sponsorship

[gerbs]

I would like help with how to approach companies about sponsoring
my partner and I. ?resume ?letters ?what is the sponsory relationship
responsibilities. any info is appreciated.

[Race Fan]

Check out the Feb. 2003 issue of Stock Car Racing Magazine....Sterling Marlin is on the cover. There is a really good article in there for the "local Sat. night racer" on getting sponsorship. I know your thinking, "but that's racing", the same principals apply.I think this article will give some really good direction in how to go about seeking and obtaining sponsorship.

[Juls_OH]

http://www.bassresource.com/html/faq.html#pro

There is some good advice in the articles found at the above link.
One of the articles is called "Sponsorship 101".

Enjoy.

Juls

[sevenmmm]

Thanx alot Juls, these stories are full, no wait, they are packed tight with information.

The sponsorship 101 is excellent, but I kept reading and every article has kept my interest very high!

[TK_551]

Thanks for the link Juls...

Tom
#551

[robert (bracketpro)]

gerbs
our advice is simple! retain sponsors on your own.no offense to your partner but it is hard enough retain soley/personally . act only on your own professional behalf. do not make promises you cant keep.and just remember,we get alot of resumes each year and if there is a program its the guys who produce what they say. that stay on board for next year.good luck---robert

[gerbs]

thank you for the info

[Irish]

Might I offer a few suggestions, as I went through this a couple of years back. The industry today continues to mature and is becoming increasingly difficult to gain a foothold in the area of sponsorship. Seeing this, I began to work closly with my boat dealership, offering to work weekends and the like. This accomplishes two tasks, they gain confidence in your ability and level of comittment and you get a chance to learn more about the "marketplace".

With a dealership pro staff position in place I looked at what is being done in currently the best sports marketing arena, Nascar. Kellogs, Anheuser- Busch, Procter and Gamble...none of these compnies sell racing products but they recognize a solid road to a target audiance. Now, I wasnt in a position to go to this large of a company as I was just getting started, so I took a look around my neck of the woods and found some local companies that had customer based similarities. Each of their customers can use each of their products,basic networking if you will. We put together a builder, a real estate agent,insurance and a mortgage broker.

We now provide parking lot seminars, guided trips and offerings to these companies and their clients, working very closely with them on promotional aspects of their business..what ever we can do to increase their customer base....anyway this is getting a wee bit long winded..if you like you can email me with your questions and perhaps I could be of some help. Irish643@aol.com

[Race Fan]

Hey Irish,

I read you second paragraph with some interest. That is one of the topics in the article in SCR Mag., and that is from the Sat. night short track racer's view, most make the same mistake, or maybe a better way to phrase that is oversight...don't overlook the big national companies. I think that if if you read the article in SCR, you'll see what I mean. Not saying you said or did anything wrong...just another perspective.

[Irish]

Thank you..I'll indeed give it a read...

[Tom P.]

ttt

[whitetips]

More information for you and others is to do an internet search on Sponsorship Proposals and pick thru the information for ideas
take your time, plan ahead, and do as professional a job as you can.
GLuck

[Walleyeman]

If you want to learn a great deal about writing-up sponsorship proposal and such - I suggest doing a search for the Sponsorship Newsletter. The newsletter was published by Terry Freeland several years ago but the information is still valid. You could probably find the website by doing a search of "Sponsorship Newsletter" under google.

[Mike Michalak]

I've lost count how many times this comes up on message boards across the Net. That's not a bad thing, mind you. And there's good advice by all those above.

We get a TON of requests, as do most fishing companies. I can tell you this. Do your homework. Gaining sponsorship is not about fishing, it's about marketing/promtion. It's spelled $$$. Start local...as someone stated, go after the non-traditional. Take a look at national tourney sponsors today...candy, tires, dog food, insurance. A good local affiliation can really get you going.

The kiss of death, especially during this time of year with new product intros, sport shows, trade shows and the crunch of fishing season, is the phone call. I never return a call. I believe it's unprofessional because you (figuratively speaking) have absolutely no chance of "selling" me over the phone. Marketing and promotions people are at their busiest right now and you've got to be sensitive to that. Call companies to get information, not to say, "I'm looking for sponsorship." It seldom, if ever works.

I mentioned homework. Use the journalism tactic to begin your quest, namely: who, what, when, where, why and how.

WHO is the primary contact, complete with proper spelling.
WHAT is it you're offering? If it's only fishing, forget it.
WHEN is the best time to contact this person for follow-up?
WHY do you think that company needs your services?
HOW are you going to be different than the 100 other guys doing the same thing to the same company?

Whatever it is you prepare should be perfect. This is the resume of your chosen profession, so make it professional. Mis-spelled words, poor grammar, lengthy descriptions of fishing ability all get you nowhere. Contact with PEOPLE is what gets attention. The more people, the better. In-store presentations, sport show and/or trade show appearances, club speeches...this is what companies need. This is what companies want. Being articulate, knowing what you want and what it takes to get it, gets noticed. At the same time, if you win a lot of tournaments, that certainly doesn't hurt. It creates some of the above all by itself.

I'm sure there will be more input here because there are plenty of WC'ers out there who've been down this road before. It's not a fun game to play because manufacturers hold all the cards. It's up to you to offer a new deck...