Track Advertising

[ask0329]

I've been employed for the same company for 16 years now. And have been a driver at the same track for 7 years I believe. A buddy of mine that works for the same company has attended 3 races a year, each year i've raced. He had never been to a dirt track up until that point. I asked him the other day, "In your day to day travels where have you heard the words _________ Speedway or ______ Speedway?" Both local CNY tracks. He lives in East Syracuse. He says to me, "Honestly, til I met you, never."

This situation has repeated itself as my wife will invite some of her friends who have never been to the races. Who never even knew it exhisted.

How can this be?

[imca77]

 maybe they weren't race oriented (ball sports or some other interest) until somebody asks or takes them for the first time,or they only think racing is nascar,f1 etc. to watch on tv.(im not knocking the other forms of racing) as far as television advertising, I know all the local tracks advertise on tv and radio. so if you know somebody that has never been to a local race,pavement or dirt,take them,hopefully they see a good show and become fans, more so if they become involved with driver,owner,team member etc., pretty good question though andy, something for tracks to think about.

[thelegend30]

I try to bring as many people as possible with me. There are people at work that got hooked on it after they came to watch me. It hits close to home too though, my dad grew up in Addison, lived there for 40 years, and never had even seen Woodhull Raceway until I started racing. I hear a lot on radio, but I think more T.V. advertising on local channels at news time, or more stories like WENY did at Woodhull Raceway would help draw attention to it.

[ask0329]

Another aspect i found interesting as him and i got to chatting the other day was when we expanded our talk to include NY in general. How many tracks there are in NY/PA and even just over the border in Canada. When I mentioned all of the tracks within an hour of us, 7-10 tracks he was in utter amazement at the scope of how big dirt raceing actually is in this region.

[BClapp]

I remember taking my girlfriend to I88 right after we got together.  She was amazed that this big event was going on every week justten miles from where she lives.  I do have to say that I88 does an excellent job of local advertising.  When she asked how many tracks there were around here, I rattled off about 15 tracks that are within about a 2 hour drive of us.  She was in amazement of just how big the sport really is around here.

[Racefanattic]

I spoke with a local Promoter once about advertising in our area news paper.  This person explained to me that the only thing our paper wants is stick related sports.  But if you ever go to these venues more than half the seats are empty And the area teams do not pay for the advertising.  There really needs to be more promoting of the racing events.

[T20won]

It's amazing how many people are unaware of dirt tracks in this region. One promotion that comes to mind is giving every driver that races at their facility 10 free passes a couple times a year. These passes would not be for driver or crew but for them to give to family, friends or co-workers that have never attended racing events. Promotors have nothing to loose as these people would visit concession stands and put $ in the promotors pocket. I'm sure a bunch of them would get hooked and return to help fill up the bleachers.

[Jazzy]

Last season both the tracks I ran at (Lancaster & Holland) had free ticket nights. I made sure to get all my sponsors(who had no prior racing involvement) to attend those nights with their families.  I'm happy to say they are now hooked--3 of them even increased their funding for 2014 based on their experience at the tracks. Even if the tracks we run at do minimal advertising, we as racers need to do all we can to promote the sport. Whether it's appearances, car shows or using social media, a little effort will go along way to making sure we can keep racing.

[no74falcon]

I love bringing kids. Nothing better than hearing them say "Will you take me again?"!!!

[Nate Stevens]

I completely understand where you are coming from, but your advise is 15 years out of date.  No one reads the newspaper any more.  Let me repeat  this: NO ONE READS THE NEWSPAPER ANY MORE!!  I am not just saying this as someone with a marketing degree, but also as someone that was a distribution manager with my local newspaper.  The majority of people that still receive the newspaper are elderly and most of them do not read it.  If you have looked at one recently, you would know why.  They generally aren't worth using as toilet paper.

If your goal is to build awareness, there are plenty of more effective ways of doing that.  Aside from the printing costs, posting fliers and posters around the community is usually free and does a great job of creating awareness.  Direct mailings are a bit more risky, unless they are well targeted, but are also decent at creating awareness.  Social media is great at targeted marketing, but it maybe difficult to reach outside of the existing customer base.  One area that a lot of tracks are missing out on is merchandising.  Here the fans pay to advertise for the sport, whether they are buying a track shirt or bumper sticker or a driver's.  These also takes it a step further in showing that there is a community, which is an important part of selling the product.

Now for the marketing lesson for today, awareness does absolutely nothing to sell a product unless the product is filling a customer's need.  It may make us feel better if more people know about what we do, but it doesn't bring anyone to the races.  What need does going to the races fulfill?  Some may say that it fulfills a need for entertainment or amusement, but how many other options are out there.  I've got a decent idea why I go to the races.  Why do you?

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

[smallguy]

Nate's point is a good one, but I disagree when it comes to awareness in the context that any increase in awareness of a product can be viewed as a positive.
I think one of the biggest struggles racing faces in advertising in the 'new media' age is finding its current audience and developing marketing plans/procedures to bring in a new audience.
Broadcast media still has pull with potential customers, but requires increased frequency, which in many cases is beyond the budget of the track promoter/operator.  People like Fuccillo do TONS of TV/radio because they have the $$$ to spend and they know what kind of return they can get...the risk/reward model for motorsports advertising is much more fluid and less predictable.
I don't believe that relying solely on Internet sites/message boards is a valid model because it's "preaching to the choir" and casual fans don't frequent these sites.
The other major factor to think about is this:  Anyone can develop an effective marketing program for a product that can deliver customers...but if the product doesn't push their 'hot' buttons and leaves them dissatisfied, all the marketing dollars in the world aren't going to get them back.  You have to deliver the goods once you get the customers in the door, and that means that ALL points of presentation have to be sharp:  Quick and entertaining program that the casual fan can understand and follow, good food at reasonable prices, spectator comfort, and cleanliness (ESPECIALLY the restrooms). 

[Casper60]

And Paul just hit the nail on the head... well put.

[Openwheeler]

Stop talking nonsense, there is no need for common sense and being somewhat buisness savey in these parts. The powers that be know exactly what they are doing, if you don't like it stay home, stop complaining about the bathrooms and be happy you have a track, if you can run a track go out and buy one 😉, did I cover all my bases on follow ups?