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Lets revisit advertising during the race.
Nothing against Danica, but why was she the only one doing ads during the races for godaddy and peak, at least in our region. Why isn't Helio driving a penske moving truck, Dixon shopping at target, Tony running into 7-11 for diapers, Vito plugging the national guard, Will getting a big mac and so on. In the old days drivers visited childrens hospitals and made appearances. Showing Dan giving his winnings to help the flood victims. I really would love to see a life size cut out of Helio, Dan or TK at the quick shops. Are we missing something here? What are the sponsers thinking? I just don't get it!!. I would like to know how the Drivers and Team owners feel about this Issue. How do the ad wizards on wall street justiy their salaries. Hey TG, whats your thought on this?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jim Huntington on -
I heard that Izod finally got an ad on the air featuring RHR, only 3 months after his victory. Great timing. Danica's PR machine is geared up because of Danica, not the league. She is smart enough to take care of her self and in the process, spin off attention for the league. The league seems to pretty behind the curve in creating synergy with sponsors/drivers.
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Permalink Reply by Wilsonfan on -
Both Tam and Jim make great comments regarding open wheel advertising. I have often wondered if Target Corporation has put the lid on any open wheel promotions for fear of offending the NASCAR crowd. I know that sounds strange but could there be any other reason. The league is thrilled when they can get race sponsorship from any company. The marketing department in Indy must be a very small closet. Wouldn't you think Target would want to shout from the rooftops the fact they won the Indy 500? How much would it cost to place a cardboard cutout of Scott Dixon with his Indy trophy at the entrance of every Target store?
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Permalink Reply by JDB on -
This kind of common-sense thinking will get you nowhere in the IRL office. If they did all this then they wouldn't have anything else to do and therefore it would not be worthwhile to have 30 people working in that department. But as long as they are "working hard to attract more sponsors and PR possibilities" they all can keep their job because the job is not done.
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Permalink Reply by Tam on -
I see what you are saying, but it takes money to make money and there is no reason that TK, Helio and others can't get the money back the same as Danica, there is a huge female population that is a very big part of the IRL and guess who will probally do most the spending on the products. If you want the IRL to grow you have to make it part of the everyday culture. Just put these drivers male and female in the public eye a little more and there will never be an empty seat at a race, I can guarentee that. I'm sorry to be such a pain about this issue, but come on. I would rather see Helio, TK, Dan or even Milka staring at a car rather than a chubby, messy Tony Stewart. Thats all I have to say on the subject. Thanks
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Permalink Reply by Iowa Guy on -
This has become one of my biggest rants about the ICS. There is a marketing term called "brand awareness." It's making your name a part of people's houheholds and everyday life. You don't have to look far in the world of motorsports to find a great example of how to do it: NASCAR. Now, I don't advocate the Indy Car Series trying to compete with NASCAR for their fans. But I'm sure there must be a large market of "casual" race fans, general sports lovers, and even some members of the general public, who could be turned into Indy Car fans. But it doesn't happen by magic. You have to CREATE the magic. Some of the examples mentioned in your original post (Wilson going through the drive-up lane in his race car to get a Big Mac, etc.) are the type of things that should be getting done. I'm sure even some non-racing fans can tell you who Carl Edwards is becasue of the Aflac commercial where the duck is driving his car, or who Jeff Burton is because of that great Holiday Inn commercial he does (addressing the group of adults in a class). Why do we not see Wilson's car on the cups at McDonald's? Why did I see no banners, anything, in my local Target after Dixon won the 500? Why doesn't 7-11 have ads where Tony Kanaan says their coffee is what REALLY keeps him moving?
You can't do it all at once. Look how many years NASCAR has been working at it. It's time for the ICS to get in gear in this area. It's true that the ICS can't be responsible for making sponsors like Target and 7-11 do commercials and promotions, but they can surely work with them to help promote this in some capacity. I hope with the move to Versus for TV next year might generate some marketing possibilities.
Danica Patrick has been a huge marketing boon to the ICS. In fact, I'd go as far as to say if not for her, there would hardly have been ANY commercials featuring Indy Car drivers this year. And Helio got the ICS some good attention with the general public when he did "Dancing With The Stars." But that's only two drivers. There's far, far more than can be done, and MUST be done if the ICS is to ever start growing new fans.
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