The Business of Being a Race Driver for February 1, 2022 – Networking, Getting the Right Sponsorship ROI and More

The business of being a race driver seemingly never ends. The search for sponsorship to make your budget is a never-ending series of meetings, presentations and phone calls. Here are some tips to help.

Tools, Tips & Techniques

• In business, networking can often be the difference between success or failure since knowing the right people can often be the springboard to being at the right place at the right time. As we all know, motorsport is as much about business as sport with the search for sponsorship taking up such a large part of a driver’s time and energy. It is therefore only logical that you would want to cast your net wide as part of your sponsorship search and network with as many people as possible. In The Importance of Networking I list ten points to keep in mind when planning out how you network and why. In all the meetings and interviews I have had with numerous team officials, businesses involved in motorsport, sponsorship consultants, scholarship officials and driver management companies, the importance of networking has been emphasized time and time again.

• Sponsorship and social media guru Megan Lingner discusses 3 Motorsports Sponsor Tips that Make a Major ROI (Return on Investment) Difference.

• What is the difference between sponsorship rights vs. sponsorship activation? Sport Dimensions explains.

• In 2022, fans demand authenticity from the brands they support and purchase, and this equally applies to those promoting their goods. Brands must ask the question: “What do fans value?” and “how can we support it?” This is Purpose-Driven Marketing and it is essential to understand why it is so powerful and how you need to understand its benefits and pitfalls.

• Social media can be a blessing and a curse for athletes, but it may have been more helpful than harmful for race driver Hailie Deegan. Read why here.

Drives Available

• Canadian racing team Xtreme Motorsports has a few spots left in their Arrive & Drive program for the 2022 Super Production Challenge season in one of their Nissan 370Z racecars. You can contact them here.

That’s it for this week’s Business of Being a Race Driver. I will be back tomorrow with my look at motorsport series news from around the world. Stay safe!