Sunday, September 25, 2016

 

Ernie Saxton has columns on motorsports in the Bucks County Courier Times, Levittown, PA; Times Herald, Norristown, PA; Inside Track Motorsports News, Canada and Area Auto Racing News, Trenton, NJ, Late Model Racer magazine and Circle Track Magazine.
For many years his sponsorship column has appeared in the National Dragster.
Considered an authority on the subject of sponsorship marketing.
He has been quoted regarding motorsports sponsorship in a variety of publications including USA Today, NY Times, National Speed Sport News, and others.
In addition Saxton publishes Motorsports Sponsorship Marketing News, a newsletter that informs and educates readers about sponsorship marketing. The newsletter is in its 32nd year.
He was president of the Eastern Motorsport Press Association for more than 40 years.
 Saxton was one of the original members of the NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel.

 PUBLISHED CONTINUOUSLY SINCE 1985

For the Racer, the Promoter and Event Organizer.

This is the Newsletter that offers the latest news, tips, helps, expert advise and success stories in motorsports sponsorship - it has helped many be successful with their sponsorship marketing efforts.

FEATURE COLUMNISTS:
Experts in the industry appear in each issue giving you exclusive insight into the Motorsports Sponsorship Industry.

Learn How To Be More Successful From Those Who Know.

 STAY INFORMED WITH THIS NEWSLETTER

DON'T BE LEFT
OUT !!

THE NEWSLETTER THAT KEEPS YOU INFORMED ON THE LATEST NEWS IN SPONSORSHIP MARKETING IN MOTORSPORTS !!

A brainstorming session on sponsorship marketing!

Ernie Saxton's
MOTORSPORTS SPONSORSHIP MARKETING NEWS
"Marketing Through Motorsports"
$19.95* - 6 issues annually
* Add $5.00 per year subscriptions outside the U.S.

Order now...VISA and MasterCard are accepted OR ..... mail check or money order to:
Ernie Saxton Communications
1448 Hollywood Avenue
Langhorne, PA 19047
215.752.7797
FAX 215.752.1518
Cell 267.934.7286
Twitter @ ernsax


... more than 40 years of Sponsorship Marketing
and Public Relations experience !!!
 "Ya can't talk Indy without Foyt, just like you can't talk sponsorship
without Saxton" - Karl Fredrickson of Speedway Illustrated Magazine...

 1448 Hollywood Avenue
Langhorne, Pa. 19047-7417
215.752.7797
FAX: 215.752.1518
 ESAXTON144@AOL.COM
CELL: 267.934.7286
Twitter @ ernsax
A GOLDMINE OF SPONSORSHIP HELPS THAT WILL GET YOU HEADED FOR SPONSORSHIP SUCCESS

LANGHORNE, PA September 15, 2016 . . . There is a goldmine of great sponsorship helps in the newest edition of Ernie Saxton’s Motorsports Sponsorship Marketing News, the newsletter that helps so many reach success with their sponsorship efforts as a racer, team owner or promoter.
Kristin Swartzlander of Dirty Mouth Communications offers a variety of suggestions on how to increase the value of your sponsorship offerings.
Attorney Michael K. Spotts shares social media, internet and live streaming ideas that increases marketing exposure. This is a two part article.
The definition of sponsorship comes from Marcie Barlow.
And publisher Ernie Saxton shares how racers seeking sponsorship need to educate themselves on marketing and more.
Those articles and more, including news of recent sponsorship deals, are included in the new edition of Motorsports Sponsorship Marketing News, now in its 32nd year of publication.
The newsletter and Saxton’s efforts received high praise from publisher Lew Boyd.
“Thanks so much for sending along the recent issues of Motorsports Sponsorship Marketing News. I had not been aware of the depth - and duration - of what you have been doing. It is so impressive – and important.
I recall that one of the first paragraphs I read covered the issue of “how I can help you” rather than “how you can help me”. How great it would be if every single person seeking sponsor for a race car in the United States was repeatedly smacked on the side of the head with that message until that is fully digested!!!!
All best to you,”
Lew
Coastal 181 Publishing
A sample copy of this new edition, the September/October edition, will be sent to new subscribers prior to the start of their new subscription along with a copy of our Hodgepodge of Sponsorship Ideas and Tips when you sign up for a one year subscription at the low price of $29.95 (regular price is $39.95).
Call us, have Visa or MasterCard ready, at 215.752.7797 or mail your check to ESC, Inc., 1448 Hollywood Avenue, Langhorne, PA 19047.
Ernie Saxton Communications, Inc. is also available to prepare sponsorship materials and serve as a sponsorship consultant.
Saxton’s articles on sponsorship can be found in a number of different publications throughout the nation. He has more than 40 years’ experience in sponsorship marketing and public relations.

