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RagingStocks

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RagingStocks

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Thursday, 01/11/2007 12:18:34 AM

Thursday, January 11, 2007 12:18:34 AM

Post# of 162847
MUST READ: February 16, 2006]
Also posted by beandog24:

http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2006/02/16/1378892.htm
New sponsors invigorating

(Orlando Sentinel, The (FL) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. _ Before McKee Foods agreed to its company logo circling NASCAR tracks on national television this year, company vice president Chris McKee had to make sure one person didn't object.



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Little Debbie.

Debbie McKee is Chris McKee's cousin, a corporate officer and member of the board of directors for the Collegedale, Tenn.-based company. She's also the face of Little Debbie snack cake, thanks to her grandfather's marketing decision in 1960.





"I assure you I did clear it with her," McKee said. "I think she's a bit of a fan."

She's not alone, and neither is McKee Foods. By signing on to support Ken Shrader's No. 21 Ford with the U.S. Air Force and Motorcraft, McKee is one of several national companies joining a growing legion of primary sponsors for Nextel Cup cars in 2006:

Under the DLP HDTV brand, Texas Instruments will be involved with Terry Labonte's No. 96 Chevy.

Bass Pro Shops followed Martin Truex Jr. from the Busch Series to Nextel and will be a familiar identifier for his No. 1 Chevy.

Best Buy cut a deal with Haas CNC Racing for Jeff Green's No. 66 team.

Sterling Marlin's No. 14 Chevy will carry the Waste Management slogan to "Think Green."

Muffler maker Aero Exhaust signed up with Scott Wimmer's No. 4 Chevy.

Wells Fargo added a wide-ranging agreement with Petty Enterprises and drivers Kyle Petty and Bobby Labonte.

Mattress manufacturer Serta is with Brent Sherman's No. 49 Dodge.

And Mark Martin has heard the last of the Viagra jokes now that Lake Mary, Fla.-based AAA hiked itself to full-time sponsorship.

NASCAR fans' brand loyalty to sponsors is well known, and CEOs have discovered fans are willing to move with their drivers. That's one reason new sets of businesses _ pharmaceutical companies, banks and now a computer-chip and waste management company _ have come aboard.

"We talked to a lot of people before we made the jump, and the one thing that we heard was, `Don't do this just to do it. If you're going to do it, do it right and get your money's worth,'" said Dave Duncan, sponsorship marketing manager for Texas Instruments.

TI's goal is to parlay a multiyear agreement with Hall of Fame Racing _ owned by Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman _ into more sales of high-definition TVs stocked with the company's digital light-processing technology.

"When you look at who's buying HDTV, it's sports fans," Duncan said. "NFL fans No. 1, NASCAR No. 2. But you can't put your brand on an NFL uniform."

It costs a company $15 million to $20 million in rights fees to be a primary Nextel Cup sponsor, said William Chipps, senior editor for the IEG Sponsorship Report, which has tracked NASCAR sponsors for two decades. For that business to market its team and product _ marrying the two with promotions _ means investing an additional $15 million to $20 million. Sometimes, marketing costs are double the rights fee.

Such prices lead to a growing trend in NASCAR's series: car pooling. Trading time on the car's hood makes for a more affordable sponsorship, especially for businesses that want to see results before splurging full-bore.

This year, Little Debbie and the U.S. Air Force will share the No. 21 car. Lone Star Steakhouse will trade off with Coors Light on David Stremme's No. 40 Dodge.

Big investment dollars have led to another trend spotted by IEG. More than ever, companies are keeping score off the track. They're watching souvenir sales, tracking regional sales and paying closer attention to what's said and written about their teams.

They also watch what goes on with drivers. After Tony Stewart won the Pepsi 400 and the New England 300 last summer and climbed outer track fencing to be closer to fans, primary sponsor Home Depot traded on the celebration. The promotion: "Hey Tony, We've Got Ladders."

"Five or 10 years ago, companies kind of threw money at these teams and hoped for the best," Chipps said. "Nowadays, return on investment or return on objective is paramount. They're determining more and more criteria to determine whether they're getting the bang for their buck."

Aero Exhaust, a seven-year-old company based in Salt Lake City, already is convinced it's getting the bang. The Nextel season doesn't start until Sunday, but the company is experiencing "triple-digit" sales growth in the first quarter of 2006.

After sponsoring a car in two lower NASCAR divisions, it bought into NASCAR big-time for 2006. The company is Wimmer's multiyear primary sponsor, and it also paid to become NASCAR's official muffler and for a new company spokesman, recently retired driver Rusty Wallace.

Still, shelling out big bucks for a shiny stock car wasn't an automatic go for Aero's board.

"More than anything it was convincing them and the (200) shareholders that NASCAR could bring the brand loyalty and name recognition that it does," Aero Exhaust CEO Bryan Hunsaker said. "It was educating them ... particularly the bean-counters. They didn't understand what kind of credibility this could bring."

Wait a few months, then ask Little Debbie.

___

(c) 2006, The Orlando Sentinel (Fla.).

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