Sposorship -specific suggestions please [Archive]

Karma

31st January 2006, 22:32

Well you need a company that benefits from the publicity you can give them on the track, and they therefore need to be marketing to the crowd.
I'd imagine it's young blokes with disposable income.
You also need a company that has enough money to throw around that it can bother with bike racing which I'd imagine isn't as high profile as some other sports.
You tried going to major companies? ie. Microsoft (XBox) / Sony / Panasonic etc...

Mooch

31st January 2006, 23:31

It was interesting to watch an associate "market" for sponsorship in the cage racing world. The driver is very competent NZ driver, but not so good on marketing. A good friend of the associate helped him market better by doing the following.

A CV of the guys race career was put together, this included a few pictures of the driver, the car and a few track shots of the car.

A powerpoint presentation was also developed outlining what they were after in terms of money and to give a taste of what they were offering. It also outlined the race series and the opportunities to view the racing.

Question and answers followed.

A fast punchy short movie was done in a style similar to a motor sport highlights video was done , a few still shots , some trackside footage , and a bit of in car video. Anyone with a handycam and a PC can do this for you today. This was used to finish the presentation

They put careful thought into what they could offer the sponsor. They targeted corporate companies that would normally have customer events. (like rugby , theatre , motor racing and the likes) The corporate would take the clients trackside and give them a day of racing, give them drinks / meal. The Driver would make a few appearances during the day at the corporate tent / box. The corporate could offset the day under entertainment and marketing (read tax offset) and everybody goes home happy and it also builds your own profile with more people knowing how you are and gives them someone to back while watching the racing.

I realise that motorcycle racing has a slightly smaller following, but maybe some of the above would help yourself.

gav

1st February 2006, 06:35

Ok guys n gals how about some specific suggestions as to where to look for sponsorship.
Some of you must have some bright spark ideas that we havent thought of.
Start winning and keep on winning! Sponsors will flock to you!

FROSTY

1st February 2006, 06:59

gee thanks gav --I'm working on that one :brick: :brick:

soundbeltfarm

1st February 2006, 08:19

have you tried for pub charity?
i told TS about it but not sure if he followed it up.
our cricket club was needing sponsership and we had a guy join it who seemed to be able to think of wicked ideas for sponsership, now we are the wealthiest cricket club in taranaki.
he went to one of our local pubs and asked about pub charity sponsership for our club,
we got 10k out of it and it cost us nothing , but we had our end year dinner there.
they have to give a percentage of the pokie's towards a community based activity, and the owner told us they were allowed to use it for sporting codes.
so it,s worth a try.

ManDownUnder

1st February 2006, 08:24

No doubt some/all of these have been covered...

Lotteries commission?

Approach some of the companies advertising at the track (they're obviously sympathetic, and might be open to you "taking their message" further afield...)

Bike shops

Bike Gear makers.

Car Painters (show off/get a custom paint job AND sponsorship). Or panelbeaters?

That advertising outfit that pays people to put the ads on cars. Why not do it for bikes too?

Paint manufacturers (they have bigger budgets and advertise on the TV).

Anyone advertising on TV with a "sympathetic product" I.e. one that compliments their business (Paint, Tyres etc).

Mike Perot Mortgages (obviously a racing kinda guy with some dosh to put forward).

Do some research and find who used to race and is now up in business circles

errr... that's about it from the top of my head.

edit - as per soundbelt famr's closing comment... let us know who sponsors you and I'll (personally) put them on a "preferred supplier" list - i.e. they get more of my business. I'm sure others would do the same

James Deuce

1st February 2006, 08:30

Don't approach anyone until you have a press kit like Mooch says. Don't forget that sponsorship can be product rather than money. Often product is easier for Corporate sponsors to provide, like tyres, trailers, fuel & oil, mobile phones, foodstuffs, yadda yadda.

soundbeltfarm

1st February 2006, 08:33

a novel one is do what some people have done before auction off your back or vehicle on TM for a couple of weeks or somthing.