LIMITED TIME SPECIAL OFFER!!
One year subscription to Ernie Saxton's Motorsports Sponsorship Marketing News at a greatly reduced price.
Regular price is $39.95. You can sign up for just $19.95 and receive the information packed recent edition with our compliments.
The newsletter now in its 32nd year is loaded with sponsorship marketing helps from experts, articles on what you can be doing to be more successful with your sponsorship efforts, tips, latest sponsorship news and much more.
* Add $5.00 per year subscriptions outside the U.S.

Order now...VISA and MasterCard are accepted OR ..... mail check or money order to:
Ernie Saxton Communications
1448 Hollywood Avenue
Langhorne, PA 19047
215.752.7797
FAX 215.752.1518
Cell 267.934.7286
Twitter @ ernsax
WHAT NOT TO DO AT A TRADE SHOW
By Ernie Saxton

Much of our column this issue deals with trade shows since the season is over and we felt it would be a good time to offer some helpful sponsorship advice and a friend, a respected marketer, sent along some helpful information.
Trish Yunick, daughter of the late and great Smokey Yunick (a legend in NASCAR racing), sent us a letter and I wanted to share it with our readers. It includes some outstanding helps for those seeking sponsorship especially since we are well into the trade show season.
“Hi Mr. Saxton,
Smokey was a long-time spokesperson for a performance manufacturer. Today I work with them in marketing. I handle the website and social media during the year. As we prepare for the SEMA and PRI shows, I work on the visual booth displays and their annual catalog. I work the booth with them at SEMA and PRI, and I can promise you that by the time we reach the end of either show, we will have gotten over a hundred unsolicited sponsorship requests at each. The past few years it seems like we see nearly as many sponsorship requesters as we do customers. By and large these packets end up in the trash heap when we leave the show hall.
Here are my hints to give a sponsorship request the best chances of being accepted and a relationship started:
- First of all, understand we are not likely to make a deal with you at the trade show. We're usually very busy with customers who have questions about our products. Please respect that.
- Don't leave your unrequested proposal in our booth. Send it via mail or electronically to our office. We don't want to carry heavy bags on the plane any more than you do.
- Understand that appearances matter. We remember if your posse was hanging around impatiently. We remember how you were dressed if it wasn't professionally.
- Please make sure your proposal is a neat looking document and have someone do a little proofreading.
- We prefer a mailed document over an emailed file. Yes, it's the digital age, but respect the sensibilities of the folks you're asking for money.
- Send your proposal a week or so after the show. Getting back into the swing of things takes a few days and it's much easier to say NO when you're overloaded.
- Once sent, follow up a couple of times. We're busy and often need a little push. However, gracefully accept a NO if it's given.
- Please don't make sponsorship requests via social media. Rarely is the person behind those accounts actually a decision maker.
- Consider your website and social media presences. We look at these. We look at the quality and frequency of material being posted. We look to see that your traffic is what you say it is.
- Run our sticker. It's sad how often that is overlooked.
- Send us race updates and hi-res photos. Your news on our sites benefits both of us. I shouldn't have to chase you to get good photos.
- If we have a partnership in place, do come by the booth at the show and say hi. Take just a minute to shake a hand and say thank you. If you're in the area of our shop, do the same thing.
When the time comes for us to make a decision on whether or not to continue an agreement, what we get in return from you really matters. Like I said, we've got an awful lot of applicants just looking for that money.
This may not be worth anything more to you than an unsolicited portfolio is to me at a trade show, but maybe a glimpse behind the sponsor's eyes will be helpful.
All the best,
Trish
Over the years in seminars and columns and in our Motorsports Sponsorship Marketing News newsletter (www.saxtonsponsormarket.com) I have covered all of this material. She has given us some great material to share with you and we say a big thank you. It amazes me how few racers do what is outlined or keep the promises they make when seeking the sponsorship support. I think if racers and promoters were to do more of this their success at obtaining and keeping sponsorship would be much improved.
A READER SHARES HIS SPONSORSHIP SUCCESS STORY
By Ernie Saxton

It is always great to hear from someone who has followed our advice, used some of our materials/books, and been a success at securing sponsorship. I wanted to share this email with you from Mr. Amenta because it offers some great advice as to how he was able to secure substantial sponsorship.

