Motorsport Sponsorship for National Club Racing
Discussion
Does anyone here have a sponsorship deal to support their racing? I have had some success last year but intend to go all out for 2006 to secure some sponsorship following my class win this year. Can anyone provide hints or tips?
...and seeing as I'm on the subject, I'm always open to a chat if you/your company would like to support Zone Motorsport!!
...and seeing as I'm on the subject, I'm always open to a chat if you/your company would like to support Zone Motorsport!!
No, sponsor me instead 
www.chassis33.co.uk/9520/index.html
In my experience nothing has come of mail shots etc etc, its getting to know people who might have an interest in what you can offer other than a 100mph advertising board, whcih is, at the end of the day, what sponsored racing cars are, give or take the speed. Offer them the world in ruturn for their cash and give them enough to keep them happy. (If my Keri, Derek Ted, etc al are reading this I'm giving you the world ok!!!)
Also try reading Perry McCarthy's "Flat out broke" it may not get you sponsorship but make you realise there is a fun side to having a wing and a prayer!!!
All the best in finding something for next season
Regards
Iain
www.chassis33.co.uk/9520/index.html
In my experience nothing has come of mail shots etc etc, its getting to know people who might have an interest in what you can offer other than a 100mph advertising board, whcih is, at the end of the day, what sponsored racing cars are, give or take the speed. Offer them the world in ruturn for their cash and give them enough to keep them happy. (If my Keri, Derek Ted, etc al are reading this I'm giving you the world ok!!!)
Also try reading Perry McCarthy's "Flat out broke" it may not get you sponsorship but make you realise there is a fun side to having a wing and a prayer!!!
All the best in finding something for next season
Regards
Iain
I was thinking about this last night....
It'd be interesting to see what different racers would be prepared to offer sponsors in a sort of reverse auction type thing.
For example (hypothetically speaking), say I allocated £1000 for sponsorship in 2006. What opportunities could racers offer...?
It'd be interesting to see what different racers would be prepared to offer sponsors in a sort of reverse auction type thing.
For example (hypothetically speaking), say I allocated £1000 for sponsorship in 2006. What opportunities could racers offer...?
I'll dedicate my whole sprint car to PH advertising for that money and will be entering as many sprints in the bottom half of the country as possible.
I'll also be attending trackdays in it.
(Well I have to try, that pays for the brakes and tyres!)
>> Edited by DustyC on Friday 16th December 12:44
I'll also be attending trackdays in it.
(Well I have to try, that pays for the brakes and tyres!)
>> Edited by DustyC on Friday 16th December 12:44
little RZD said:
For example (hypothetically speaking), say I allocated £1000 for sponsorship in 2006. What opportunities could racers offer...?
Do you mean what you would get inturn for the sponsorship?
Yes. I get a lot of approaches for sponsorship and most of them are pretty lame propositions to be honest. It'd be interesting to see some constructive proposals. I'm sure other people with sponsorship dosh feel the same. Too many people think that putting a few stickers on a car is the end of the story and that somehow that is a good business proposition.
Well, id allocate space on the car and racewear for the company’s logo, if the price was right id offer a few tuition/ track days for free in my car, guest passes to all race days and a complementary meal. Also id like my sponsors to get a true feel for what racing is all about, so that they can see where their money is going.
This is the approach I took when asking Rallynuts for sponsorship.
Oh and yes i am looking for sponsors for the 2006 season
This is the approach I took when asking Rallynuts for sponsorship.
Oh and yes i am looking for sponsors for the 2006 season
i'd have thought a great return for a company would be able to take clients on a trackday with 'their' sponsored race car and maybe a cheap trackday car for them to drive. ie you get hot laps with race driver in race car if possible and clients get to drive. ive done loads of trackdays as a client driving hired caterham superlights (the srs ones), the few hundred invested has payed itself back hundreds of times over.
Interesting, but I'd suggest thinking about it as a business proposition. What you've sold me so far is a small ego trip of my brand on a car and some jollies. I can buy them anywhere - how are you differentiating?
Stickers are all very well but unless I know who's going to see them and where then I've no idea of the value of them.
Hope this isn't negative, what I'm trying to do is point out that people asking for money need to be a lot more constructive. Look at who you're pitching to and ask yourself how you could make a difference to their business.
Check this out
Stickers are all very well but unless I know who's going to see them and where then I've no idea of the value of them.
Hope this isn't negative, what I'm trying to do is point out that people asking for money need to be a lot more constructive. Look at who you're pitching to and ask yourself how you could make a difference to their business.
Check this out
I knwo Im not in with a chance since I only sprint but Im interested in following this anyway.
So you mean something along the lines of.
My car (and your sponsorship) will be seen in the so-and-so race series which is 12 races at:
(List of circuits).
It will also be at the so-and-so race at Spa and test/trackdays at Silverstone, goodwood etc etc.
Pictures of my car and your sponsorship will appear on my web site, the championship website and publications covering it such as CircuitDriver, so-and-so racing, Practical Performance car and Readers wives.
Im a memeber of the DieselBonce car club (40,000 memebers) and regularly attend meets with other petrol heads who are keen to see my car. (or some such other similar public interest statement).
Is this more what you expect to see as well as the list of freebies?
So you mean something along the lines of.
My car (and your sponsorship) will be seen in the so-and-so race series which is 12 races at:
(List of circuits).
It will also be at the so-and-so race at Spa and test/trackdays at Silverstone, goodwood etc etc.
Pictures of my car and your sponsorship will appear on my web site, the championship website and publications covering it such as CircuitDriver, so-and-so racing, Practical Performance car and Readers wives.
