Post
by Erik Basil » Fri Nov 09, 2007 7:00 pm
I think this is generally correct: that cash prizes are better for racers and public perception than is schwag-only. Schwag is great for crowds, for junior classes and for photos along with cash.
The thing to remember is that most "sponsors" are small companies that have an easier time giving (for example) $100 Worth of gear than they do an actual $100, when that gear really costs them $50 and it gets into the hands of racers (even if that racer is "sponsored" or uses a different product and never rides the prize). So, understanding that, we have an issue to overcome: ensuring sponsors perceive a benefit to handing over cash instead of hardware they hope to see waived around.
Of course, coverage before and after events has a lot to do with "return on investment" for event sponsors, and ads in magazines cost money. Ads on skateboard websites and race reports cost only time and courtesy, but even those can be tough to take care of: someone has to have the discipline to concoct and present the promotion in advance. Then, if it's going to have some return, ie be viewed by people that aren't already fully aware of the product/company/support, you've got to find a place for that, too.
Somebody's going to figure out that I think one such place for that is Silverfish, and that's right: one of the primary reasons that site offers time, money and effort to promote events for others is that we know an audience outside "the core" is necessary for niche sports to grow. There are a few other sites --multidisciplinary sites-- that also attract internet viewers outside the core, and it's repeated exposure to both the existence and the professionally organized/sponsored events that generates new skaters at events, new customers and a return on investment for sponsors. This means advance promotion other than posts in forums, race reports after the events and visual media: photos and video presented somewhere outside of forums.
Our longstanding offer to promote events on the Silverfish Longboarding.com and with our "Fish Report page in Concrete Wave has been very effective for some, but may also be the topic for an excellent illustration of how far slalom (in this case) has to go: how many events go down in anonymity because of a reluctance to reach out to skaters that aren't "core" (or to be seen doing so), or an inability to get pre/post event coverage together? Outside of the hardcore slalom sponsors (who will toss down schwag on principle), what is the incentive for others to toss down cash? Charity?
Now, I fully realize that someone's ox is hereby gored. My point is that, if we want cash sponsors for slalom events, it's going to be up to the Event Promoters to demonstrate --in advance-- that such sponsorship will result in perceived ROI for the sponsors. Where we have been able to secure CASH sponsorship for events we help promote, it always requires this. Whether you find that magic mixture using free help from Silverfish is irrelevant: that' a mechanism, not a result. The issue is that it needs to be done somewhere, somehow before sponsors line up with checkbooks in hand. Well, sponsors other than those that happen to be the event promoter, too.
As for magazine coverage, that's hard to justify sometimes: is there editorial value to stories covering an event that hasn't happened yet? I think the answer is, generally, no. That's what ads are for, and those cost money. Some large speedboard events have paid for ads in advance, but I think that's pretty rare.
After the fact, race coverage is cool! But, it's harder to get written up well than you may think and isn't what a lot of people want to read about. Who here has written, or paid someone to write up, race coverage after an event? If you have, then you know what I'm talking about here. If you haven't, you either know why it was too hard for you, or maybe you never even thought about "finishing the event" for the benefit of the sponsors and racers. I know this for sure: each and every time Concrete Wave runs coverage of slalom races, certain advertisers scream "Foul!!" and adamantly maintain that the type of photos and reportage our sport is able to come up with is interesting to only a very few -- we need to be smart enough to see some truth in this, even if we disagree. (BTW, this occurs with coverage of speed events, too. Don't argue the situation, work it.)
I can list a few events in 2007 and 2008 where actual hard cash, other than that pulled from registration fees, came from sponsors and wound up on podiums or will do so. A few of those situations are due to hardcore fanatics that sponsor, but the others are due to the sponsors' perception that there will be a Return on Investment via coverage and PR. If we want more of that for slalom, I feel like it's up to us to make it happen.
I ride fast boards, slowly.