"Paul Amenta here. I did the sponsorship hunt for Travaglin Racing here in Connecticut. Even though I am not in that business anymore, I still read your columns, all the time. I'm amazed that you have to keep drilling the same point's home to the weekly racing teams.

When I started the sponsor hunting, I went to one of your seminars in Daytona, bought the recommended books and followed all the steps you have outlined in the most recent article. We hunted for a year. We joined the local Chamber of Commerce, and passed out business cards.

We wrote letters, typed of course, and I had someone proofread them for me because I would read it and not see a mistake. Someone else's eyes would pick it up right away. We went to all meetings dressed in business attire, not the cloths we wore around the shop.

Once we found our Marketing Partner, we stayed in touch with them. Every Saturday after the races, I sent an email to not just our primary sponsor but to all our associates as well. If you remember, we worked a four year contract with Kozy Shack Pudding. Everything was laid out in the contract so there was no pointing saying "I thought you said this". Over the four years, we were contracted for 22 shows by Kozy Shack. We did a total of 80 for them. Everything from a Cub Scout Pine Wood Derby to the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Boston, MA. The car was on a roll off truck. We had uniforms, hats, polo shirts, jackets, and on and on. All of the team wore something with Kozy Shack's name on it every place we went.

We invited the owner of the company to the track. He came with his two son-in-laws and had a blast in the pits with us.

We even went to their factory and got samples of their product to pass out to crowds at different shows.

As you can see, I followed the Ernie Saxton recipe for success and it worked. That contract landed us $140,000.00 to race with for four years. Not bad for a local team.

Oh yes, I also did all the press releases for our local papers. People that could not go to the track would wait to read our stories of how we did every week. It takes a lot of work, but well worth it.

Even when we had our sponsor, many teams were jealous that we had some good money from Kozy Shack. Here's a quick story.

Standing in line to go into the pit area. Another team members says to me, "It must be nice having the big money from Kozy Shack." I replied, "Yes it is." Then I asked what time they get home from Stafford on Friday night, like us, around 1:00 AM Saturday morning. They said yes to that. Then I asked what they do on Saturday morning. The man responded saying maybe they go to the shop around 11 and maybe unload the car, and maybe not. I told them that when we get back to the shop at 1:00 AM we have to unload the race car and load up the show car and head out at 6:30 AM to do a show for our sponsor. The response I got was, "I wouldn't want to do that." Then I said, "Then you don't want the big money."

I guess everybody thought they just handed us a check and said go have fun boys. I believe local teams sometimes are their own worst enemies."

That is my story and I am sticking to it was the comment of Paul Amenta at the end.

As someone who has been helping racers with their sponsorship efforts over the years it does my heart and my ego good to hear from someone who has been successful and shares some of the credit with us. Read what he had to say carefully because it makes a huge amount of sense.

There are so many out there that want the sponsorship support but many of them are not willing to do what it takes to gain sponsorship, especially serious sponsorship, and if they are fortunate enough to gain the sponsor the deal often does not last very long as the racer just does not follow through with what was promised.

A RACER had a question about entertaining a potential sponsor.

In a recent edition of the Lehigh Valley Business Journal there was an article regarding Business Meals. Over the years I have had probably thousands of meals with clients and potential sponsors. Quite frankly I prefer breakfast meetings. Those you are meeting with usually are sharper at breakfast and pay more attention. Breakfast usually keeps alcohol out of it.

Let them pick the spot for whatever meal you choose.

The conversation should not all be about business. Use the meeting to learn more about the potential sponsor. You will probably meet again and the more you know about them, the better.

When the meal is complete, recap or summarize the business discussed. If nothing was settled try to set up another meeting.

And be prepared to pay. You might be surprised to hear how many racers feel the potential sponsor should pay. If you let that happen you can be pretty much assured that there will be no next meeting and no sponsorship.

LET'S SEE IF WE HAVE SERIOUS SPONSORSHIP SEEKERS that want to take advantage of a bargain. For just $19.95 you receive a one year subscription to Motorsports Sponsorship Marketing News newsletter, a couple back issues and our famous Hodgepodge of Sponsorship Helps (4 pages of helps and ideas). Call me at 215.752.7797 to subscribe.
WORKING WITH THE MEDIA SEEMS TO BE FORGOTTEN
By Ernie Saxton

So when was the last time that you or someone involved with your racing program contacted the media? A large number of the sponsorship proposals that I am asked to review for racers and event organizers promise media exposure but it amazes me how few keep the promise.