FROSTY

1st February 2006, 09:20

One thing I thought of was selling off bragging rights on the bike--Your signature goes on the fairing for like $20.00

Fishy

1st February 2006, 09:25

enigma51

1st February 2006, 09:31

One thing I thought of was selling off bragging rights on the bike--Your signature goes on the fairing for like $20.00
Not a bad idea. Talk to colemans etc about putting there stickers and stuff on you bike for x amount of money per cm and see what happens

Badcat

1st February 2006, 09:31

Hey Frosty have you tried Red Bull? They are always trying to get their name out there. I remember a few years back they were asking around for guys on modern sports bikes that would be willing to have their bikes completely repainted in Red Bull colour scheme and graphic... I know of a couple of guys that took up their offer.

Might be a go?. Worth a try anyway

red bull's GM is a guy called Glyn.
they actually have some budget, unlike most, and could be a good opportunity.
you WILL need a press kit, with a clear schedule of events entered, as discussed above.

k

cowpoos

1st February 2006, 10:11

One thing I thought of was selling off bragging rights on the bike--Your signature goes on the fairing for like $20.00

"hey everyone I had my sig on a bike that came in 6th in F3"

that ain't the best bragging rights to hav at the pub...

I think a few guys here have some excellent ideas.... mooch,sound and fish hav some good points and ideas...

HDTboy

1st February 2006, 11:58

I always though Burger Fuel would be keen to sponsor motorsports, due to the play on words.
They were a minor sponsor of the friday night drags last season, and one of the franchise offices is in Lake Rd, next door to my old work.
Their colour scheme is quite cool, and the logo could be easily sign written onto a bike and / or trailer

ManDownUnder

1st February 2006, 12:47

as part of a longer term plan - really draw attention to yourself.

Bike a neon red or pink, leathers the same, talk it up around the track. You've got the personality to carry it off....

Once you have the eyes of the world on you, real estate on the bike (and you) will go up in price. Tell the advertisers (and prospects) it's all part of the plan. You realised they needed eyes on their ads - so you have arranged it.

riffer

1st February 2006, 12:51

There's a heap of guys here that can help you with graphic design work and building a press kit (me included).

Get me some info and pics and I'll help ya with getting it together mate.

I may be going through this myself in a few months as a mate and I are working over winter building a blown 350 chev-powered T-bucket racer for the drags later this year...

and it's scary how much parts can cost, especially when we are looking at getting low 9's - mid 8's out of it. And we're lucky as we have access to a CNC machine and good operator who will build us parts for free if we design them, as he's a mechanical engineer and my mate's father.

motobob

1st February 2006, 20:58

Mooch has got good info in his Post. Key thing is what can you offer your potential sponsors that would make them come on board. Their customers are important to them so what the cust enjoys is key to gaining sponsorship. Pity laps on the back aren't practical or of general interest. The level of presentation at Motorcycle events is low so you can't offer hospitality unless you have a big budget.

You could involve some of your local businesses for Auckland events as long as they sell products that Bikers will buy and steer them in that direction. A sign writer as a key sponsor would be important so that you can present the other sponsors well. Most businesses would kick in small donations of $500 if you can present them well and feed them at the event.

Of course there are massage Parlours that may be interested in the great unwashed horde called Bikers. I think one guy out of Hamilton tried this. That would be one Hospitality Tent with a difference. :wari:

Another idea is to organise fund raising events where you get a cut of the ticket sales or have businesses of goods to auction off at an event. Seen this done well for schools and clubs. You need a good pool of people for this one though.

Have a chat to Shaun Harris to see how he got dollars to run his team. That must have cost a small fortune to run.

gav

2nd February 2006, 21:01

Yeah mate, put an ad here on KiwiBiker, how much you need anyway?

FROSTY

2nd February 2006, 21:42

to run a complete season will cost around $8000 -allowing nothing for breakdowns
Broken down costs are.
Fuel --to and from and also to run the bike -$2000 (120 return to Taupo 200 To manfeild) also south island transport
Entry fees -4 x club series amcc 4x club series pmcc 5 x nationals 2x street meets $1500
Accomodation $1200 --10nights around NZ
Tyres 5 sets $2500 ($500 recovery for used tyres)
Ferry tickets $240
General maintainence/oil/filters/brake pads $500

Karma

2nd February 2006, 21:45

Accomodation $1200 --10nights around NZ

I've got only four letters for you Frosty...

Y.M.C.A!! It's fun to stay at the... Y.M.C.A!!

MadDuck

2nd February 2006, 21:52

Maybe the sponsors that support you guys need something for their money.

