|
SponsorWorld, Vol 1., No. 1
August, 1979
LOOK FOR THE SILVER LINING.
Superficial evidence would suggest that this might be the worst of times to be sponsor-hunting, what with a recession and a fuel crisis facing us. But dig a little deeper and you find that atmosphere not nearly so black. As far as the recession is concerned, consider this quote from a recent issue of Forbes magazine:
"If the U.S. is in a recession, it is the most prosperous in history. Housing starts went up 6% in June to an annual rate of 1.9 million units.. .Capital spending is relatively strong, a sign that most managements haven't lost heart in planning new plants and machinery. Steel production is at its highest level since 1974 ..."
And Forbes adds that corporate profits continue on the upswing and U.S. exports are 17% higher than last year. So, walk into a sponsor prospect's office with a little more confidence. He may look a little worried but he's still investing heavily in 1980, especially in advertising. The New York Times reported a couple of weeks back (7/12/79) that "up-front" TV buying -- the practice of contracting for a full year's network schedule in advance -- has been vigorous. Big advertisers, mostly the packaged-goods companies, have bought up about 75 or 80 per cent of all the time the networks have available in the next 52 weeks! Robert E. Buchanan, senior V.P. of J. Walter Thompson, the nation's largest agency, estimated that the three networks had sold $1.6 billion in up-front contracts, a 30% increase over last year's buying.
THE LIGHT'S A LITTLE DIMMER HERE.
The energy crisis is more complicated. As a matter of fact, it's so complicated most companies aren't any where near as terrified of it as they were the last time. In 1973, sponsors stayed away from racing in droves, fearing they would be viewed by consumers as almost unpatriotic if they got involved in a promotion which was so obviously tied to gasoline consumption. We all know what happened: The panic passed, but not before a lot of companies cancelled out, missing the best attendance year to that point.
This time around, there seems to be little fear among sponsor prospects that consumers will feel badly about their promotion in racing. The subject does not, in fact, even come up on most sponsor sales calls, not even in New York City, which has the most virulent anti-automotive bias in the nation. What can you say if the subject does come up? Just this:
Racing, the nation's second-largest spectator sport, ranks 7th among major leisure time activities in consumption of energy. The fact of the matter is that in all leisure time activities it is the gasoline consumed by customers getting to and from the activity that is really important. That is why motion picture attendance is the number one cause of gasoline consumption among leisure activities in America!
TIME FOR BRASS TACKS.
Let's get down to sales talk. Once a racer is armed with presentation materials, his or her first big hurdle is getting an appointment to show them to someone. And that is where a lot of sponsor sales programs grind to a halt. We've hit upon a solution to that problem that is so simple it sounds too good to be true.
Here it is: Don't call a prospect to ask him to see you about racing sponsorship.
'Call him to tell him you'd like to talk about a "sports promotion," one that will help him reach a very attractive young, affluent male audience. That's not deceit. It's what is called "product positioning" in the advertising and marketing business. Corporate participation in "sports"- has been on a dramatic upswing for a decade or more. There is not an industry in America that has not tried sports tie-in to help build sales or brand awareness. And in 1980, the sports business will have the biggest year in history. It's a hot subject. The reason:
The Olympics! And as might be expected, network TV is where most of the money will change hands. Marketing & Media Decisions magazine reported in July that more than $200 million will be spent by advertisers on the Winter Olympics alone. But TV is not the only place companies are spending money to establish an Olympics tie-in. Sports Illustrated magazine, which will publish a special insert on the Winter Olympics (did you know they also do one every year on the Indy 500?) reports that ad space in it was sold out in two days flat.
The long and short of this discourse is what we think is a pretty good piece of advice:
Position your program as an involvement in sports, and specifically in a sport which offers unique advantages for a promotionally-minded company. We've seen several proposals recently which included excerpts from an article we wrote for Formula (now RaceCar) last year. The excerpted segment deals with those aspects of auto racing which make it especially attractive to advertisers. We reprint it here, for your use:
• "Over the years I've developed a basic list of sales points about racing which seem understandable and appealing to the average 'inexpert' corporate sponsor prospect. See how those points compare with the ones you use:
• Racing can be a remarkably efficient way for a company to 'reach' young, affluent, better-than-averagely educated males;
• Because the typical racing team participates in a series of events, a sponsor can work at
'exploiting' his involvement with the team over a period of months, learning as he goes;
• The high degree of visibility enjoyed by the events in cities adjacent to the race track allows for all kinds of local promotional tie-ins, especially those impacting on or for the company's retail constituents;
• Especially for the non-consumer goods company, racing events provide an ideal backdrop for key account entertainment and/or internal public relations or sales promotion activity;
• An often overlooked phenomenon is racing's ability to get a company dramatic exposure in its industry's trade press, which reaches a critical target audience for him;
• Racing, perhaps unique among professional sports, not only tolerates commercial involvement, it welcomes it with open arms."
WHEN TO ZERO IN (AND HOW):
Back on page two, we suggested you pitch a sponsor prospect on the basis of racing's ability to "help him reach a very attractive young, affluent male audience." That "audience" is, obviously, one segment of the population, or "market", as advertisers will frequently refer to it. You should be aware of the importance of "market segmentation" in advertising today because it can be of critical importance to the racing sell. Market segmentation is simply the practice of identifying a portion of the population which is most likely to consume a company's product or service, and the pursuit of that segment through the use of advertising or promotional activities which "reach" that segment. There are, of course, segments within segments. Young people -- those peripatetic 18 to 34 year olds -- are certainly an important segment of the market. But young men comprise' an even more tightly defined portion, or segment of that market. And the fact of the matter is that young people, and especially young men, represent what advertisers call an "elusive" audience -- they are tough to reach because they are on the run so much and most conventional forms of advertising simply miss them too often.
