How do sponsorships work?

[rocknbil]

I've reached a point in my life where it's time for a change. I'll be leaving my job and jumping into several new ventures. I'm totally stoked. :D

One of these is actually a minor one, it probably won't make me any money but will build some serious business relationships.

The RC scene in my area sucks. BADLY. There's TWO hobby shops in a 200 mile radius, NO organized racing of any kind. One of the things I'm going to try and do is build a club.

As a motivating force, I'm going to also see if I can build a sponsored racer program. In exchange for advertising, I'll be lobbying businesses to toss in whatever they will contribute to a local sponsored racer. The business will form a "board" of sorts to detemine who the racer will be. The goal will be to take our golden child and send him or her to compete in national events.

So how does sponsoring work? What are the budgetary limitations and guidelines a sponsor commits to when they sponsor a racer? Do sponsors foot the bill completely - vehicle, travel, etc, - or is there a budget they determine and do they have control over which events they race in, or do they commit to the whole racing season?

Fill me in on some of this, I think this is a really good idea that could bring the RC'ers in my area out of the woodwork. I know there are thousands. I'm off to my LHS to have a chat with the owner.

More info to come as this develops.

[C.J.OO]

That sounds Like a Great idea..:D
It has taken almost two yrs to get our club were Its at now and theres still a few Bugs to iron Out...
I was Really suprised Buy the success of our track.
It was Kind of Like the Feild Of dreams story were you Build the Baseball Pitch and they Come..
even though The Track Basicly caters for 1/8 Buggys anyone is welcome to come and Have a run..
Insurance (public liabilty is imporatnt).i wouldnt even have to tell you that.:)
and Finally The Two Main Hobby shops in our area Have jumped onboard.
Its a Points system so Im guessing there will Be Prizes for the top points winners at the end of the season.

The drivers Meeting Before the start Of qualifying Is Important especially for newcommers to the track.
we Get a Basic Rundown of rules and Basic racing etiquie.
and the Pit rules.

at the moment its $65 for a year membership and $5 on race day.
(covers all track fees and you get a free sticker.:).)
Non members are welcome to race providing they Pay $15 entry fee and there free to run all day.(as far as they can Make it through the heats.:D)

We race every second sunday and every other sunday is Track Maintenece/Practice day..
This is a really good way to get to know your fellow Members and also contribute to the upkeep of the Grounds...
and it has created a Verry freindly often amusing Offroad race club...

I'm sure I'll think of more But my fingers are sore...:(

[MrB1973]

Bill,
Check out:
www.sickrc.com

They have a club type setup with a tie-in/sponsorship kind of deal with one of the LHSs in the area. It doesn't cover all the ground you want in terms of sponsored racers, but may help with the groundwork in terms of dealing with the LHS and negotiating some assistance.
Hope this helps.
B

[streetracer]

Well, for companies Bill, they will start by giving you their products at like half the price, and help you get to other events etc. Tekin has lead me this far, and if your looking for a sponsorship, you should talk to my manager, he could help since if I remember right, you have a bit of Tekin stuff yourself. Im also trying to get in with Trinity. So, its all good.

[rocknbil]

I'm not looking for a sponsorship, I'm looking to set up a club and provide one. I don't even know if it's feasable.

[C.J.OO]

so are you Planning on Building this track on your own private land.?.


what were you able to find out from your LHS.?.
they'd be silly not to Back it..
Sell it to them AS though you'll have an RC Monopoly.(the Only Track within 200mls).

I would almost bet on the succsess your gonna have.
because you as we did provided a Needed service to the comunity.
the local council would also be a good place to stop and see if there willing to express an intrest..

who knows in the future we could link our clubs and do a USA v's AUS ..:D..

[gizmoguy303]

I have a question Bill. If there is NO organized racing of any kind in your area, how are you going to send a local racer to a national event?

Good luck on your new ventures. It must feel good to get out of the boat and go swim around for a while. :D

[gizmoguy303]

About sponsorships: The level of sponsorships varies with companies and the skill of the sponsored driver. It usually starts out with like a 40% discount, then may turn to full or close to full sponsorship. It all depends on the driver. I know people that have had their traveling expenses paid and everything to go to a large national event.

[TBone77]

If there is NO organized racing of any kind in your area, how are you going to send a local racer to a national event?

Because he's first going to get organized racing going in his area and groom a racer to compete nationally.

At least that's my take on it :cool: .

Cool idea, Bill.

My thinking is that there are many different levels of sponsorship. Some guys might be on a totally free ride while others simply enjoy buying products at a discount at their LHS. If it were me doing this and I found someone with the potential both on- and off the track, I'd start buy making them an ambassador of the track. Let them race and practice for free in exchange for them wearing apparel and placing track decals on their vehicle. Sign a contract with them stating that you're their manager, and your responsibilities will include procurring sponsorship for them. I would be very careful to make sure that the rewards flow two ways. Make sure you have some say over decal placement on their cars, and leave yourself outs in case you need to release the racer. Leave clauses for bad sportsmanship, etc.

Anyway, I don't have any experience with this, obviously, but it seems like you can take it as far as you want. It seems that every local racer's dream is to get sponsored, so when you approach someone with these aspirations, you're in the driver's seat. Treat them fairly, but let them know who's running the show.

[rocknbil]

I have a question Bill. If there is NO organized racing of any kind in your area, how are you going to send a local racer to a national event?

What, you couldn't see inside my head? :D You're lucky. Actually this part of the project jumps quite abit ahead of what I need to do first.

First I build a charter, start a club. The pres, secretary, treasurer, race organizer and other club officials will be elected by the members.