Im a memeber of the DieselBonce car club (40,000 memebers) and regularly attend meets with other petrol heads who are keen to see my car. (or some such other similar public interest statement).
Is this more what you expect to see as well as the list of freebies?
I've got a mate who works in marketing for a household name product, and regularly gets approached for motorsports sponsorship. He said the only one they've ever remotely considered was the ASCAR (or whatever it's called these days) racing at Rockingham, as the circuit could provide them with 100,000 free tickets to give away in a promotion (as well as the usual full car branding, tv coverage and use of car for trade shows etc.) But even that wasn't enough to get their money.
When even the two weekly motorsport mags carry few pictures other than those of F1 cars or crashes, I can't see why anyone would sponsor motorsports other than for altruistic reasons.
For Ted's £1k budget, why not just issue free stickers to all the racers on the site, and then for 10-weeks over the summer have a £100 draw from everyone who is spotted racing that week?
When even the two weekly motorsport mags carry few pictures other than those of F1 cars or crashes, I can't see why anyone would sponsor motorsports other than for altruistic reasons.
For Ted's £1k budget, why not just issue free stickers to all the racers on the site, and then for 10-weeks over the summer have a £100 draw from everyone who is spotted racing that week?
If you are lucky enough to get your hands on a copy, the 'Bible' of sponsorship is...
"Sponsorship and the World of Motor Racing" by Guy Edwards, Hazleton Publishing.
He goes into minute detail of all his deals, for both his own racing (F1, Sportscars, BTCC, etc) and his role as a sponsorship hunter for the likes of TWR Jaguar and Lotus F1. Over his career he amassed over $170 MILLION is sponsorship funds, of which he got 10% as an agent!!! He made far more money as an ex-F1 driver than he ever did when driving.
The book is VERY rare, usually not sold for less than £400, and yes, I do have a copy. And, NO, you can't borrow it...
"Sponsorship and the World of Motor Racing" by Guy Edwards, Hazleton Publishing.
He goes into minute detail of all his deals, for both his own racing (F1, Sportscars, BTCC, etc) and his role as a sponsorship hunter for the likes of TWR Jaguar and Lotus F1. Over his career he amassed over $170 MILLION is sponsorship funds, of which he got 10% as an agent!!! He made far more money as an ex-F1 driver than he ever did when driving.
The book is VERY rare, usually not sold for less than £400, and yes, I do have a copy. And, NO, you can't borrow it...
PetrolTed said:
Say I allocated £1000 for sponsorship in 2006. What opportunities could racers offer...?
That's a very good way of thinking about it, Ted. An unsolicited pitch is guessing what you want to achieve - if the pitcher doesn't understand what you want to achieve, how are they going to offer you a proposal that excites you? It's a marketing issue, so what are your objectives:
- Increased site traffic, leading to increased ad revenue?
- More credibility, leading to better quality traffic, leading to increased click-through ad revenue?
- Promoting in-house income streams (the shop, BTaP, Eurohoon)?
- Promoting new income streams?
- Ego trip (nothing wrong with that, as long as we both understand that's part of the equation)?
- Benevolence (there are still people out there who are willing to lend a go-getter a hand)?
So the correct answer would be "Let's meet up for a pint, and you tell me what you're trying to achieve. I can then come back with some ideas - which might not even include having your name on the side of my car."
GarrettMacD said:
If you are lucky enough to get your hands on a copy, the 'Bible' of sponsorship is...
"Sponsorship and the World of Motor Racing" by Guy Edwards, Hazleton Publishing.
He goes into minute detail of all his deals, for both his own racing (F1, Sportscars, BTCC, etc) and his role as a sponsorship hunter for the likes of TWR Jaguar and Lotus F1. Over his career he amassed over $170 MILLION is sponsorship funds, of which he got 10% as an agent!!! He made far more money as an ex-F1 driver than he ever did when driving.
The book is VERY rare, usually not sold for less than £400, and yes, I do have a copy. And, NO, you can't borrow it...
Sounds promising for 2006 Garrett!!! :-)
HiRich - Nice to hear from you again... yes I'm still on the sponsorship trail and much of your comments from ten-tenths 12 months ago were put into action with some success..thanks!
HiRich said:
Say I allocated £1000 for sponsorship in 2006. What opportunities could racers offer...?
That's a very good way of thinking about it, Ted. An unsolicited pitch is guessing what you want to achieve - if the pitcher doesn't understand what you want to achieve, how are they going to offer you a proposal that excites you? It's a marketing issue, so what are your objectives:
Definitely the way to think about it! All too often people ask for money/sponsorship without actually offering any sort of opportunity. In PH's (theoretical) case there are a number of aspects to the business that I could be seeking to exploit and anyone pitching to me without asking what those are or suggesting means by which I could promote one of those streams would be wasting their time.
Sponsorship is a business deal. The first rule of business is to understand what both parties need to achieve from a deal.
we (SEATCupra.net) have previously had agreements with a few of the cupra drivers. We've tried to make it work for the members as well and insited on a diary for some of these deals, and it was very informative for the drivers that did actually get around to it. In turn, this gave the driver lots of publicity, so both parties are gaining (were not profit making). As a side issue, one of our advertisers then came on board to help one of the teams, so although in our case its more of a barter deal, its important that as Ted says, its not just a sticker.
I work on loads of livery proposals and for the ones that come off monthly updates on how things are going, diary etc really help cement a relationship. Its no good doing a deal,getting the sticker, cashing the cheque and then ignore them. You'd be surprised how often that happens.
I work on loads of livery proposals and for the ones that come off monthly updates on how things are going, diary etc really help cement a relationship. Its no good doing a deal,getting the sticker, cashing the cheque and then ignore them. You'd be surprised how often that happens.
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