Since i am into competition mud racing (bogs mostly, maybe 1 drag at the most) with the truck that me and my dad have built (in my gallery), we've put a lot of money into parts and (but when compared to some of these guys we race against its about half the price, and we still do as good, if not better then a lot of them ) since we've started doing this, 2 years ago, i've been wanting to put some money into a motor that can compete in the upper classes, but unfortunately, the only cash availe is just enough enough for a few basic items (as i already have an intake for it, already had a used holley 750 dp that we rebuilt, and i just picked up a cam and the associated part of ebay for 300 bucks, and i have a set of old headers that i'm going to make fit, and for now this is the extent of the motor mods), and thus the purpose of this thread.

Essentially i'd like to have enough of the green stuff to properly build a motor (probably around 1000 max in parts and machine work, we'd assemble it ourselves), and i would like to acquire some type of sponsor to help cover these costs, and in lies the problem, how would i go about asking for sponships, as i've never done anything of the sorts before, and i thought that maybe some of the people on fte might have a few ideas that could help me out.

So how would you guys and gals go about this, as i have not a clue , and maybe one of the mods or someone involved with this site might share some insight of how ken acquires the sponsors that help keep FTE up and running?

 

Ok now this is a thread I am gonna be interested in as I could use a sponser or two myself since I have way to much money in my race truck too, and have somethings that need upgraded plus maintenance to do this winter.
So please help mustang, and me out on this one guys if you have any ideas.

 

Hold that thought- I'm too tired to think tonight.

 

well when i was into bmx racing i would go to National qualifing events and do good and sponsors would come to me dont no if it works that way with your situations

 

Quite often in stock car racing magazines there are articles on getting sponsorships. Check out Circle Track and Stock Car Racing magazines.
I really hate going out and asking for money but when you race it's a necessary evil.
Don't go with the attitude that a potential sponsor should give you money. Go in telling them what you can do for them. Not just that you'll have their name on the side of your truck when you're racing but that you'll have their name on the side of your truck when you take it in a parade, have it parked around town etc. You can maybe park your truck in front of their business at times too.
Take in a picture of your truck to show them what they would be sponsoring.
A proposal of sorts or a budget showing what you need money for is a good idea. Make sure it looks somewhat professional, not just some chicken scratch on an old piece of paper.
Let them know it can be a tax write-off for them. Let them know that it shows they are supporting something in the community, it shows they are a good citizen.
Take pictures and results in to your sponsors regularly. Cookies or something like that occasionally works well too. A Christmas card is a nice idea. The main thing is to follow up and not just take their money and run.
Offer to let them take your truck for a spin through the mud sometime.
Sponsorships don't have to be just money either. I have a machine shop as a sponsor. They have bored blocks for me instead of giving me money. Another sponsor gave me a new lawnmower. It didn't add any money to my racing account but it let me use some money that I wouldn't have had if I bought a new mower.

 

Great advice Dave.

We never had any money sponsors. We had 2 fuel sponsors, one for the diesel to get to the tracks, the other for the racing fuel. Had another sponsor that gave us full use of their garage, tools & provided some parts and a junk yard connection. Never could get a tire sponsor.

We gave our sponsors 8x10's when we won and I always typed up an appreciation letter at the end of the season and gave them something like a calander for the following year (with our car on it).

It definately helps to invite them to the track. The tracks we raced at would announce the sponsors if you listed them when entering. If we knew for sure someone (even a lowely employee) of the a sponsor would be there, we'd be sure the track knew and they'd use the sponsors name a couple times. Pretty cool.

 

You could try some of your local business first. Many in return expect free advertising; be it on yer mud bogger or the vehicle that tows it to the events. You could also try writing to some auto parts & tire manufacturers.

