by Kristin Swartzlander | Jul 31, 2014 | Media and Public Relations, Mindset, Motorsports Marketing for Tracks, Teams and Businesses, Racing Social Media, Racing Sponsorship
Last night, we were fortunate enough to be able to attend the Lou Blaney Memorial at Sharon Speedway. Having grown up watching Lou and my uncle, Brian Swartzlander, go toe-to-toe for years in our local modified division, I’m happy to be able to be a part of an event that honors him every year. It’s probably not surprising that Lou’s hotshoe sons, Dave and Dale, were able to dominate the field and earned first and second place honors, respectively. Dave started in the third position and it was clear from early on that he had the car to beat. From the moment Dave took the green, and then the lead on lap six, I noticed most fans with their eyes darting back and forth between the brothers’ cars, watching to see what line they would take and what potential struggle lapped traffic would give them. Dale made his way into second place on lap 15 but didn’t give his teammate a challenge. That didn’t stop most from keeping their eyes glued to the pair, following the action and giving a rousing ovation at the finish. Watching that race, and watching the fans’ reaction, it was really clear how much of the excitement of racing is tied to a story. Yes, Dave’s impressive performance would have been entertaining whether or not he was Lou’s son. But the added hook of racing against his brother to win the race held in his father’s honor – for the first time, no less – was enough to keep everyone on their edge of their seats. Talking to drivers and crew in the pits...
by Kristin Swartzlander | Jul 25, 2014 | Motorsports Marketing for Tracks, Teams and Businesses, Racing Social Media, Racing Sponsorship
Since we’re about mid-way through racing season (insert tears here), I thought now would be a good time to talk about something we all should be doing right now: sponsorship activation. But what does that even mean, you ask. I will tell you, obviously, because we are friends and you asked. Sponsorship activation is bringing your marketing partnership to life. Ultimately, the goal of a sponsorship is to achieve specific business goals, whether that’s increasing product sales, getting exposure to another business or businesses, or obtaining community buy-in for a message or project. ‘Activating’ a sponsorship means using the assets you promised to give your marketing partner to achieve those goals. It means taking action. Many companies have been turned off by the notion of racing sponsorship because of the past, when it was business as usual to slap a logo on a car and cash a check. That model rarely, if ever, works anymore – logos don’t move product. And that’s where sponsorship activation comes in. Ways to activate a racing sponsorship: Social media Offers or giveaways of partner products Unique or exclusive content for your marketing partner’s audience Support your marketing partner’s activation efforts (ex. Take photos of their advertising campaigns or PR placements for your social media accounts.) Brainstorm ideas for your marketing partner to activate Truth be told, it’s on both the person being sponsored and the brand sponsoring them to activate a sponsorship. After all, it is a partnership. That’s why it’s also important to explain to a sponsor up front that there are costs that aren’t included in their agreement with you that...
by Kristin Swartzlander | Jul 10, 2014 | Media and Public Relations, Mindset, Motorsports Marketing for Tracks, Teams and Businesses, Racing Sponsorship
We established last week in that one reason people accuse others of cheating is because they don’t like to lose. And they really don’t like to lose big. And for some reason, people really, really don’t want to accept that they lost to someone else’s natural advantage. They don’t want to think that someone can be that much smarter than them, in that much better shape than them, or be that much better at driving than them. They love to blame factors that are out of their control, right? The most common two factors: money and cheating. A lot of people like to think that at a base level, everyone is the same. Everyone has the same potential. We get frustrated when we see people in great shape, but deep down we think that we have the same potential. So it’s not cheating. (Insert motivational quote here.) But we don’t all have the same potential in every aspect of our lives. The truth is that most people who are accused of cheating aren’t doing anything illegal. Many of them are ‘cheating’ legally by using an unfair advantage. Illegal cheating is breaking the rules. It’s doing something that you’re not allowed to be doing. An unfair advantage is something that you’re competitors don’t have and can’t easily copy. Because they’re not you. Insider trading is illegal. Using the connections that you have or network you’ve built to get inside information about engine tuning, shock adjustments and a million other things is not illegal – it’s an unfair advantage. Buying components that are outside of the rules is cheating. Spending money...
