Getting Sponsors

[zoidbergmerc]

Hey Guys,

Just wondering about how you more serious racers go about getting sponsors, what's the procedure you go through? Do you just know someone with a business and they hook you up or do you write proper application essays and submit those to business around your area?

I found this http://sau.ferni.net/Scotsman/SP2008.pdf

Obviously someones application essay, is that the type of thing everyone is doing? or is that a bit on the extreme side?

And when people give you these large amounts of cash, do you need an ABN or is it like a gift or what's the go there? does the Tax man need to know about these contributions? Is there a threshold on how much you can get before you need to play tax on it?

I've got a couple lined up for next year, I just was spinning a yarn with the local butcher as he saw me with the car on the trailer and asked about it and I in jest asked him if he wanted to sponsor me and he said yeah sure no problem, then I stalled a bit because I didn't know what to do or how much to ask for or how to ask for it I just said I'd get back to him at the start of next season.

I'm not really that desperate for sponsors, I just would like to get a little bit more money back to help with entry and maybe put a little money back in the beer budget so I can stop drinking goon Although that has helped with driver weight reduction

Assuming I can get the car running how I like it, (Just having the usual RB oil woes atm),

I'd like my 2012 season to go like this:

Tas Drift Series

Tas Super Series (Sports GT B-Grade)

Tas Hillclimb series

Probably attend a few Sprints and Random track days too.

I'm pretty bad at drifting but I've only tried it a couple of times and it's something I'd like to be good at and it's really fun too so that's something I'd like to do and next year I reckon I could get top16.

Tas Super series, I could only enter if I got my car running right as it's pretty hardcore, prolly about as hardcore as you can get before you need to leave Tassie and my lap times are quick enough so I'd just need to work on my racecraft in order to post some results but I'm not going to promise anything to anyone, just going out to have some fun.

Hillclimb series I'm entering this year and had a little go with in my WRX last year and got good results, I was put into a class I wasn't competitive in though so I didn't actually win anything

I'm only 22 at the moment but I'd really like to do all this now before my Mrs gets all clucky and decides she wants a child and a house then I will have no money ugh, not looking forward to that.

I've always jumped in the deep end with competing (used to race motorbikes) because I found if you start in the shallow end and just splash about no one takes you seriously and the deep end just looks deeper and deeper the longer you put it off.

So that's my story SAU, I'd really like your 2c worth on kick starting my racing career, do you think I'm doing it right? Am I doing it wrong? What would you do differently?

Cheers,

z

[GTS-t VSPEC]

Most of my sponsors are companies I've dealt with during the build, and they tend to provide parts and services for free. I've also had sponsors pay for entry into events etc. I'd love to think someone would throw wads of cash my way, but I think it depends on the level and type of motorsport your competing in. It's a pretty tough economic time to ask companies for cash.

[zoidbergmerc]

It's a pretty tough economic time to ask companies for cash.

I suppose it is.

How do you negotiate the deals you have with your sponsors? (If that's not a rude question) Is it just like "Hey do you want to sponsor me? You can just hook me up and I'll put a sticker on my car" or what?

[sav man]

For Targa I did a similar thing to Chris, wrote how awsome I am, and had prices for each position on the car. I knew all of the people in one way or another, it's a lot easier to start there.

You don't need a ABN, you just need to write an invoice for anyone you get with, price, and basic info. eg door $xxx. So then the company can claim the advertising back on tax

Edited July 26, 2011 by sav man

[GTS-t VSPEC]

I suppose it is.

How do you negotiate the deals you have with your sponsors? (If that's not a rude question) Is it just like "Hey do you want to sponsor me? You can just hook me up and I'll put a sticker on my car" or what?

Pretty much, I had thought about doing it more profressionally, with a website, sponsor details, business statement etc, but that seems like a heap more effort than just asking for sponsorship

[zoidbergmerc]

I suppose a casual approach would work with people you're already chummy with. Maybe not with a bigger corporate sponsor, they'd just be like "who the f**k is this bogan asshole"

[GTS-t VSPEC]

I suppose a casual approach would work with people you're already chummy with. Maybe not with a bigger corporate sponsor, they'd just be like "who the f**k is this bogan asshole"

Indeed, but I think your chances of getting big corporate sponsorship is low unless you run in V8 Supercar categories etc

[zoidbergmerc]

yeah I'll do that in 2013.