At first, yes, it will be local guys/gals getting together for informal bash sessions and meetings (yeah CJ, some of which will most likely be at my house. :D ) The dues will go into a club account.

As the membership and interest builds, we'll begin seriously looking at the sponsorship program. There are several BMX tracks, private land owners, and parking lots where we can stage events, and of course these are going to require rental fees and insurance. If there's enough interest, and if my other ventures cut enough bread, I'll be playing a major part in the investment for required equipment and personel to run the races, at least at the start.

With a record of events and results, we can now approach businesses for this community sponsorship program. We will be exchanging advertising opportunities as well as tax breaks.

The idea is still not completely formed, which is why I opened this thread seeking the challenges I might be facing. One trend I see is everyone goes to the "promoting their RC products" vein of thought. One reply I had said if you're going to be sending someone to national events, there's no motivation for the advertisers as the businesses will all be local.

In our community, at least this part is not entirely true. There are many national-chain local stores and businesses that participate in local community programs, and even local businesses contribute to many programs of the "American Dream" type. I think one that gets RC's off the street and onto the track, then promotes local involvement in national events would be a very interesting investment to them.

Advertiser contributions go into a single fund. The fund will determine how much we can offer the prospective racer. So this is how I arrived at my original question.

There will be no profit in this for me other than building a community of guys and gals to bash and race with. :D Wife thinks I'm flippin' crazy, not enough time, and always giving myself away for free. So I must tread carefully. :D (She's fine w. it, really, just flicking me crap about the second part.)

[C.J.OO]

Sausage sizzles work awsome..:D
at our track we have an Ice Box full of cans of Soft drinks cost $1 a can and all the money goes back into the Club..
and also after the qualifying rounds have finished we have a BBQ fired up with sausages and Minute steaks some onions.$2 bucks a pop for a sausage or steak sandwich...

Man once the smell of the BBQ wafts over the Pits They come a runnin..lol..

i know its only small But every little bit helps...

[Grant Tokumi]

Well, your idea is definitely thinking outside the box. Local businesses sponsoring a local driver.... Perhaps targeting a machine shop or waterjet business who might be interested in machining custom/upgrade parts? And have your sponsored racer sports those parts. I've kind of thought that there is an opening for a general all around machining company that would custom machine any part out of any material, or provide services for custom built parts to a individual's liking, such as your name waterjet out of the chassis, or battery hold-down, or graphite upper plate, etc. Anyways, I'm getting off track here.

I believe bottom line is your racer will have to turn heads at the big events to have an impact. Then others will take a look at the goodies under the hood. Problem is if that happens, Proline, ODonnell, Associated, etc. will also offer sponsorship and compete with your local businesses for sponsorship. I guess that can be a good thing too.

Good luck on your ventures. And for you and your wife's sake, watch that bottom line very carefully. :) Taking risks can lead to success, but taking risks without a good clear vision ..............

[rocknbil]

^^ LOL . . . yeah well, this aspect of things is still a HOBBY and will be treated as such, not going to throw money we don't have at it. I work entirely too much. One of the reasons for this new set of ventures is to open up a little time for myself and wife, and . . . this is what I'm going to do with some of that spare time.

Man once the smell of the BBQ wafts over the Pits They come a runnin..lol.....Well if they see I'm cooking, they GO a-runnin. And fast. Can anyone say "CAJUN?*"





*For the benefit of our international buds, Cajun is an ethnic group U.S. Southerners that has many facets unique to the area, including an evolved French accent and unique cuisine. A lot of the food is FILLED with spices such as curry and is quick fried, which leads to a few . . . . scorched spots . . . here and there. If you come to one of my BBQ's , you better like "Cajun style."

[C.J.OO]

Lmao.
As long as theres Plenty Of bevereges to wash it down Ill give it a go...:D

[highroller]

It would be very hard to get anything more than a 50% sponsorship from RC manufacturers most may require to use only their products. Also what may limit obtaining financial support locally is the person may not have much exposure to rc hobby. The person seeking sponsorship must have had some exposure and have placed well in races, in most cases submitting a resume with their accomplishments.

In the end the average, best racer may get enough sponsors that what he saves in the way of parts doesn't hurt so bad for travel expenses. Some companies locally may kick in a few bucks to help - but generally not that often due to the lack of exposure. In the few instances this has happened they usually have a request - their name be mentioned, body painted with their logo, plus a picture of car on the track be submitted along with the racers standings for the race.

[rocknbil]

I've been following this thread and many others on other boards and the general consensus is:

This is a stupid idea. It will never work.

AWESOME! All the more reason to do it. :D

Response is going to be slow, as I have to align some "paying" projects, get things into place so I can continue eating. First I'll establish a club and charter, then move into the other areas.

So (thx highroller) the only real info I've gathered so far is that 50% sponsorship support is at least helpful to a prospective racer.

Let me re-outline the concept:

- I am not looking for a sponsorship; I am looking for a way to OFFER one.

- The prospective racer will be selected by 1) race results in LOCAL events, 2) a cumulative vote betwen the sponsorship participants. Racers under 18 and still in school will have to have parental consent AND demonstrated minimum GPA.

- If the prospective racer cannot meet the shortcomings of the sponsorship - that is, if 50% (or whatever we can raise) is not enough and the racer cannot make the races or come up with the deficit, the sponsorhip will pass to the next qualifying club member.

I know this is not how it's done. I know there are other motivations by most "sponsors."

But I ALSO know that there is literally nothing in this industry that is done solely to support the hobby. There is always an ulterior motive, or someone's hand is in someone else's pocket. That is what makes this idea unique and it could work.

All it's going to take is time and organization.

Please, keep sending ideas, even negative ones, these are ALL very helpful! :D