Help with Drifting Sponsorship

[BenR]

LOL. At least you dont get emails like this....

hey man i got a question how come you guys never come out to the east
coast.
maybe it's because there is real competition out here in the real world
of
drifting who don't rely on sponsors to build the $20,000 carbon fiber
body.
so i guess you sold out, that's cool going from your turbo corolla to a
honda..... any time you want to go come over and bring your trailer
queen
and we'll go.

but... you did sell out Alex.



*ducks*

[NM Drift Group]

Thanks for reminding me Akuma

hey Gary, I am sure his check is in the mail!

"Oh, Goin straight to hell for this one"

Yes it was about several times, but the latest was he had the Shizzzts.

Sponsorship is like trying to get paid from Drift Fest/IDCR RC Whatever from a year ago now still going, energizer baby.

Remember to visit honorable drifting events or make sure to take cash in hand before leaving. Never count the money till it is in your account ladies and gentelman.

And for verification purposes:

email 1

I should be able to take care of you early next week. I will update you on monday.


Paul

Email 2

Gary
I will have the Paypal ready for you on Wed's it is going to take that long
to clear the balance on the CC but it will be done VIA a CC so it will be as
you like Instantly paid. Sorry it can not be sooner but that's just the way
things have worked out.

Paul

Email 3

No I had the *Censored**Censored**Censored**Censored*'s and was out sick

Didn't forget was just typing the email to you to say I would be on it today
for you. give me a few hours here.

[DriftGirl]

LOL. At least you dont get emails like this....

hey man i got a question how come you guys never come out to the east
coast.
maybe it's because there is real competition out here in the real world
of
drifting who don't rely on sponsors to build the $20,000 carbon fiber
body.
so i guess you sold out, that's cool going from your turbo corolla to a
honda..... any time you want to go come over and bring your trailer
queen
and we'll go.

Small People take shots when you're on top....Sad Human nature

oh wow....

that's all i gots to say about that.

I dont know you from a hole in the wall, But Ive had one sent to me with YOUR name on it as well. Maybe you should watch who you smart off to?

[DriftGirl]

Back on Topic,

It's just somthing that we will all see time and time again. The scene is targeted towards people who are at an age to get their first car..... The same age when they dream the most.

After reading so many (as Im sure u guys do) you can tell which ones will give you (or your company) the best ROI. It's hard deciding which ones to 'take a chance with'. You may strike gold..........or bust

I think a good method for you to use is a standardized response telling potential partners what you/your company is looking for and willing to Sponsor. It will weed out lots of people in a single email.

[conspire]

in case anyone has any connections (non-car related), I (and my liver) would like a beer/liquor sponsorship.

[RyanHampton]

Just my 2 thrown in, if you write a proposal make sure you have more than a third grade education and know, not "no" the difference between "here" and "hear". Also brush up on some sentence structure.. Hookt on foniks werkt for me...

-Thanks,

[gigglesnirt]

Just my 2 thrown in, if you write a proposal make sure you have more than a third grade education and know not "no" the difference between "here" and "hear". Also brush up on some sentence structure.. Hookt on foniks werkt for me...

-Thanks,

damn i was really hoping you'd mispell something in that so i could correct it.

[RyanHampton]

Actually you could have....
I have a number spelled and I have number written. I could have used both numbers written since they are in the same sentence. HAHA So if you have only one number in a sentence it should be spelled out. The exception to the rule is if there it is a name i.e. "240SX". There is the English lesson for the day.

Also, another side note:
If I had a non running 240SX, I could not even get a full sponsorship to build a car. I might be able to get some parts here and there, but no way could I get a full build. I know this delema, since I am trying to build another demo car.

[Tracy]

UHHHHHHH...I would say I'm shocked, but I get stuff sent like that to me everyday. At least now I know I'm not alone.

[Mute]

What really helped me in making relationships with various companies and have them sponsor various parts of my project is that I actually had a bona fide project to pitch and the marketing value equaled the invested parts from the company.

