Sponsor Me?

We get this question periodically, and it usually goes something like this:

"Hi! I am the brand new owner of a late-model Subaru. I am really enthusiastic and plan to go to a lot of shows and events. I would like you to sponsor me in the form of free or discounted parts, and in exchange I will promote you like crazy, which will be well worth it."

Sorry, but no. It's not that we don't believe that you are enthusiastic. We kind of don't believe that you will promote our brand like crazy, because experience tells us that most people have good intentions, but after they have the thing they need, they tend to forget that they made a commitment. But even that is not the main reason we would say no. Even if the person did follow through, it's just not worth it for us to give away free parts in the hopes that we will sell enough parts to make up for it.

Think of it this way: If you want to get your house painted, do you go out and look for recommendations and reviews for good painters, or do you just say yes to whoever stops by and offers to paint your house? It's not guaranteed that you'll get a good result from shopping around, but we'd wager the result will be a lot better than if you just accept the one random offer who just happened to be soliciting in your neighborhood.

By that same reasoning, we pick and choose our marketing outreach pretty carefully. If we have a few bucks to spare that we're going to spend on marketing, we will choose our medium -- print, web, mobile, sponsorship, whatever -- and then carefully select a partner to deal with.

If and when we DO sponsor someone, it's likely going to be someone we already have a relationship with, and someone who is already representing our brand in a way that matches our style and approach. Maybe it's someone that we keep seeing at shows and events we sponsor, or someone who tags us and runs our decals and has an amazing social media presence. We would probably proactively approach that person with some kind of proposal, and see if they might be interested. 

As far as we know, most every company out there like us has a similar approach. We don't know anyone who would accept a sponsorship partner as a cold call out of nowhere. 

If you're still dead-set that you want to represent Mach V, by all means, pick up some Mach V decals, stick them on your nice car, and get out there and represent. Bring us the results and we promise we'll at least look at it. Ask any passionate car enthusiast, though -- by the time your car gets to the point where it's sponsor-worthy, you will have spent WAY more than any sponsorship would ever amount to. 

But maybe we should spin it around the other way -- don't go looking for sponsorship. DO go out and enjoy your car and modify it in a way that is meaningful to you. Have fun. Follow your vision. Spend time with the car and people that are passionate about it like you are. Go to events, go to the track, go to the mountains or the canyons or whatever place gives you joy. Maybe document what you are doing and share it. But make that a secondary thing, not the primary thing. The main thing is, do what you enjoy and what makes you happy, and with people who you enjoy being with. Maybe something positive in the form of recognition will come out of that, maybe not. They say it's the journey, not the destination.