Sponsorship Policy

Sponsorship Policy

How we select, govern and work with sponsors—and what those relationships mean for our readers.

Overview

LowVisionGuide.org accepts support from a limited number of organizations whose work aligns with our mission.

The program is deliberately small. Selectivity helps protect the meaning of the relationship and our readers’ trust.

Sponsorship is financial support for the operation of LowVisionGuide.org. It does not purchase advertising, editorial coverage, recommendations or influence.

Every Mission Sponsor and Community Partner must agree in writing to our Editorial Independence Charter and the applicable sponsorship terms before the relationship begins.

Program categories

Mission Sponsors

Mission Sponsors are commercial organizations operating within the low-vision or blindness ecosystem.

Participation is paid and generally covers a one-year term. The program is limited to no more than eight active Mission Sponsors at one time.

Mission Sponsors may receive:

• Organization name, logo, mission description and link on the Sponsors page
• A clearly identified acknowledgment in the site footer
• Periodic acknowledgment in the newsletter
• Inclusion in the annual impact report
• An approved “Proud Sponsor” badge for use during the sponsorship term
• The opportunity to purchase category-exclusive sponsor placement when available

These benefits recognize financial support. They do not represent a product recommendation, quality certification or endorsement.

Community Partners

Community Partners may include qualifying nonprofit organizations, government programs and accredited educational institutions serving people who are blind or have low vision.

Participation may be offered at a reduced fee or without charge. The program is limited to no more than six active Community Partners at one time.

Community Partners may receive:

• Organization name, logo, mission description and link on the Sponsors page
• A separate Community Partner acknowledgment in the site footer
• Periodic acknowledgment in the newsletter
• Inclusion in the annual impact report

Participation by a public agency does not imply government approval, endorsement or sponsorship of LowVisionGuide.org or Visible Living LLC.

Industry Supporters

Industry Supporters are organizations recognized for documented nonfinancial contributions, such as:

• Lending equipment for independent evaluation
• Providing technical training
• Participating in an educational demonstration
• Supplying factual product documentation
• Sharing professional expertise

Industry Supporters:

• Do not pay a sponsorship fee
• Are listed separately from sponsors
• May have the contribution described publicly
• Receive no sponsorship benefits
• Receive no editorial influence or preferred treatment

Providing equipment or information does not guarantee publication, a review, a recommendation or a favorable conclusion.

Qualification requirements

We review every prospective relationship before acceptance.

Mission Sponsors

A Mission Sponsor must:

• Operate within or meaningfully support the low-vision or blindness ecosystem
• Offer products or services legally available in the United States
• Meet applicable legal, accessibility and regulatory requirements for its product or service category
• Avoid materially deceptive, unsupported or unsafe claims
• Agree in writing to the Editorial Independence Charter
• Accept that sponsorship provides no right to influence, preview, approve or suppress editorial content
• Satisfy our reputation, mission-alignment and conflict review

Community Partners

A Community Partner must ordinarily be:

• A registered nonprofit organization
• A government agency or program
• An accredited educational institution
• Another noncommercial organization approved through documented review

Its mission or program must directly serve people who are blind or have low vision.

Public entities participate only through processes permitted by their governing laws, policies and ethics requirements. A listing does not imply an official endorsement.

What sponsors receive

The exact benefits, term, fee and payment conditions are defined in a written sponsorship agreement.

Public recognition will clearly distinguish:

• Paid Mission Sponsors
• Community Partners
• Nonfinancial Industry Supporters

Sponsor logos and links will not be presented as editorial recommendations or incorporated into article content in a way that resembles a product endorsement.

Benefits do not include traffic, sales, conversion or editorial-coverage guarantees.

What sponsors do not receive

Sponsors, partners and supporters do not receive:

• Access to editorial drafts
• Advance access to publication schedules
• The right to select editorial topics
• The right to write or approve editorial content
• Favorable treatment in reviews, rankings or comparisons
• Guaranteed coverage of their organization or products
• Guaranteed positive conclusions
• Advance notice of criticism or negative findings
• The right to require removal, modification or suppression of accurate content
• Native advertising
• Sponsored articles
• Paid editorial content
• Control over corrections or editorial decisions

A sponsor may report a possible factual error through the same correction process available to any reader or organization. We independently determine whether a correction is warranted.