Even the biggest advertisers, ones with the most commonly accepted products, indulge in market segmentation to focus on those portions of the population which contain their best consumer prospects.
Anheuser-Busch, for example. Why has A-B burst upon the racing scene so aggressively in the past two years? There are a lot of reasons, but chief among them is this: Young people beginning at college age, are the single most important reason beer consumption has been growing "by leaps and bounds" in the last two years. In 1978, domestic beer sales were up 10%, and imported beer sales were up an "astronomical" 26%, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS).
"It is this youthful crowd to which all of the major domestic and importer brewers are gearing their advertising and promotional campaigns," reports the Beverage Retailer Weekly. The trade journal, quoting a Time magazine marketing report, says 73.8% of all college students drink beer -- 80.1% of the men; 67.6% of the women. And, says the report, "in the forefront of tomorrow's changes are the college students of today. Their influence gives them a marketing importance far exceeding their size."
If you read that closely, you'll see that the "market" being discussed was narrowed even further than the examples we cited above. The key segment of the market for brewers today is not only young, it's also college-oriented. Racing can be and is a powerful tool for beer brand promotion for two reasons: First, all forms of racing enjoy spectator followings with a composition of college-educated fans that is much higher than the U.S. population as a whole. And, second, during those warm summer months when a major share of beer is consumed, where are the college kids? They're certainly not on campus, are they.
You can use the Anheuser-Busch example on any sales call involving a company which logically has young men as a primary target market segment. And there are still a great many regional breweries out there on whom that pitch will impact especially well. If you are pitching a regional racing program (like a short track series or an SCCA Nationals program in one Division) and that competition area happens to coincide pretty well with the brewer's own marketing area, go after him. Tell him you can help him promote to a key segment of the beer-drinking market in his area just exactly like Budweiser does, spending megabucks, on a national basis. Also, be aware that a number of regionally-based teams have signed beer sponsors with regional beer wholesalers. Remember, however, that wholesalers work on a state-by-state basis so they will want to know what the program will do for them in the area they serve.
Hal Crocker, our guest columnist this month on the back page, has a dozen years of experience peering through a lens at racing cars and people. His work has appeared In virtually every major automotive magazine In America, Including Road & Track and Car and Driver, and he has done extensive work for sponsors as well. Hal divides his time between racing and commercial photography In Atlanta and still travels extensively on assignment. He has an Impressive "library" of work. In both black & white and color, from racing In years past. [Contact information provided in this issue is now out of date.]
Race Car Paint Design By Hal Crocker
I know of no race car owner who has not at one time or another agonized over how to paint and trim his car. Frequently, he (or she) will invest substantially to make sure the car will be as visually striking as possible. And that is a laudable goal.
But all too often, one question relating to a car's paint scheme is overlooked: How will it photograph? Considering the fact that much greater potential exposure can be gained for a car (and its driver and its sponsor) through the lens of a press photographer's camera than in any other way, creating a design scheme for a car that is photographically irresistible should be foremost in an owner's mind.
I've some thoughts on the subject -- some theoretical, some very specific -- that I'd like to share.
First, some theory. Ideally, a car is painted with the intention of making a good impression, whether on behalf of a sponsor or on a sponsor prospect. If a paint scheme is done well, the good impression can be immediate and it can be lasting -- one with which people can and will identify. It should look professional, i.e., symbolic of your approach to the sport. And it should be purposeful and pleasing, suggesting that here, indeed, is a car that deserves to be in a winner's circle.
Obviously, the paint scheme should also be practical. It must have utility; it must last. And if it does, fans will begin building an association between you (and perhaps your sponsor) and your color scheme. This has been accomplished successfully any number of times. When you think of Peter Gregg, what colors come to mind? How about Richard Petty? Or Group 44?
If you're ready to begin building that kind of instant image association among racing fans, let's get down to specifics on what I do and don't recommend.
First, I recommend choosing one basic color for a car. It's neater, cleaner and less expensive that way and fans will begin making a color/design association with you a lot easier. Second, choose a light to mid-range color, if you can. This is specifically for its photographic acceptability. A lighter color car will stand out better from the elements around it more easily than will a dark one and therefore be easier to capture (photographically) in a striking way. Remember, the overwhelming percentage of press photography is done in black & white. And asphalt, trees, tires AND shadows tend to photograph as nearly black.
The principle to remember is that everything in b&w photography breaks down to various shades of gray. Unfortunately, there are no hard and fast rules about the relationships of specific colors to gray tones because colors will vary in b&w photography depending on the type of film that's being used and on the amount and type of light a photographer has available to him. Here is another reason to opt for a lighter color: if it's cloudy or rainy on race day, or if a lot of the events you run are staged at night, a lighter car is much easier to photograph well.
The basic rule to follow in choosing a color for its "photographability" is to consider its intensity and tone, remembering that two quite different colors may yield the same gray in b&w and therefore offer no contrast at all in a photograph. To make sure your choice of a color or a combination of them is right, it makes sense to test them together -- on film.
I have a couple of thoughts, too, about the choice of colors for the benefit of the fans at trackside. Auto racing is a youthful sport and so should be the colors of its cars. Avoid conservative earth colors, like browns, greens and grays. Choose instead bright, dramatic colors, like yellows, reds, oranges and brighter shades of blue - the ones that really jump out at you. For the trim, choose a color or colors that offer good contrast and work to "outline" the car against its photographic or viewing environment. In fact, I'll go into that and some specific advice about graphics and logo design and placement next month
|