PlaceMakers arent in Paeroa but maybe they should be...its the lead up to the V8s. Whos got the balls to take it to these marketing people?

MadDuck

2nd February 2006, 21:54

I've got only four letters for you Frosty...

Y.M.C.A!! It's fun to stay at the... Y.M.C.A!!

its only impossible if you think it is :nono:

MadDuck

2nd February 2006, 21:57

Get off your damn asses. Theres sponsors out there if you know how to market yourselfs properly.

Enough of the wow is me!

MadDuck

2nd February 2006, 22:08

you know this post pisses me off

Get out there people. Ask, send letters, beg. You just never know! But have a decent portfolio and a direction. Bad answer is "I wanna race"

What are you giving your sponsors?

FROSTY

2nd February 2006, 22:46

madduck--no woe is me from this boy
Asking folks for ideas -ideas are good things.
As for the costs --no woe is me-its a factual breakdown of costs.
Ohh folks sorry I guess I wasn't being clear. The cv thing etc -all understood completely.
The-whats in it for me thing I also understand.
Just shaking the KB brains trust up for ideas as to specific places to contact and different aproaches that might not have been thought of

Brian d marge

2nd February 2006, 23:17

I had a thread there about racing expenses , was largely ignored but This is what I had in mind , Racing costs money !

I use Quicken and have a fully detailed budget ( which I ignore if I see a bright shiny thing that I just must have !)

Quicken will do the tax side of things as well , Very usefull when giving a sponsor a detailed view of what they can get back in tax.

As for sponsors ( my wife pays me to leave the house so I am sweet for this season)

But look at it from the business side , Why should I pay you money ? what am I going to get out of this deal and IF I do sling you anything what proof is there that I will get anything back ???

If you can front up to a business with cold hard facts that you will see an increase in sales by X amount by slinging me a few crumbs of you annual budget ,,,

That will take some research and marketing skills ( try a questionaire ,,then see how many people answer with umm dunno really ,,,,,,after you have spent both time and money preparing the questions !!! )

One Idea I was thinking about was.. kids, looking after the kids of familys who raced /went to races , this would leave mum and dad free to get on with racing /watching .

Or providing a COMFORTABLE area for paying people to watch the races from , ( food /drinks /Service )

Just a few thoughts
Good luck

As 8 k is a lot of money !!!!!

Stephen

Mrs Busa Pete

3rd February 2006, 06:32

1/ What about getting a advertising page going on this site i'm sure there are a few people in bussiness for themself and i for 1 would support one of our own.And i also work for myself so would pay to have my business card posted on the site

2/ What about a Auction ie if all kbers donated an item to be auction you would a have a wicked one i mean how many members are on this site one thing each .Just find a location i could probably help with auctioner same sort of thing that you had here but on a bigger scale.I might be able to help with a location.You can pm me if any of this sounds ok.

Racey Rider

3rd February 2006, 07:48

you know this post pisses me off
I don't think this thread was posted just to line Frostys pockets with gold.
I see it as another good motivation tool to incourage all us racers to think about our sponsorship options. and most importantly,, do Something!

Thanks for listing your costings Frosty. Helps put mine into perspective. (and sell it to the wife)
Have listed mine in another thread.

Mooch

3rd February 2006, 12:29

Heh ,frosty , forgot to mention that the marketing worked , the driver went from racing clubman type events, through to NZ touring cars and on to V8 Supercars. Lots of natural driving ability yes, targeted marketing yes ... We call that a Win / Win situation in IT.

I've been thinking about this more. Ok, you’re into bike racing which has minimal TV coverage which doesn't help as much with the big spender corporate. I've been to the odd corporate event or two. Often the big spenders will also sponsor the lower levels. One sponsor ran a Trans Tasman series (Those Formula Holden single seater thingies). As well as the main race they sponsored a couple of minor races /cars as well. You could target a couple of the main motorcycle racer sponsors to see if they would sponsor you. Say you already have a following of 3,200 KBer’s with high deposal incomes to spend on products :whistle: . It would give there customers someone to cheer for in the other races of the day and your $8k pa plus rebuilds / new bikes won't seem much to them at all.

