Tip #6:  Never Underestimate the Power of a GROUP When Seeking Partners!

WARNING... What you're about to read MAY SHOCK YOU.  After all, though there's a team behind you, when you're on the track, racing is an INDIVIDUAL sport where it's every racer for themselves.  Traditionally the same goes for sponsor hunts, too.  Ever heard or had a conversation like this?

Racer:  "Joe's Supply is MY sponsor... I hear the 23 car is sniffing around them trying to steal them from me"

Close Friend: "Yeah... that's not right!"

Here's your reality check:  As has been proven in the highest levels of NASCAR, the concept of sponsor loyalty to a team isn't what it used to be, but earning loyalty is another topic for another time.  THIS TOPIC is about the potential power of a GROUP with a sponsor so you can build a larger loyalty loop!

Think about what a team like Roush Fenway Racing has to offer to a sponsor over a smaller team like Furniture Row racing.  This isn't necessarily about on-track performance, it's about the ability to spread awareness across more than one platform or racer.  At Roush Fenway, Valvoline could potentially receive some sort of exposure from upwards of 6 different drivers racing across 2 different series!  That's an amazing competitive advantage for a larger team that you need to understand.

NASCAR and Local Racing Sponsorship are different... Or NOT!?

We know, multi-car teams at local tracks aren't exactly the norm, and we're not saying go out and form multi-car teams.  What we are saying is that however competitive you are on the track, that doesn't mean that you can't form partnerships with other racers that you compete against to bring more value to potential sponsors. Here's an example... you know you're probably going to need some sheet metal work at some point during the year... the same is true for virtually every racer on the track... so why not join with 3 or 4 other racers, offer a 1/4 panel logo to a common fabricator, and cut a deal so that the 4 of you get free or discounted work during the season in exchange for the logo placement.

Now that the common fabricator has 4 of you talking about him and exposing his business, he's got a better chance of success!

Less Sponsor Risk Means More Openness to Ideas!

For the sponsor, there's less risk because he's getting his name out on 4 different cars and he's not as prone to being disappointed if a single racer ends up on the sidelines for multiple races or early in the night on consecutive weeks.  If 1 of the 4 cars, or even if 2 of them get sidelined, he's still got 2 cars worth of exposure running on the track. Now, let's not forget, a logo isn't the cure all for sponsorship, but that's ANOTHER topic for another day, too!

Think about it!  Who are your racing buddies? How can you work together to bring more sponsors to your local track so that you can save money for your cars and eventually race faster, too!

Remember.... This Sponsorship Tutorial will evolve with another tip every couple of weeks from September of 2014 though February of 2015.  If you don't want to miss one, make sure you sign up to receive them all directly via e-mail.