by Kristin Swartzlander | Jun 19, 2014 | Media and Public Relations, Mindset, Motorsports Marketing for Tracks, Teams and Businesses
How many times have you had a version of this conversation: Person: Where do you start tonight? You: Seventh Person: Well, who starts on the pole? You: Little Jimmy. Person: Oh, of course. [Throws hands up in the air.] Little Jimmy always starts on the pole. Now, in reality? Little Jimmy has just as much of a chance of pulling a one pill as every other driver. Maybe he does start there more than other people. Or, maybe it just seems that way because you’re focused on what Little Jimmy gets that you don’t. In reality, Little Jimmy getting the pole so often probably can be chalked up to a combination of luck and showing up. Often. But, we see what we’re looking for. Have you ever bought a new-to-you car? I did pretty recently. I decided ahead of time that I wanted a certain car – all wheel drive, low profile in black (the only color vehicles come in, right?) – and started shopping around for it. Pretty soon, I was seeing them everywhere. My car at the stoplight. My car in the television ad. Oh look at the ice cream cone the guy driving my car has! (Sometimes I’m looking for ice cream and cars, what can I say.) I was seeing what I was looking for. Expectations are a heck of a thing. If we think we’re going to get screwed, in one way or another we probably will. Not necessarily more than usual, but we’ll find an instance to plug right into that expectation. We love to be right. What’s my point? If we see what...
by Kristin Swartzlander | May 30, 2014 | Media and Public Relations, Mindset, Motorsports Marketing for Tracks, Teams and Businesses
Last weekend, I traveled out to Fremont Speedway for the All Star Circuit of Champions double header. I was pleasantly surprised by a lot of what I experienced in my first visit to the place they’ve dubbed “The Track Where Action Was Built.” If you read my recent article on DirtClassic.com, you know that I subscribe to the belief that showing up is essential for success. And, going beyond expectations even when you don’t have to is what creates a tribe for your team or event. I saw a lot of that at Fremont this weekend, and so I called Promoter Rich Farmer to talk to him about their philosophy on delivering a great experience to fans, drivers and marketing partners. I’m sharing a little bit of that conversation today in hopes that we can apply some of these philosophies to our interactions with our customers, whether they’re re-tweeting your updates, buying your t-shirts or sitting in your grandstands. For the most part, attitude has a trickle down effect. From the front gate to the food lines, I ran into positive attitudes and refreshing experiences. One of Farmer’s philosophies is that everyone who walks through the gate is a customer, and I could tell by the way I was treated by everyone I talked to. “Our staff understands that whether you’re in the pits or the grandstands, you bought a ticket to get in to Fremont Speedway and therefore, you are a customer,” Farmer said. “And you should be treated as such.” One of the first things that stood out to me was the price of pit passes – no...
by Kristin Swartzlander | May 23, 2014 | Media and Public Relations, Motorsports Marketing for Tracks, Teams and Businesses
This week, I’m shaking things up a little bit with a special post. As you might know, the last few months I’ve been working on a passion project – The Dirt Classic Presented by Kasey Kahne. I’ve always been very lucky to be able to enjoy my work and the people that I get to collaborate with, and this race has taken that to a new level. One of the things that we’re really focusing on with this project is delivering a new experience for race fans and teams. We’re applying many of the concepts that we’ve learned about business outside of the racing industry to this race. Some of it will work and some may not, and I’m grateful to be working with a team of people who is willing to do things differently for the benefit of improving the sport. On that note, we’ve decided to complement the regular press release program that most races do with editorial pieces about the racing industry, regional racing, observations and interviews. This week, we debuted our first piece about the opportunities that we as racers and promoters have to deliver a fantastic experience even when we don’t have to. If you’d like to check it out, please click over to The Dirt Classic website to read: Chomping at the Bit – Opening the Season with Opportunities. xo....
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