 

I am currently sponsoring 6 race teams next season. however my sponships come in the form of discounts on my services. I make posters and autograph cards for the race teams that they can sell for a big profit to their fans. so it is a one hand washes the other deal.

if you'd like to see my work, go to www.fastergrafix.com

 

Suburban Chevrolet sponsors NayKid racing's Z06, driven by Cindy Lux. In the linked article, the writer mentions that the fact that the driver and our dealer are female as purely coincidental. I suppose the fact that she races a Corvette is coincidental too.

 

Something to add, it may be easier to get sponsorship if you can prove your winning track records with printed season race results(newspaper), trophies, etc. I've also noticed bigger company sponsors on the vehicles with pretty paint, versus primered machines.

 

It's all about connections. I have a good sponsor for my dirt track cars because my landlord is the West Coast manager for a major company. Think of friends, relatives anyone you have a connection with that maybe high up in a company. Hit them up for sponsorship, but you have to do it right. Make sure they know it's not just about giving you money, but about showing off their product or company.

Beyond that, I've had good luck just by approaching local companies that I do business with. You talk about getting your engine built. Do you have a good reputation with the builder? Next time you're there, ask if they might knock the price of the rebuild down, or even do it for free, if you put their name on the truck and promote them.

Seriously, it's a lot easier than you think, especially if your looking for sponsorship for parts or supplies instead of cash. We picked up a tire sponsor just by asking the owner of the local shop that we bought from if they ever thought about doing sponsorship. Sure you'll probably get shot down alot, but keep trying. Sponsorship is out there and waiting for you.

Good luck.

Edit: What cigar said rings true... altough it's not necisarrily about winning, it does help. We gained sponsorship without ever having won a race or even finishing in the top 10. It's more about exposure. If you can show that you show up to a lot of events with a lot of crowd exposure, that's more what they are looking for than winning. He is absolutely correct about the car/truck looking good though. People are not going to be willing to sponsor a rust bucket, primered POS with rattle can numbers. Spend a little time and make your ride look nice. Get some good pictures you can present to the potential sponsor and you'll go a lot further. On the same thread, if you can get some hard figures about crowd attendance and such you can show them how much exposure their product will get and they'll be more apt to pay attention.

 

Wow, thats helps out alot guys and gals . So far i'm planning to write a few letters to a few bigger company's that would benefit from being in the sport as a sponsor, but i was unsure of how to go about, but now i think i've got a fairly good idea.

As far as the local business support, there are a number of guys that have gotten enough money for tires and what not, and in that reguards i'm unsure of what some of these businesses would be willing to donate, but offering to have the truck on display i think would be an excellant idea. Also the notion of taking the sponsor for a ride and making sure that if one of the employees is in attendence at an event is mentioned (where i run this would not be a hard task at all ) along with the company.

One issue i do have that would be difficult would be proving the successes my truck has had in the past 2 years, as aside from the few events we have gotten screwed as farr as the results are conerned, there has only been a couple events with trophies that show how well one does (and unfortunly one had been a mud drag, which i don't do well in, and the other was an event in which i broke a front axle in the first round).

As far as taking pictures of the truck into to show a potential sponsor, i would also take in a few of the video's that i have as well (after all people like loud noises with good video don't they ).

Currently the truck is not the prettiest of trucks, but i know what you mean with keeping nice and pretty, however one of these days i do plan on painting the truck (we have everything but the paint) a calispo corral orange (that bright orange the boss mustang were painted, i know this as this is the colour my dad's boss was paint ), but as is the truck has earned a reputation of diggin through the pitts, and with it being a 1980, there are just a couple other trucks of similar year, and of which they look quite similar to other trucks that we've run with, so overall the truck is quite noticeable, but i think being painted bright orange it'd help it out quite a bit in this department.

As far as spectator attendence to the events we attend, crowd numbers regualarly reach 2-300, and considering the number of other happenings on the same days this is quite high compared to those other events. However there are a number of events that have 700+ number of spectators, and this has become known to many companies and the number of events sponsors has double in the past few years.

But yeah all the help has been great, i'm getting a pretty good idea of what it'll take, but keep the ideas coming .