That should be a point of focus...the part value should equal the marketing value...a lot of times companies are looking to get more marketing dollars out of their invested dollars. IT'S ALL ABOUT THE BOTTOM LINE (with exceptions here and there).

So you should generally have one or more of the following before hitting anyone up:

- huge street credit
- magazine backing of your proposed project
- a competitive level of skill
- work for a reputed shop
- have a brand new popular car you are willing to gut and sacrifice to the after-market race Gods.
- money to start fabrication on your project (as many reputable fabricators are not willing to "sponsor" a project since they already have enough business) so that you can show there is actually something going on (is this stretching it?...makes sense)
- TV or other video media involvment
- and the one that trumps all, work in the industry and have friends also in the industry.

I know I missed a lot of points, but back in 95 I was a stock car street racer... ok fine, I had an Akimoto intake on my civic (but that was still big back in 95), but that's besides the point...the point is, is that I tried back in the day to get sponsors with the naive idea that I'd be fully backed by some company ready to take a chance.

Years later and a lot more experience to boot, I learned you still needed to spend large amounts of your own money, work hours a day talking to various companies while you coordinate a full build, have legitimate media exposure, be known on some level (in my case it doesn't hurt that some people know me from running D1) and having a partner to help offset the various costs on the car (thanks to Jamie Lopez from Lopez Crankshafts). Did I mention work hours a day talking to various companies like it's a full time job? Yeah that one tends to stick with me when I finally get off my J O B and realize I cramed 16 hours worth of work into my 8 hour day.

The myth is that you just get picked up by these companies who have so much sh!t laying around they are giving it away, plus they are waiting to take your car put thousands of dollars into it and give it back to you to do what you will.

The truth is is that they want to sell their parts and you end up doing a lot of the work yourself. A lot of times they even make you have a credit card on file in case you dont make good on your promises (yeah, you'll get charged the parts), unless you're serious you might not want to make empty promises and get stuck with a $2000 bill for some parts someone made for you).

Getting back on track, in my case, after all that and getting some great parts, it's not going to be just fun at the drift park, I am still going to have to keep up with the project DVDs, the online show (which is in desperate need of updating) and show what I can do when I am on the track...

It's always easier to dream than to do it, honestly I am sure a lot of people will agree with me when I say that once you do get the sponsorships rolling on any level it's still sometimes as much work as it is fun.

But if you are serious you'll never stop dreaming, and you will find the way to make it happen. It's the ones that stop dreaming, get the first rejection and wrap it up that probably weren't cut out for it to begin with. At the end of the day its about having fun whether it's finally getting that exhaust tip or that turbo kit, enjoy every step.

Thank you for reading my essay.

[cfrost]

how does one attain "huge street cred" ???

[Slapshotnerd]

how does one attain "huge street cred" ???

I was wondering the same. here I am, working with magazines, when I could be banking off my 'street cred' all this time! what was I thinking

[Mute]

Much like a graffiti writer that gets up, I've known heads in the street racing scene who banked on their notoriety to get what they wanted...maybe thats a little too old school, I'd think these days it really does come down to who you know...however I still think having a reputation will either benefit you greatly or detract from you. Think about it, a lot of marketing guys in the companies that everyone is after are the same street racers from 10+ years ago, people they knew in the scene would definitely get favored over someone they didn't know if it came down to it...once again I could be way off.

"Huge street cred" also works when someone does such amazing fab work that their reputation precedes them on the street, like what happened with L-Con Racecar Engineering (currently working on Darren Macnamara's<sp?...if so sorry Darren> Corolla), and people know what's up about them through word of mouth...again, it's my opinion but I can't see how it wouldn't help you get sponsored.

Speaking of streets...I love the Streets, great music out of the UK.

[DriftGirl]

I was wondering the same. here I am, working with magazines, when I could be banking off my 'street cred' all this time! what was I thinking

Any money in that or is it jus 'Mag Cred'?

[DriftGirl]

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