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By Ernie Saxton

Lately we have heard of a number of teams and events trying to attract marketing partners (sponsorship) with offers on the Internet. And there are teams that have offered sponsorship on E-bay (www.ebay.com). We have not heard of anyone (doing this) having real success.

However, according to a article penned by Michael Hiestand in USA Today, probably my favorite daily newspaper because it covers sports and motorsports in such a concise manner, there are teams that are very serious and inventive in their efforts.

According to the article, Mark Watkins, a railroad conductor in Easley, South Carolina, had sold some books and a fishing reel on-line. Then a bigger idea “just popped in my head one day.”

Watkins, along with his teenage son Josh, would simply use the Internet to build a NASCAR team from scratch. He launched BIGFANRACING.COM in January and says he’s raised more than $100,000 online from small-time backers, including 800 people who paid $100 to be “honorary owners”. That usually gives the “Owners” a chance to have their names appear on the car.

He admits his idea is strange, “but it worked so quickly nobody had a chance to say it wouldn’t work.” said Watkins.

Now, according to the Hiestand column, the problem is getting in races. Watkins bought a $20,000 car, used $40,000 on improvements and tried to qualify for an August 4th race in the Busch Series, NASCAR’s second-highest rated series. The Busch Series is sort of what the Triple A is to major league baseball.

The Big Fan Car didn’t qualify. But Watkins, along with driver Lance Hooper, will try again August 24 in Bristol, Tennessee (Sharpie 500 Winston Cup Weekend) and maybe at five more races. (Note: Column was written in early August, 2001)

Watkins is really dependent on the kindness of online strangers, especially after he says he lost his one “major” sponsor, a sports drink called “Aloe Lu-Ya Juice.

But Big Fan has quite a range of “free stuff” to attract its hundreds of owners, such as lug nuts from the car itself as well as the promise of autographs it might secure from other teams’ drivers.

And Watkins says there will be Big Fan hospitality tents at races. Watkins indicated that about 150 of the owners showed up August 4th to meet each other, although they weren’t strangers; “They have their own online invitation-only chat room, so they’ve talked for months,”

It seems to works for Watkins. We have to wonder why others have not tried it. And it would seem to be something that would work for teams running on the local short tracks around the nation. There are about 1000 (auto) race track (over 700 kart tracks) in operation. A well-presented on-line marketing program, including reasonable cost for participants, could work very well.

About the Author: Ernie Saxton publishes the “Ernie Saxton Motorsports Sponsorship Marketing News”. It is available by calling 215-752-7797 or fax at 215-752-1518.

END

Kart Marketing Group, Inc.
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Telephone: 630-653-7368
Fax: 630-653-2637
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