Working with the media, keeping them informed, is an important part of the sponsorship marketing effort or what I would call the sponsor satisfaction plan. You might even say that working with the media is part of the activation of the sponsorship. And if you read our last column you are familiar with what activation is all about.

It is true that some sponsors do not make media exposure a priority but I am sure that the sponsor will appreciate any good media exposure they receive.

As some of you know I pen columns in a variety of publications including two daily newspapers, a trade publication, magazine (Canadian) and publish a newsletter Motorsports Sponsorship Marketing News. Oh, by the way that list does not include this column which I have been doing for a number of years.

Understanding how important media exposure can be to the success of a sponsorship program I make an effort to make mention of sponsors when I receive such news. You probably would be surprised to find out that I receive very few news releases regarding sponsorship announcements. And then are some that I receive that should never have been sent. In total, during the racing season, I receive about 800 each day and many of them are never considered for use because they are poorly written, do not contain information of interest, come across as ads rather than news and finally do not follow the rules for press releases.

How many of you are aware that the early part of a release should include who, what, where, why and when? Answer those questions in the first few paragraphs and you will have a lot better chance of getting my attention and getting the release used.

If you do not have a decent command of the English language then I would suggest you find a friend that does or hire someone.

News releases should contain news. Right about now the season is coming to an end for many of you so it would be a good time to do a "season wrap" release that talks about the highs and lows. Work into the release mentions of the key sponsors. Mention them in the order of their importance so that when the release is edited the important ones have a better chance of surviving and appearing in the story that is written as a result of your release. Offer a good quality photo that shows the driver and race vehicle. Of course with publication making cutbacks there is a good chance the photo will not be used or will be cropped (made smaller).

What I am finding these days is that the weekly newspaper that covers news of your area is becoming important. They are often called throwaways. However those weeklies, with small staffs, are often looking for news so your well written news release, in a story format, will have a good chance to be used. And your release has a good chance to being used in its entirety.

There are a large number of motorsports and sports websites out there that will use your releases and often without cuts or changes.

Important to remember. You should have your website (you do have a website don't you?) updated so all the information is current and there are new photos. And don't forget your Facebook page. With a website and Facebook you market yourself and your sponsors.

News releases should be kept tight, not wordy, and to the point. Use bullet points to highlight key information, making it easier for the recipient to scan through the information. The more you do to make it easier for the media the better the chance it will be used.

Storytelling in your press release makes them more interesting and easier for the media to use. Again it is important that in your story telling that you include mentions of the sponsor but try to limit those mentions or they will become a turnoff. The primary sponsor gets the most play.

When sending your release by email be sure to include a subject line that attracts the interest of the media person receiving it. Example: "Local professional race car driver finishes successful 2014 season."

Work on building relationships with the media that cover your sport and those that cover sports and business in your local media. Make sure they know who you are. Put them on the list to receive all your releases.

Be sure that your releases have contact information (name, phone numbers and email) so that the media that receive them and have need of additional information or want to turn your release into a bigger story and have need for more information can reach you.

IN A RECENT EDITION OF SUCCESS MAGAZINE I found the results of a survey that really caught my interest. With all the hype about Facebook, Twitter, Google, LinkedIn and more, sixty-two percent of Americans say social networks have zero effect on their buying decisions. Thirty percent said social media has "some influence"; 5 percent, a great deal of influence; 3 percent were undecided. U.S. businesses spent more than $5 billion on social media in 2013. That is some information you just may want to store away for future use in your sponsorship efforts.

AND FINALLY make sure you have us on your media list to receive your season wrap release, your plans for 2015 and your sponsorship news releases. Send them to Esaxton144@aol.com.


READ MANY OF OUR PAST SPONSORSHIP MARKETING COLUMNS
LOTS OF FREE HELP !
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WE CAN CREATE A CUSTOM SPONSORSHIP MARKETING PACKAGE. A COMPLETE CUSTOM CREATED PACKAGE THAT WILL HAVE POTENTIAL SPONSORS TAKING NOTICE.

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 ESAXTON144@AOL.COM
ERNIE SAXTON COMMUNICATIONS CAN PROVIDE THESE SERVICES FOR YOU:

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