Sponsorship Drama 101 by Jim Gandolf

Sponsorship Drama 101
By Jim Gandolf

I remember a time back; but not too long ago. I was with a company that brought a sponsorship to NASCAR Team, and a IndyCar Team. It was a product placement deal that was an extreme success. It was Daytona 500 time and I never had placed a sponsorship transaction for a NASCAR situation of any grand magnitude before this particular type of racing. I always had been with open wheel type of racing. I am use to IndyCar type of financial planning on each race. This was a main sponsorship transaction and I was handed three tickets, and was told by the team, "Good luck on parking and go to the suite and we will meet you when you get there!" I thought really now? No parking pass or any direction of any kind? No police escorts to the track (Like Indy) just a see you when you get there? I didn't even get a pit pass and $500,000.00 US Dollars were out the door! Oh, it gets worse, the car we sponsored didn't even make the race, so I had to spend 30 thousand dollars more on a small sponsorship transaction for a car that qualified for the Daytona 500 that year. Still no pit pass LOL NASCAR SAW US COMING! I at this point wore my Indy 500 sweat shirt to a major race funtion of NASCAR and I ran into a former Indy 500 champion and he said, "Only you Jimmy!" Hahahahaha. If I get a company to spend 500 grand on a IndyCar Team, I have everything I want. Let a lone a particular race. I was stuck the whole season with that mess. I sponsored a few teams in taxi cab racing, and didn't even get a hard card at all. I quit planning anything in NASCAR at all until now. This will be under my planned execution or we will just keep going in open wheel type of racing. What's that song "Take your money and run" . Make sure when you sponsor a race team that your action plan is under your plan and not the race team's plan. You have to have activation of the product or corporate structure represented in the way you can at all times. Stay away from race teams that don't get or understand your action plan for your sponsor.

Jim Gandolf