New Hampshire Motor Speedway Finds Sponsor Only 13 Days Before Its July Race

By Paul Birdwell (paul@roaringforkagency.com)

It is never too late to put together a sponsorship deal for an event and the New Hampshire Motor Speedway proved that point again this past week by finding a sponsor for its July 14 NASCAR Spring Cup Series event only 13 days before the race is to be run.

New Hampshire Motor Speedway lands Camping World RV Sales as sponsor for July 15 NASCAR Spring Cup race, Jason Remillard, The Republican

“Just 13 days before the race, New Hampshire Motor Speedway has found a sponsor for its July 14 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event.

Camping World, the nation's largest recreational vehicle retailer, has teamed with NHMS to lend its name to the race, which will be called the Camping World RV Sales 301, the speedway announced Monday.

The company is not new to NASCAR by any means. It is the title sponsor of NASCAR's truck series, and it was previously the sponsor of what is now the K&N Pro Series East. Camping World and NHMS have a long partnership, as the 2007-09 Nationwide Series races and the 2008 Truck Series race at "The Magic Mile" bore Camping World sponsorship.

With a solid base in place at the other levels of NASCAR, Camping World has decided to extend its branding efforts to the Cup series.”

Finding a sponsor 13 days before an event is cutting it close but event managers that are in search sponsorship should keep working right up until to the end to find corporate support and sponsorship because many companies in today’s tight marketing and advertising budgets often find themselves with some resources available to be spent throughout the year and if the right person calls at the right time….one never knows if it will lead to a big sponsorship deal or not!

The Roaring Fork Agency works very hard to build strong and lasting relationships with marketing and advertising executives at companies across North America and we will keep pitching the events we represent to companies that we believe would have an interest in becoming involved and sponsoring an event and on many occasions it was the right pitch to the right person at the right time that made all the difference in the world.

Congratulations to the New Hampshire Motor Speedway for inking Camping World to be the sponsor for its July 14 NASCAR Spring Cup Series race!

If you have any questions about event sponsorship or venue naming rights contact the Roaring Fork Agency at:

info@roaringforkagency.com

Lake Tahoe, Nevada – 775 374 - 6400

Bend, Oregon – 541 237 – 8080

Honolulu, Hawaii - 808 638 - 2600

www.roaringforkagency.com

Twitter - @RoaringForkAgcy

IEG Reports That Fair and Festival Sponsorship Spending To Total $849 Million in 2013

By Paul Birdwell (paul@roaringforkagency.com)

The IEG Sponsorship Report put out a very interesting news story this week on how Fair and Festival Sponsorship continues to grow albeit at a slow pace in the United States over the past several years.

Fair and Festival Sponsorship Spending To Total $849 Million in 2013, IEG

“When it comes to sponsorship spending on fairs and festivals, slow and steady may be the best description.

Burdened by the sluggish economy and tight marketing budgets, fairs and festivals have been one of the slowest growing sectors in recent years.  

And 2013 is no exception.

Sponsorship spending on fairs, festivals and annual events is expected to total $849 million in 2013, up 2.9 percent from 2012.

The increase lags spending on arts (3.3 percent); associations (4 percent); causes (4.8 percent); entertainment (5.1 percent) and sports (6 percent) as well as the projected 5.5 percent increase for the overall sponsorship industry.

While spending growth trails other sectors, fairs and festivals continue to draw interest from corporate marketers looking to build their local presence, engage consumers and drive sales.”

A “2.9 percent” increase in Fair and Festival Sponsorship over the past year is still decent growth in a sluggish economy and people that are tasked with finding sponsorship for fairs and festivals need to get out ahead of the curve and get their Sponsorship Presentations in to potential corporate sponsors by the Fall of each year for next year’s event because that is when most of sponsorship and advertising dollar decisions are made by the larger companies doing business in your community.

The Roaring Fork Agency stands ready to help any and all Fairs and Festivals across America and Canada in their search for sponsorship dollars so give us ring or send us an email and we will get right to working finding corporate sponsorship for your event.

If you have any questions about event sponsorship or venue naming rights contact the Roaring Fork Agency at:

info@roaringforkagency.com

Lake Tahoe, Nevada – 775 374 - 6400

Bend, Oregon – 541 237 – 8080

Honolulu, Hawaii - 808 638 - 2600

www.roaringforkagency.com

Twitter - @RoaringForkAgcy

eBay CEO John Donahue at the Stanford Graduate School of Business Graduation Ceremony

By Paul Birdwell (paul@roaringforkagency.com)

eBay CEO John Donahue recently spoke at the Stanford Graduate School of Business graduation and made a great speech that focused on Donahue's "four leadership principles to help graduates stay true to themselves throughout their careers."  (John Donahue's speech starts at the 24:00 minute mark of the below video)

Enjoy! 

