rolex car count

[racefanfromnj]

i can help sir i can maybe muster up enough cash to buy a few lug nuts sorry i cant help more the divorce and lawyers have cleaned me out

[Mark in Oshawa]

I look forward to some new cars in DP. I figured the drop in cars was due to this, and I am glad it was confirmed....

[DavePI2]

good to see 21 dp's again this weekend.

David

[jh11]

well just to throw in my two cents you guys can count on one more team in the Rolex GT series for next year as I am contracted to buy a 2008 GT3 Cup car. Anyone looking for a car to sponsor?

NYCracer,

Best of luck to you next year. I approached the sponsorship problem from the opposite direction, so I'll throw my two-cents in.

My reasons were to find an appropriate marketing medium to promote a product, and I started looking at various racing series, and the Rolex GT Series came out on top. In my opinion it's one of the most undervalued sponsorship opportunities if the product/service fit is right.

Obviously there's liabilities associated with the series, like television coverage and race attendance, so if that's a companies primary objective, it's not the best deal in town. A company could become an associate sponsor with Champ Car; have a booth at their races with +40k attendance; and run four 30-second ad spots per race, throughout their yearly television coverage - for less than the cost of sponsoring a Rolex GT car. Those are hard numbers that will be looked at and shouldn't be considered "selling points".

I'm not saying ignore those points when talking with potential sponsors, but save the television coverage and race attendance (primarily the 24hrs) as "closing points," because in a sense they're liabilities compared to competing options. Unless you happen to get a big check at the end of your first sit, more than likely the first thing that potential sponsor is going to do is ask GA for the Joyce Julius Sponsor Report. That's basically an independant research firm watching the race on TV; counting the number of visible/identifiable logo impressions; sponsor mentions; etc.; computing that against television viewership; and factored against the cost for a comparable 30-sec ad spot. The bottom-line is there's a dollar symbol attached to this, and if that's your presentation - it ends up in the trash - along with your credibility.

There's more to it than the above, and believe me I understand "the passion of racing," but there's also the "business of racing". Over the last several months I've spoken with dozens of team owners, drivers looking for sponsors, series PR people, etc. - and I get the emotion. However, at the end of the day, all that emotion is tempered by the guy in accounting - but there's a trump card with him: it's the BoD's, CEO, owner(s), VP of marketing, etc… In other words: the visionaries. What visionaries need and use is the "image". And that in my mind is the foundation or base of your presentation.

Before this post turned into the rambling thing it's become, I mentioned I felt "the Rolex GT Series is the most undervalued sponsorship opportunity out there". Here's why I think that is so: image.

Image is all that really matters to the visionaries. You don't see a fat chick in a Diet Pepsi commercial; nor do you see Al Bundy with his hand in his pants in a Pepsi commercial. It's the hot chick and the stud having fun, i.e. an image. But in reality, it's the fat chick buying the Diet Pepsi, and Al Bundy watching Jeff Gordon who's buying and drinking the Pepsi. Why is that?

Because the people making decisions don't sell or market to who people are: they market to who people want to be. Every one of us holds this altruistic self-image - you find a way to appeal to that - you find a way to motivate people into buying your product.

Rather than going on and on with this, what are the real attributes you have available?

1. Porsche.[/*:m:v20iadz2]
2. Rolex.[/*:m:v20iadz2]
3. Racing.[/*:m:v20iadz2]
4. 24 Hours of Daytona.[/*:m:v20iadz2]

Rephrased:

1. Porsche = Status.[/*:m:v20iadz2]
2. Rolex = Status.[/*:m:v20iadz2]
3. Racing = Competitiveness[/*:m:v20iadz2]
4. 24 Hours… = Ultimate competitive status.[/*:m:v20iadz2]

In marketing terms, for those looking for sponsors: after the equal sign is your demographic. Not only are they your market - they are the decision makers to appeal to that market.

Long story short NYCracer: take a trip to the local bookstore and their magazine rack. Bypass the car rags and focus on the GQ section - that's your demo. Buy those magazines and flip through the ads - you'll find your sponsor. If a company is advertising in GQ - their demo is the same as yours.

But most important of all: the first guy you talk to all, up through the chain of decision making command - is the guy(s) who want a Rolex; a Porsche; and a bunch of television cameras around them in January. Approach it the right way - it's shooting fish in a barrel. You don't sell a Monet to the guy who wants it - you sell it to the guy who needs it. Motivating Emotions.

Sorry for all the babbling.

-jh

[Danske]

The Chase is currently on the entry list for Miller, as well as a new Porsche FABCAR entered by Spirit of Daytona.

[BobbyC]

The sponsors also get a deal for the Rolex 24, as many superstar drivers enter the race from other disciplines.

[trumperZ06]

I know Finlay Motorsports dropped out, but that wasn't due purely to sponsor issues. That accounts for one or two cars. The entry list for the Porsche 250 at Barber stands at seventeen cars as well. (Hopefully it stays around that number, as I'll be there next weekend)

IMO... Normal attrition's taking place.

Racing is EXPENSIVE... and if you can't win or at least have a good chance to finish in the top 3, your sponsors quickly lose interest.

Hhmmm... come on out and join us the following weekend (Sept. 15/16th) !!! Chin is holding their D E Event @ Barber and we always have a wide variety of cars attending.

[Danske]

Cheever, Taylor, and Stallings have all been talking about adding second cars for next year, and Connolly is running the Chase as preparation for a season in DP next year, although I'd be surprised if it were with the Chase.

Tomorrow is also the deadline for the 2008 designs, so we may start getting trickles of news regarding those and other plans for next year.

[Danske]

a new Porsche FABCAR entered by Spirit of Daytona.

Slight correction: it's now a Cayenne Fabcar.