What a Day at Daytona

When Jamie McMurray crossed the finish line at the 2010 Daytona 500, the Joplin driver established his new relationship with primary sponsor Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats in the minds of millions of people.
 
“One of the things you work hard for, as both the team and the sponsor, is to affiliate that driver with your brand. To be able to come out of the gate and have the affiliation get so much awareness, that really speeds it up,” said Steve Lauletta, president of Concord, N.C.-based Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates.

McMurray joined Earnhardt Ganassi as the driver of the Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet No. 1 in November, after Martin Truex Jr. left the race team to join Michael Waltrip Racing. McMurray, an eight-year NASCAR veteran, was dropped by Roush Fenway Racing when the team downsized from five cars to NASCAR’s 2010 team limit of four. The Daytona 500 was the first points race for McMurray and his new car, complete with the Bass Pro fish on the hood.

His story is one that Bass Pro spokesman Larry Whiteley expects will resonate with a lot of people.

“He was out of racing. This is a time when a lot of people were out of work and he was, too,” Whiteley said. “He got his chance, and the very first race, he won the Super Bowl of racing.”

Building a brand
Ramsey Poston, managing director of corporate communications at NASCAR, said he’s been able to watch a number of different sponsors and drivers, and he sees the effect of a Daytona 500 win.

“You look at … impressions in newspapers and Web sites across the country, video, television news telecasts. For Springfield-based Bass Pro, this is an image that is emblazoned in the minds of anyone who sees it,” Poston said.

Whiteley said the company is measuring the number of impressions and determining the value of sponsorship dollars spent, noting the Daytona win has spread brand awareness beyond NASCAR fans.

“You (build awareness) just getting the brand out there and going around the racetrack and being on ESPN and (Speed TV),” Whiteley said. “Now, (McMurray) shows up, after the big win, he’s on David Letterman, he’s on talk shows.”

In the days after his win, stories ran in USA Today and on Fox Sports, and McMurray made the media rounds, appearing on “Live with Regis and Kelly” and “The Jim Rome Show.”

While the national spotlight on McMurray will start to dim during the next few weeks, NASCAR’s nearly 70 million fans will hear about the driver’s win in the Bass Pro car throughout the race season, Poston said.

“As you speak historically about the sport, and talk about what were some of the great finishes of the Daytona 500, this will certainly be one of them and again, that image will be apparent again,” he said.

Loyalty reigns
Those NASCAR fans are an audience Bass Pro has been reaching out to since its first associate-level sponsorship of driver Dale Earnhardt Sr. 10 years ago. According to Poston, the average race is attended by 110,000 people. Another 5 million to 8 million people watch on TV. To reach that base, companies purchase sponsorships, which can be at primary or associate levels. Whiteley and Earnhardt Ganassi’s Lauletta would not disclose the price of their sponsorship agreement, but Poston said conventional wisdom puts a primary sponsorship in the range of $10 million to $15 million a season.

“(Race teams) don’t have tickets to sell and suites to sell and local television rights. … Our fans realize that it’s the sponsors that are allowing their favorite drivers to participate,” Lauletta said.

Bass Pro knows its target market. According to NASCAR research, 49 percent of fans own a fishing rod and/or reel, 30 percent own a hunting rifle or shotgun, and 20 percent own hunting clothes.

“If they’re loyal to that driver, they’re loyal to that brand,” Whiteley said. “If you’re a Jimmie Johnson fan, he drives for Lowe’s, you’re probably going to buy from Lowe’s, not Home Depot.”

McMurray is the only primary sponsorship for Bass Pro/Tracker Boats, which remain an associate sponsor of Truex, Whiteley said. They also and are in partnership with Richard Childress Racing, with driver Austin Dillon behind the wheel of the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Silverado for the 2010 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

Most drivers Bass Pro sponsors are hunters and anglers, Whiteley added, noting Bass Pro was given input in the decision to bring McMurray on board at Earnhardt Ganassi.

Whiteley said merchandising – on replicas of the winning car, T-shirts, hats, flags and mugs, to name a few – is already in the works. Commemorative baseball hats and T-shirts were being sold at www.basspro.com within days of the win.

“We’ll capitalize on this for a long time,” Lauletta said.[[In-content Ad]]