If you have any questions about event sponsorship or venue naming rights contact the Roaring Fork Agency at:

info@roaringforkagency.com

Lake Tahoe, Nevada – 775 374 - 6400

Bend, Oregon – 541 237 – 8080

Honolulu, Hawaii - 808 638 - 2600

www.roaringforkagency.com

Twitter - @RoaringForkAgcy

Save Mart Supermarkets CEO Bob Piccinni Is Crazy Like A Fox When It Comes To Sponsorship!

By Paul Birdwell (paul@roaringforkagency.com)

The northern California grocery store chain Save Mart Supermarkets’ CEO Bob Piccinni is a big believer in the power of sponsorship and the below Modesto Bee news article details how a company and event can working together build a long-lasting relationship that is a positive for everyone involved:

Save Mart savors NASCAR sponsorship, Joe Cortez, Modesto Bee

“What did Shakespeare say? A raceway by any other name still smells like burnt rubber?

Or something like that.

This weekend marks the 25th year of NASCAR's presence at Northern California's racing venue in Sonoma. In the early days, the track was called Sears Point. In 2002, Infineon Technologies acquired the naming rights. Weeks before last year's race, when Infineon announced it would not be renewing its deal, the track was simply rebranded Sonoma Raceway.

For all but three of those 25 years, however, one name has been constant — Save Mart.

And they said Save Mart Supermarkets CEO Bob Piccinni was crazy.

"Well, I'm not sure anybody ever used the term 'crazy' but I was told that it had never been done," says Piccinni of a grocery chain's sponsorship of a NASCAR event.”

There is NOTHING crazy about using sponsorship to drive a company’s brand with consumers and customers in the marketplace and anyone that is northern California this weekend will hear the Save Mart Supermarkets name over and over again in every imaginable form of media and all because of the decision of a CEO to make a long-term commitment to an event that hits home with his company’s customers.

Bravo to Save Mart Supermarkets CEO Bob Piccinni!

If you have any questions about event sponsorship or venue naming rights contact the Roaring Fork Agency at:

info@roaringforkagency.com

Lake Tahoe, Nevada – 775 374 - 6400

Bend, Oregon – 541 237 – 8080

Honolulu, Hawaii - 808 638 - 2600

www.roaringforkagency.com

Twitter - @RoaringForkAgcy

Ireland’s Daily Business Post on the Importance of Maximizing Returns on Sponsorship

By Paul Birdwell (paul@roaringforkagency.com)

Even with the several Billion Dollars that are spent on sponsorship in the United States each year sponsorship in Europe is a very big business and Ireland’s Daily Business Post newspaper has a terrific article today on how companies can maximize returns on sponsorship which is must read for any company considering or now actively involved in sponsorship of events or venues:

Business advice:  Maximizing returns on sponsorship, Terry Pennington, Daily Business Post

“Sponsorship is one of the many marketing tools at the disposal of a business owner or marketing director. But choosing the right sponsorship opportunity for your company or brand is not as simple as it sounds.

Everything starts with looking at your overall company and brand strategy, incorporating your brand values, market positioning and specific target demographics.

Most importantly, it is imperative to remember that sponsorship rarely works in isolation. To achieve results, sponsorship has to be part of the overall clearly-defined marketing mix and clearly link back to the company or brand strategy.

Different brands will seek to achieve different objectives from a sponsorship opportunity, but two key results to consider are: how to maximize brand awareness and increase brand equity, while adding value to the bottom line.

So, some burning questions to ask prior to committing to any form of sponsorship are:

Will this give me access to my target audience?

Does this fit with the overall business strategy?

What will this activity 'say' about my brand?

Is this a vanity project or does it truly fit with our brand?

What am I going to do in addition to handing over the sponsorship money to make this sponsorship really work for my brand?

Activation is the key driver of a successful sponsorship....”

For us here at the Roaring Fork Agency the key takeaway from the above news article is that a company agreeing to sponsor an event or venue is just the beginning of making that sponsorship pay off with increased business, customers and sales for the company which should always be the main goals of any company considering getting involved in sponsoring an event or venue.

A great sponsorship sales agency will make sure that the company and the event that end up working together on a sponsorship or naming rights deal also have a strategic plan to make that sponsorship pay off for both entities and the understanding of what is really important…

A company increasing its business, customers and sales

AND

An event or venue being successful

….is what separates the Roaring Fork Agency from other sponsorship sales agencies in the marketplace.