Commercial disagreement, reputational discomfort or unfavorable analysis is not a factual error.

Editorial independence

The editorial and sponsorship functions are separated by an editorial firewall.

Sponsors do not participate in:

• Evaluation design
• Product testing
• Article preparation
• Rankings
• Recommendations
• Publication decisions
• Corrections decisions
• Medical or technical review
• Content-removal decisions

If a sponsor contacts us about published content, the communication is documented and evaluated under our normal editorial procedures.

Sponsorship status neither protects an organization from criticism nor creates an obligation to cover it.

Category-exclusive placement

One Mission Sponsor may purchase exclusive sponsor placement within an approved category for a defined term.

Category exclusivity means only that LowVisionGuide.org will not sell the same sponsorship-placement category to another organization during that term.

It does not:

• Exclude competitors from editorial coverage
• Prevent comparison with competing products
• Affect rankings or recommendations
• Restrict links to competitors
• Guarantee coverage of the sponsor
• Create a preferred editorial position
• Represent exclusive endorsement of the sponsor’s products

We review, compare and recommend products without regard to sponsorship status.

Category definitions, term dates, availability and fees must be specified in the written agreement. We may decline exclusivity when it could create confusion or undermine reader trust.

Product samples and equipment loans

A sponsor, supporter or other manufacturer may provide or lend a product for evaluation.

When relevant content results, we disclose whether the product was:

• Provided without charge
• Loaned temporarily
• Purchased by LowVisionGuide.org or Visible Living LLC
• Provided at a discount
• Obtained through another material relationship

Supplying a product does not guarantee publication or a favorable assessment.

We do not accept payment for positive reviews, predetermined conclusions or preferred rankings.

Transparency and disclosures

All active Mission Sponsors and Community Partners are listed on our Sponsors page.

When an article reviews, recommends or substantially discusses a product from a current sponsor, we place a clear disclosure near the beginning of the article.

Standard disclosure:

Disclosure: [Organization name] is a Mission Sponsor of LowVisionGuide.org. Sponsorship does not influence our editorial assessments, recommendations or conclusions.

When a product was supplied for evaluation, that relationship is also disclosed.

Our annual impact report identifies the organizations that participated in the sponsorship program during the reporting period.

Relationship to Visible Living LLC

LowVisionGuide.org is owned and operated by Visible Living LLC, which also operates the VisibleLiving.org retail website.

A sponsor may separately be a supplier, manufacturer or commercial partner of Visible Living LLC. When that relationship is relevant to editorial content, it will be disclosed.

Sponsorship does not require Visible Living to carry a sponsor’s products, and a retail relationship does not require LowVisionGuide.org to recommend them.

Renewal and termination

Sponsorship terms are generally annual and do not renew automatically.

Before renewal, we review:

• Mission alignment
• Compliance with the sponsorship agreement
• Business practices
• Product and service quality
• Regulatory or legal concerns
• Publicly documented consumer concerns
• Conduct toward LowVisionGuide.org’s editorial staff
• Continued compatibility with this policy

We may decline renewal or terminate a relationship when permitted by the written agreement.

Sponsors may withdraw before the end of a term. The treatment of fees, benefits, badges and public listings after withdrawal is governed by the written agreement. Withdrawal does not create a right to a refund unless the agreement expressly provides one.

After termination, withdrawal or nonrenewal:

• Sponsor acknowledgments are removed within a reasonable administrative period.
• Permission to use the “Proud Sponsor” badge ends.
• Historical disclosures remain where needed to explain a relationship that existed when content was created.
• Editorial coverage remains independent.
• Published content is not removed solely because the commercial relationship ended.

Sponsorship inquiries

We are not currently accepting open applications.

Sponsorship discussions may begin through an invitation from LowVisionGuide.org or an inquiry from an organization that believes there is a strong mission fit.

Contact sponsorship@lowvisionguide.org.

We aim to acknowledge inquiries within five business days. An inquiry does not guarantee qualification, availability or an offer.

Policy information

• Website: LowVisionGuide.org
• Owner: Visible Living LLC
• Effective date: August 2026
• Review cycle: At least annually and whenever the sponsorship model materially changes
• Sponsorship contact: sponsorship@lowvisionguide.org
• Editorial concerns: editorial@lowvisionguide.org