Here are some suggestions of information that could be included in your sponsorship proposal: (1) A "Cover Logo Page" for your race team that is impressive and identifies your class. (2) "Our Mission" Which defines what you are seeking to accomplish with your racing career. (3) "About {your class} and ORSCA" Membership affiliation ALWAYS helps your position with sponsors. Give them details about ORSCA. Give them details about your class, class guidelines. Alot of the sponsors that seek you as an advertsing tool or representative for their product are not affiliated with ORSCA or drag racing. Education of what the class and ORSCA is about helps them understand how serious and involved you are. (4) "Car Specs" Tell about your car and name some of the manufactures that you are currently using in your set-up. (5) "Our Race Team" Elaborate on who is in your race team and their specific functions. Represent the importance that your race team brings to your success (As a driver/owner). List your team members previous or current affliations with the racing industry, (If you feel this will give you an advantage), so they know you have pulled together a well qualified team. (6) "Driver History" List your accomplishments, skills and abilities, and what you are doing to further all three of those. (7) "Sponsorship Benefits" This is where you decide (and every race team is different), what you are willing to provide a sponsor in exchange for their support. What ever you put here you better be willing to do, so don't make promises that are far-fetched and you can't come through with consistently through out the year. (8) "2006 Racing Expenses" List what it will cost you to run your race team for 2006. Parts, labor, gas, etc... A serious race team runs on a planned budget. Sharing what you are about to spend, not only shows potential sponsors how serious you are, it shows that an individual that invests as much as race teams do are dedicated to the industry... and are also willing to do what it takes (for a sponsor) to offset those expenses. (9) "2006 Sponsorship" Definine what you are seeking either in monetary or necessary parts sponsorship and explain why you need these things. Most sponsors indirectly related have no idea how much it truly costs to make a single pass down the track. (10) "Conculsion" A personal message to your requested sponsor summing up everything that you have just previously stated and closing the proposal request. (11) "Contact Information" How and who to reach, Names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses.. etc..etc... so these people can reach you to ask further questions. NOW HERE IS THE HARD PART: Proposals need to be consise, and no more than four (4) pages in length. WHY? Company executives who authorize the expenditures and sponsorships for their company do not have time to read 10 pages of information about you and your racing needs. Yet, in the four (4) pages submitted it needs to be set in a professional format. Presentation to them is how you will represent them and their product . Highly recommended to be included with the Sponsorship proposal are the following: One or two articles from magazines including your car. Two or three photos of your car at different angles in an event. A CD enclosed with a clip of your car in action, your pit set up (trailer, truck, crew), anything of you being active in the racing industry, previous car shows, awards banquet, winner's circle. Even a personal clip of you thanking them at the end for considering you by means of sponsorship. A BUSINESS CARD or glossy post card with your contact information is an absolute necessity, with your website and email address on there if you have both. Send out these proposals via certified mail with return receipt. That way you will know when it is received by the company (if not personally delivered). Give it 7 (seven) days after receipt and CALL YOUR CONTACT to follow up. Extra expense ? YES.....impressive?.....YES......Serious about what you are doing?.....YES....States professionalism ??.......YES. That small added expense can easily return you more than ten fold. This is not rocket science, but obtaining sponsorship does require EFFORT. Then once sponsorship is secured, it requires MAINTENANCE. None of you will buy something you know nothing about or did not do research on. NOR will you RE-PURCHASE THAT SAME ITEM if it did not perform for you. Sponsors are no different. This is a business venture for them.
wow sounds like im not getting a sponsorship cause its me and my friends doing it i have raced some sprint cars before but nothing much and i cant do that many races cause im in the airforce... well looks like i will just take what i can get around town for it being a "Show/Drag" car but wont be done forever. thanks for all the imput
And that's not a bad way of looking at it either. Start small with "around town" businesses. Only a well digger starts at the top.
