Real-Life Communication -- Solution
Here's a possible pitch for Mega Oil.
"When my race fans are not watching my car cross the finish line ahead of the pack, they're at home working on their own cars.
"From the letters they send me, I know that my loyal fans are also loyal to the products that I use. They're also loyal to the companies who help sponsor my racing efforts.
"With my car, Mega Oil would reach 30,000 people in person, 30 times per year. You'd reach another half-million people twice a year, when national TV carries the races I run. Those viewers are watching closely and make no mistake about it -- they want their cars to run like mine.
"In short, Mega Oil has found the perfect messengers. Me and my championship race car."
Drivers have to think carefully about what kind of sponsorship they need and how best to get that sponsorship.
This is how Marybeth Harrison, a Formula 1600 racer, described her strategy to a bunch of radio race fans:
"This year my total budget is $60,000 and so for sponsorship, I am looking for anything from a $3,000 'Blue Flag' sponsor [and up]. Then we have a 'Green Flag' sponsorship program for around $8,000, and then we have what's called a Primary Sponsorship or 'Checkered Flag' program where a company can come in and basically gets the whole car and my suit painted out in their colors. We go the whole nine yards and spend the year promoting their company."
Lucky for Harrison, she has a business background in franchise development and small business. She had even started her own company, producing an environmental resource guide, before she got into racing.