The other way would be to find a sponsor for youe whole racing class. This may actually be easier to find than an individual. Maybe target IT / telecommunications companies , it has a very high percentage of customers that are petrol heads going by KB and a few performance car forums I’m on. (And with my NZ IT staff, over %50 are into wheels and engines)

Just think , how much effort would 20 minor sponsors take compared to 1 or 2 major , it's your time , it's up to you.

I'm back in NZ in Mid April, so I'd have no problems in doing a promo video for you, I could catch you at Manfield / or maybe Taupo. You've put the time into helping / up skilling KBer's, I'll put the time in for you. I’m too heavy and old to race , but I sure enjoy watching other people do it well.:niceone:

crazefox

3rd February 2006, 18:58

Mate i have no problems suppling paint and or doing plastic repairs on your bike.
If you need my help just give me a yell bud

FROSTY

3rd February 2006, 19:19

Thanks a million folks -lets keep all these fantastic ideas and offers rolling in.
RR hit it on the head -lets all us racers on KB get motivated.
Ohh and folks --I floated the idea of a KB racing club--now dya see why??

Brian d marge

4th February 2006, 20:34

Trawling the web and came across this , Levels tripple r racing I think , ( am I allowed to link to this??)

Anyway look at it over and over , then put your self in a potential sponsors shoes ,, Dont know about anyone else . I saw 2 odd people , suzuki written on the bike and blue oh and the leathers were orange

My opinion here, but as a business I would get more milage out of a targeted advertisement linking it to a web page

We are pretty advertisement immune ( well I am , unless its funny or relevant )

Thats where I was coming from with the look after the kids angle ...take a kid racing you might then stand a chance at lottery commission money ( You might have to rename it Hip Hop holiday /tours)

Baseball isnt just baseball its an evening out dad watches the game kids play in the amusement park , mum goes shopping ( I know I know but hopefully the point is made ) you have to think outside the square ..

I liked the comment about Jarad Love the commentator made ,,,if ever there was a good add for weight loss Jarad is it ...he said that on National TV ...people would have been clicking away looking for the web page!!

I do like the Idea of a Members club.... extra fee paid , but you get the whole 9 yards laid on , comfortable chair . sheltered from the wind . beer . food all in a clean well presented environment ..( just guessing 15 dollars on top of the gate price, 10 for you and 5 top cover expenses per person )
Dont know just a thought or two
8 k is a lot of money in my books !

good luck

Stephen

MadDuck

9th February 2006, 20:03

Sorry guys. I completely misread the thread and made some rather terse comments which were not justified.

You all have local newspapers ah? Try there as a first. There was a write up in the local Rodney Times about the lady that died on Johnsons Hill on Boxing Day...It was so well done and is an inspiration to anyone that saw it.

Do a write up on why you ride ... why you race...what you need... it just takes one person to say "Hey I like this guys attitude".

FROSTY

9th February 2006, 20:20

Brian -good idea
I've been keeping a close look at what I've been spending. I thought it would be intereresting for fellow racers. I wanted the figures to reflect reality not airy fairy dream figures.
Ya can easily see that running a two bike team doesn't double the costs of racing - I think to run a two bike team could be done for 12k -6k each
Itll reduce a lot the cost per person.

Brian d marge

9th February 2006, 23:18

And I have been thinking about this club Idea of yours a bit more. Has a lot going for it. Breaking the racing down into its component parts , Tyres , fairings , oil .etc
Then say ok who , and where can I get this help , If it was spread around a few people, who said "ok I would like to help a race , but I aint a mechanic or have any money what could I do" The answer could be sand the mould for the fairings , Or arrange the travel ..101 of those things

For those who have skills they could offer their skills such as , I can tune the race bike for you at no labour charge , just the price of the spares needed

And if you have 1 bike surely this could be expanded into 2 .
, 3 , 4 bikes If you sand one fairing mold down the next one should be easier and faster ...

what am trying to get to here is that if the tasks are broken down into small enough componets then they become easier for people to do / businesses espescially where paying time is important, if i was working in the fibre glassing business , i dont want to be making fairings for free , but my advice may be free , or exchanged for advertisment ( spreading the good word?)
All this would of course take organising but hey No man is an Island and you cant do everything yourself . ( I know ,,,as I have to do most of it myself , and I dont get much time to maintain the bike ,so it gets a bit worn out by the end of the year !!!)

Good luck there

Stephen