Sponsorship strategy? Check.
Customer relationship management? Check.
Social networking initiative? Check.
Fireproof racing suit? Check.
As the dust settles on another “successful†Rexall Edmonton Indy, its attendees are left to nurse hangovers and sunburns while its promoters are left to reflect on the successes and fallbacks of the event. While the race draws annual crowds of well over 150,000 people, the Edmonton portion of the Indy circuit continually reports losses. Why is this? The event is nearly sold out every year, corporate support is strong, thousands flock to the city to attend, yet the race is predicted to lose anywhere between 1-3 million dollars. With low sponsorship numbers and even lower television ratings, what can promoters do to ensure the race continues in Alberta’s capital city? I don’t know the answer (if I did I would have a drastically different job title) but I think a place they could start is by learning from their drivers.
Over the Indy weekend I had the pleasure to spend some time with Canadian driver Alex Tagliani behind the scenes while he prepared for the race and I was absolutely blown away by how hard these athletes work off the track to make sure they still have a ride on it. The economic downturn has hit auto racing, a sponsorship dependent activity, perhaps the hardest of any North American sport and with less money to go around, drivers that become complacent have found themselves without a team to race for. Tagliani, who drives for a small race team, has had to rethink the way he goes about securing sponsorship and think of new, more cost effective ways of drumming up publicity and funding. So much so, that in a July 20 Edmonton Journal article Tagliani “estimates he’s spending about 90 per cent of his time raising money, and just 10 per cent driving.” Be it utilizing social media to boost attention, tireless work with clients and sponsors, or spending weeks ahead attending local festivals and contests, Tagliani not only increased his chances of finding a full time racing team next season but also created new racing fans, which benefits the entire sport.
Like any business, the Indy’s success depends on the performance of the entire crew. With shrinking sponsorship streams the entire industry must enter the pits, get retuned, and strategize for the laps ahead. On that note, I’ll wave the checkered flag on this string of puns and leave the forum open for discussion. What else can the Indy, or any business for that matter, learn from the way drivers secure their own sponsorship and deal with partners, clients, and supporters?
David, is it true that one of your Indy responsibilities was washing Tagliani’s outfit every night? Oh, and WELCOME to Smibs.
I like to think of it as Tagliani’s “personal equipment and wardrobe maintenance engineer,” but yes washing his suit was one of my duties. I think I did a great job on it by the way, although he promptly blamed the “Spring Meadow” scent as the main reason he finished 13th…
Which begs the question…Which detergent do drivers prefer? Fresh and Gentle Cheer or OxiClean Max Force?…I sense another bad sports analogy comparative commercial coming on…
I think your point is valid that the Edmonton Indy needs to not only do a better job promoting itself, but spend a lot less money doing it. The issue could come from three areas:
1. Sponsors see little opportunity for TV exposure
2. Sponsors perceive the Edmonton Indy’s audience to be outside of their own target audience
3. Promoters need to reduce expenses by using relatively cheap mediums of communication like online blogs and social networks
I think that if sponsors are not lining up the main issue has to be the reduced TV audience for the Edmonton Indy as opposed to other Indy Events. Assuming this reasoning holds true, Edmonton Indy promoters will have to become very creative in the way they package their corporate offerings. Tagliani can offer exposure on every size stage of Indy event, but the Edmonton Indy does not have that luxury.
Great article Dave!
You make some great comments and pose some interesting questions about how a pro athlete’s work “off the track” can positively impact the success of that athlete, the team, the events, and the league . It seems like such an obvious correlation but one that’s maybe been forgotten in this age of mega celebrity athletes, huge money, and ultra commercialized sport.
I remember as a kid growing up in Edmonton having all kinds of opportunities around the city to meet Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Paul Coffee, Jari Kurri, etc. These guys were the best players in the world playing for the most successful franchise in the NHL. And they were accessible to the fans! Heck – you could bump into them on the street or in a restaurant or stick around after any game and meet them. I suspect if you asked those guys, they would agree that in those days, it was normal to be accessible, out in the community, and working hard to build connections with the fans and community that supported them. Perhaps today, alot of that has been lost (for various reasons).
Relating this back to racing and Alex Tag and IndyCar – I think if most of the IRL drivers worked even 1/4 as hard as Alex does off the track, you’d see more fans, higher fan loyalty, better attendance at races, better TV ratings, more value for sponsors, more sponsorship dollars, and overall a way more successful sport, league, and races.
At the end of the day, a pro sport is only as successful as the strength of the connection between its fans and the sport and athletes. Huge numbers of fans with an evangelical love of their sport and their athletes equals success in professional sport – on all fronts. Perhaps we just need to be reminded of that.
I’m a big believer in the old saying “necessity is the mother of invention” so I think an upside to this recession is that athletes, their teams, and leagues are innovating and thinking about new & creative ways to (1) better engage fans and (2) provide more value to sponsors. That’s a great thing for everyone!
Cheers,
Ian
P.S. I asked Alex to tell you his preferred race-day detergent so you know for next time