If you have any questions about event sponsorship or venue naming rights contact the Roaring Fork Agency at:

info@roaringforkagency.com

Lake Tahoe, Nevada – 775 374 - 6400

Bend, Oregon – 541 237 – 8080

Honolulu, Hawaii - 808 638 - 2600

www.roaringforkagency.com

Twitter - @RoaringForkAgcy

IEG Details the Best Practices When Working With Sponsorship Sales Agencies

By Paul Birdwell (paul@roaringforkagency.com)

In March of this year the leading sponsorship organization in America…

IEG – www.sponsorship.com 

….published a great report on Best Practices for working with Sponsorship Sales Agencies and it is a great read for all events and venues that are considering working with a sponsorship sales agency.

Best Practices:  Working With Sponsorship Sales Agencies, IEG

In the section of the above report that lays out how many sponsorship sales agencies get compensated for their work one can learn about how different that The Roaring Fork Agency’s “commission-only” approach is from other leading sponsorship agencies:

Breaking It Down:  How Payment Structures Work

“Most agencies contacted by IEG SR work for a retainer plus commission.

Commissions typically range between 15 percent and 20 percent, although the number usually moves lower for six- and seven-figure deals. For example, an agency that sells a $1 million deal might receive a double-digit commission, while a $5 or $6 million deal may generate a commission in the single digits.

Retainers generally range from $5,000 to $15,000 a month based on the scope of services provided. A property that requires a soup-to-nuts overhaul of its sponsorship program will typically be charged at the higher end of the range.

From there, remuneration can work in a variety of ways. For example, Engage Marketing charges a retainer and commission, around which it reimburses clients 50 percent of the retainer after the first sale.

The agency uses the pricing structure to mitigate risk, said Kevin Alder, Engage president and chief engagement officer.

“If I’m asking a client to spend $10,000 or $120,000 with me, they inevitably ask ‘how much money will you guarantee me?’ The answer is zero. I can’t guarantee revenue back, but I can guarantee that we’ll take the best version of your offering to the right people.””

We here at The Roaring Fork Agency can get your sponsorship and naming rights opportunities in front of the right people and it will cost you event or venue NOTHING until a signed deal is in place and your event/venue have been paid first which is exactly the kind of outcome and Win-Win relationship we here at Roaring Fork would like to build with all of our clients.

If you have any questions about event sponsorship or venue naming rights contact the Roaring Fork Agency at:

info@roaringforkagency.com

Lake Tahoe, Nevada – 775 374 - 6400

Bend, Oregon – 541 237 – 8080

Honolulu, Hawaii - 808 638 - 2600

www.roaringforkagency.com

Twitter - @RoaringForkAgcy

Regions Financial Believes in the Return on Investment with Sponsorship

By Paul Birdwell (paul@roaringforkagency.com)

One of the largest banks in America, Regions Financial, based out of Birmingham, Alabama believes in the value and return on investment in sponsorship as detailed in a recent al.com news story:

Why does Regions sponsor sports?  It’s the return on investment, Alex Walsh, al.com

“Regions Financial Corp. (NYSE: RF) knows it's in a unique position in Birmingham, and in Alabama. 

As the only Fortune 500 company in the state's largest metro, Regions finds itself in a symbiotic relationship with the Magic City. "When our community succeeds, we succeed," explains Scott Peters, a senior executive vice president with the company and Regions' head of corporate marketing. 

In other words, when the Birmingham area receives positive attention, Regions stands to gain. That's part of the motivation behind Regions' sports sponsorship efforts, Peters explains.

Three major partnerships highlight Regions' sports involvement. Most fresh on many Birminghamians' minds is perhaps the Regions Tradition, which ended Sunday. There's baseball -- Regions Field is the increasingly-popular home venue for Birmingham's Barons. And Regions is the official bank of the Southeastern Conference, perhaps the most significant partnership of the set.”

Yes, sponsorship works for companies looking to drive their brand forward and Regions Financial is a great example of a company that is using sponsorship to grow their business and reach more consumers in the marketplace.

Regions Financial – www.regions.com

Regions Tradition – www.regionstradition.com

Regions Field – www.regionsfield.com

Regions Financial and the SEC Conference – www.regions.com

If you have any questions about event sponsorship or venue naming rights contact the Roaring Fork Agency at:

info@roaringforkagency.com

Lake Tahoe, Nevada – 775 374 - 6400

Bend, Oregon – 541 237 – 8080

Honolulu, Hawaii - 808 638 - 2600

www.roaringforkagency.com

Twitter - @RoaringForkAgcy