so how do various people get sponsers for their cars?? getting others to pay for me to mod my car sounds like a great idea (i dont see it being a bad thing). any ideas??

 

you go to a show and there will be booths. you speak to the people at the booths and then somehow sneak in a portfolio for your car. if they like you and or your car, you probably just picked up another sponsor. however youre going to have to show up at a number of the shows, and they will check.

 

Actually Varcity, you would need to put some money into your show/project car before any aftermarket Vendor would decide to sponser you! Most vendors have been burned in the past where "kids" would say they would represent their product and do alot of marketing for them only to later sell the products at half the cost to nothing....these vendors would go to the "Car show" that there sponsered person said they would be at only to find out that the product is not the vehicle...get it so far? Anyways, to get a sponser you would have to set your car apart from the next, take many pictures especially before and after, different angles, engine pics, interior pics, exterior pics, stereo set-up etc. etc. put it together like a port folio...call any vendor that you want to sponser you and ask for the Marketing Director. If he/she is busy take their name and get the address, send your port folio attn: the Marketing director, most of them want to now if you have a port folio and they will tell to send it to them....don't forget to include the shows that you are planning to attend and shows for that year, what shows you attended the previous year, include what place you came in and what category you were i.e. Honda Accord Wild....even if you don't place, still put that in that you didn't place. They like to see you at least entered and that there product was being show cased! Now some vendors may want you to put their name on your vehicle, you know graphics, either you do or you don't that's up to you, but don't get caught at a show with their name not being on your vehicle....I believe that is part of the agreement on most cases, anyways that about sums it up, if you have any further questions let me know....geez I wrote a book damn near



-R-

 

plain not easy, very hard. first of all you will need to be in the "industry" for a while and get connections, and start to know people here and there. then you need to be active in the industry, keep on getting stuff and showing stuff for a while, so people know you. then you need to be able to expose your cars easy so people actually see your parts.

you just have to see from the sponsors' point of view. why would they sponsor you if they are not going to get anything out of it, right?

and btw, i can also tell you, getting sponsored doesn't mean you spend less money, usually it means you spend more.

the idea behind sponsorship is soooo mistaken nowadays to most people

 

yup, the company sponsoring you usually gives your their end of the agreement first, so fufill your end and be fair. I see so many people get sponsored and then RUN and never show, or even show without the sponsor's logo on. What sucks is that you are taking up the budget that the company has when they could of given the sponsorship to someone who is worthy of it.

Most of the time now, you must have put in work in the past with the current car or former project cars. and yes, have a portfolio ready...

 

I agree! man have I spent sooooo much money since becoming the Junction Produce DEMO car. :X

 

and..... let's not forget about the flip side to the sponsorship. Sometimes the company that sponsors you may want you to put on a part that you may not like but "they want it" therefore you may have to put it on if you want to keep them. It's not always fun and play...

Like everyone else said, 90% of the time you have to spend a good deal of money before sponsors will even notice your car...

 

yup that's true. consider how many people actaully "want" their cars to be sponsored, its not easy anymore. plus the way i see how the network is "setup" right now. if you are not having "internal" connections with the company somehow, you are pretty much out of luck

 

well, just imagine how much MORE money i spent on my car as well

 

haha that's the sad side huh?

yeah, i wonder how many whose cars are sponsored will chime into this thread i already see 3

 

LMAO..... It's rough man, I feel your pain!

 

But I bet if you weren't sponsored by JP, you'd be spending TONS more to have all that stuff on your car currently....

 

the other way, if they weren't sponsoring, probably you wont' even get into thinking spending THAT kind of money anyway

 

Yup, That was my thinking...

 

I agree with everything thats been said regarding sponsorships - Good insight Rominl and Junction Produce.

It is very very difficult to get sponsored and there are tons of people competing for them. However, if you have a sweet ride that is already significantly modified and you win at shows, then you have something to work with.

I've been in the industry for several years now and have built up a lot of contacts (mostly because I like to talk and learn from others). Industry contacts are an absolute must.

Sponsorships are NOT ABOUT FREE PRODUCT (if thats all you want then don;t even pursue this any further)! From the sponsors point of view its only about "What you can do for them". Can you represent their company professionally? Do you have a ride that garners/demands attention? Do you routinely attend many shows? Are you dedicated to continue attending shows (the right shows and not tiny little worthless events)? Will you continue to improve your ride? Also must sign a contract and if you don;t fulfill your end of the bargain, you will have to pay them!

When I started out, I really had to work to get a few sponsors (the first are always the toughest) but now due to a number of factors, I have actually been approached by companies offering me free product. To date I have gotten nearly $10K of free stuff for the car.

In short, if I can do it starting out as a complete novice with ZERO CONNECTIONS, then anyone can.

Ted