2024 Gold | 2024 | Dan | Platinum: present the fireside chat |
| Upsun (Platform.sh) | Diamond 2022 and 2024 | 2024 | Dan | Platinum or Gold + Recordings |
| Tag1 Consulting | 2024 Silver, 2025 social | 2025 | Dan | Renew + Pub Quiz |
| Pantheon | Never sponsored, DrupalCon regular | — | Dan | Gold (new) |
| Drupal Association (Baddy Sonja Breidert, Nick Veenhof) | Speaker invite, cross-promo | — | Dan | Talk slot + DA newsletter / Drupal.org mention |
| Liip | 5 editions, Hannes Gassert | 2025 | Jens | Renew Gold; Hannes for the sovereignty panel |
| Agiledrop | New in 2025 (Gold) | 2025 | Jens | Renew Gold, two-edition deal |
| Dropsolid | 2024 Gold | 2024 | Jens | Gold or Sovereign AI Day (EU sovereignty is their pitch) |
| 1xINTERNET | Big DE agency, never sponsored | — | Jens | Silver or Gold (new) |
| MD Systems | 4 editions | 2025 | Jens | Renew + Contribution Day |
| Happy Coding | 4 editions | 2025 | Jens | Renew + Coffee bar |
| soul.media, Unic, Joinbox, iqual | Loyal Swiss/DE agencies | 2024-25 | Jens | Renew; early-commit bonus |
| factorial, LakeDrops, undpaul | DE agencies | — / 2022 | Jens | Silver |
| Varnish Software | 2025 Gold, non-Drupal infra | 2025 | Sinduri | Renew + Recordings |
| amazee.io / Amazee Labs | Hosting partner | 2025 | Dan | Confirm partnership level |
| Symfony / PHP / AI folks at the con | Non-Drupal audience | — | Sinduri | Voucher SYMFONY, invite to the CFP |
| Past attendees you bump into | Social proof | — | Sinduri | 20-sec "why Mountain Camp" video testimonial |
Remote (Guzman): send the renewal email (below) to every 2024/2025 sponsor on Mon Sep 28, so the in-person chat lands on a mail they've already seen.
The 30-second pitch¶
"Mountain Camp turns 10 this March in Davos, and Dries is doing a fireside chat with us. The theme is Humans with AI in the loop: private LLMs, agentic engineering, and a Sovereign AI day with public-sector folks. 100-plus senior builders and decision-makers for three days, plus fondue and a ski day, so sponsors actually get to talk to everyone.
You've been with us before, and we'd love you back for the 10th. There's a package that fits you: [pick one: presenting the Dries chat / the Sovereign AI day / the fondue night / recordings]. Sign by Oct 31 and you get an extra ticket, or commit to two editions for 15% off. Can I send you the one-pager and book 15 minutes next week?"
Objections:
| They say | You say |
|---|---|
| "No budget left this year." | "We can split the invoice Dec/Jan, or you can take a smaller package now and upgrade later." |
| "We just sponsored 2025." | "That's why you get first pick until Oct 16. And with the two-edition deal you only decide once." |
| "Davos is far for our team." | "Tickets are included. Most sponsors send one person and use the ski day and fondue for client time." |
| "What's the ROI?" | "Three days with 100-plus people: hiring conversations, and cantons and agencies that come for Dries and sovereignty. Here are the 2025 numbers." (TODO: add numbers) |
| "We're not a Drupal company." | "Neither is half the lineup: Ghost's founder, AI and Symfony folks. We're opening up on purpose." |
Never promise a talk slot outside the lightning-talk benefit, dates, or custom prices. Say "let me check with Guzman".
Logging rule: every conversation, same day¶
- Add or update the row in pipeline.csv: company, contact name and role, owner, status (
talked/warm/verbal-yes/signed/no), next step, date. No emails or phone numbers in the repo. Put those in Mautic, or DM them to Guzman. - Drop a one-liner in the Slack thread "Rotterdam leads", e.g.
Agiledrop / Name, CTO / warm / wants Gold + two-edition, send agreement / Jens. - MountainClaw collects the thread into the pipeline each evening.
- Follow-up within 48 hours. Guzman sends the mail using the template below. The on-site owner stays CC'd.
Attendee card (A6, ~200 prints)¶
Front
MOUNTAIN CAMP 2027 10 years in the mountains Davos · March 2-4, 2027 Fireside chat with Dries Buytaert Humans with AI in the loop
Back
Private LLMs. Agentic engineering. Sovereign AI. Fondue, a pub quiz and a ski day with 100-plus open source builders.
Speak: the call for sessions closes Oct 11 Come: Early Bird CHF 80 until Nov 15, voucher ROTTERDAM [QR] drupalmountaincamp.ch
QR: https://drupalmountaincamp.ch/?utm_source=drupalcon-rotterdam&utm_medium=print&utm_campaign=attendees
Email templates¶
A. Renewal (2024/2025 sponsors), sent by Guzman on Mon Sep 28¶
Subject: Mountain Camp turns 10: your spot is reserved until Oct 16
Hi [Name],
Thank you again for sponsoring Mountain Camp [2024/2025]. We couldn't do it without partners like [Company].
Mountain Camp 2027 is our 10th anniversary: March 2-4 in Davos, with a fireside chat with Dries Buytaert and a program built around "Humans with AI in the loop", including a Sovereign AI day.
As a returning sponsor, you get first refusal on your [Gold/Silver] spot until Oct 16. There are also new packages this year (presenting the Dries chat, recordings, fondue night), 15% off if you commit to two editions, and invoices can be split Dec/Jan.
One-pager attached. Several of us are at DrupalCon Rotterdam this week. Is anyone from [Company] there for a quick coffee?
Cheers, Guzman, for the Mountain Camp team
B. Rotterdam follow-up, within 48h¶
Subject: Great to meet you at DrupalCon, Mountain Camp 2027
Hi [Name],
Thanks for the chat with [Dan/Jens/Sinduri] at DrupalCon about [topic]. As promised, here's the one-pager. The package we talked about was [package], CHF [price].
Sign by Oct 31 and you get an extra ticket plus a spot in our schedule announcement on Nov 15. Shall I send the agreement, or would a 15-minute call help?
Cheers, Guzman
C. New prospect: sovereignty and AI infrastructure¶
Subject: Sovereign AI Day at Mountain Camp 2027, looking for one partner
Hi [Name],
Mountain Camp is a 10th-anniversary open source conference in Davos (Mar 2-4, 2027) with Dries Buytaert, AI practitioners, and digital teams from Swiss cantons and agencies. One day focuses on Sovereign AI: running models and data on infrastructure you control.
[Company] is exactly what that audience is looking for. We're offering one exclusive "Sovereign AI Day presented by [Company]" package (CHF 4,000). The program stays independent, but your brand opens the day and sits on every recording.
Would you be open to a 15-minute call?
Best, [Owner]