Edited July 27, 2011 by zoidbergmerc

[Marlin]

Maybe I'm a defeatist, but I reckon the amount of time and energy you'd need to spend to obtain a corporate type sponsor of any real value would be better spent simply earning more money or furthering your ability to earn money going forward.

Your money earning ability will still be current long after the sponsor has gone.

If you decide to chase a sponsor, and you managed to get a reasonable one, you then have the worry of keeping them, and ensuring that somehow, regardless of your results, that they continue to get value from their dollars.

[zoidbergmerc]

Maybe I'm a defeatist, but I reckon the amount of time and energy you'd need to spend to obtain a corporate type sponsor of any real value would be better spent simply earning more money or furthering your ability to earn money going forward.

Your money earning ability will still be current long after the sponsor has gone.

If you decide to chase a sponsor, and you managed to get a reasonable one, you then have the worry of keeping them, and ensuring that somehow, regardless of your results, that they continue to get value from their dollars.

You're right. Which is why I'm not going to chase big corporate sponsors just yet.

And yes, I'm also doing lots of PD to further my career. I swear I do more training at work than work

[Marlin]

i don't know what PD means... I'm uneducated. haha

There is no harm in trying to do deals with people you meet along the way. I've struck up great little agreements with several Aussie companies. Hell, I'm using their products anyway because I like them, so if they can help me out, and I can send a few new people their way, then it's all good right

[zoidbergmerc]

PD = Professional Development.

Sounds like a good strategy, I might have to do a similar thing.

[GTS-t VSPEC]

There is no harm in trying to do deals with people you meet along the way. I've struck up great little agreements with several Aussie companies. Hell, I'm using their products anyway because I like them, so if they can help me out, and I can send a few new people their way, then it's all good right

+1

[DJRIFT]

in reality sponsorship for a company unless they are directly related to the automotive industry is pretty useless. sure sometimes people see a name on the side of a car and think "hey i mite shop there because they are into motor sport" or people mite drink monster energy because ken block matkes good youtube movies.

ive always had one good sponsor behind me but in reality its only 10% of my motorsports budget. i got it because i used to to after hours work for a bloke. he had race cars and a sucsessfull company and offered to pay my entry fees so they i would atleast be out there doing stuff. the sponsorship went further as far as lending a car trailer and other small buts but never as far as paying for any parts going onto my car.

other places i have delt with have given me exceptional pricing on parts or service but rather than put sinage on the car i just recomend all my mates to go to them as well as me telling them to go there and see X man is more benifical than having a sticker on the car.

if i was you and had someone keen to give you a bit of cash id recomend getting them to pay your entry fee for events. they can the write a cheque to the car club involved and you can enter the car with a naming rights sponser. id also go for an event by event deal so rather than getting $500-1000 at the start of the year spreading that throught out the year. this means if you blow an engine or gearbox at the first event you dont feal compeled to give you sponsor his moneys worth.

so my 2 bits of advice

round by round deal paying entry fees.

sponsorship is classed as advertising and advertising is 100% tax deductable for a company.

[Marlin]

This is on a whole different level to where many of us sit, but I've also heard of sponsorship from larger corporations going like this;

Large corporation sponsors a race team for say, $100k. The CEO of the corporation ok's the sposorship deal and it goes through the corps books as a legit cost of doing business/advertising.

Race team accepts the $100k and kicks back a portion (say, $20k in cash) to the CEO, who loves it, because it's tax free, and the tax man (or the board for that matter!) never needs to know.

Sinister buggers.

Edited July 27, 2011 by Marlin

[sav man]

That also will work for less money too, most company owners love tax free cash.

[Marlin]

That also will work for less money too, most company owners love tax free cash.

True,

Broaching the subject can be a little difficult though I've found. lol

[zoidbergmerc]

I was just thinking...

I've got my own little PC Repair business that does OK, couple of customers a month.

If say I spend all that money on sponsoring my own car, can I then write that money off as advertising and get it back on tax?

[GTS-t VSPEC]

I was just thinking...

I've got my own little PC Repair business that does OK, couple of customers a month.

If say I spend all that money on sponsoring my own car, can I then write that money off as advertising and get it back on tax?

Assuming you have a proper business with ABN etc, then I can't see why not. Whether you can write 100% of the income off as advertising I don't know, best to check with a Tax Accountant

[zoidbergmerc]

Yeah I've got an ABN, I might have a chat when I get my tax done.