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Motorsports Marketing and Sponsorship Activation Blog




Austin Schneider

Austin Schneider

Austin has built his experience around the world in digital marketing, business development and client service. He loves the fast pace of working in sports business and is always excited to collaborate on new projects. An avid motorsports fan of all types, the global and exact nature of F1 is still his favorite.
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Recent Posts By Austin Schneider:

Buying a Sponsorship and Not Activating It

Posted by Austin Schneider on 6/6/23 8:40 AM

Buying a sponsorship and not activating it is like...

Topics: Sponsorship Activation

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Topics: Sponsorship Activation

Changing the Timeline

Posted by Austin Schneider on 5/30/23 11:26 AM

Instead of quarterly earnings, what about annual earnings?

How far have you come in five years?

What are you working on now that might not return anything for many years?

Topics: Culture

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Topics: Culture

Consistent or Repetitive?

Posted by Austin Schneider on 5/9/23 7:11 AM

Rapidly switching platforms and tactics is a difficult way to find ROI, especially when large amounts of budget are involved. It takes time to grow into a platform - no matter what it is. Leaving behind equity built up is one of the most expensive things marketers can do. We see this a lot in the sponsorship world as part of the 3-and-out issue. Brands come in fast in year one by spending loads of money, and then they have a reality check in year two without much enhancement, then inevitably in year three they fade.

Topics: Marketing Strategy

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Topics: Marketing Strategy

Team SD Visits London for BlackBook Motorsport Forum in 2023

Posted by Austin Schneider on 5/1/23 2:35 PM

We like to get to a few different conferences each year to push our thinking. This also ensures we don't settle for anything less than remarkable work for our clients. Being in new environments with new series and new thinking allows us to take insights back home and apply them to our work.

The BlackBook Motorsport Forum is the flagship business event for stakeholders in global motorsport. We enjoy this event because it is the ultimate B2B industry event bringing racing promoters, teams, circuits, brands, OEMs and key services together to discuss motorsport from all the angles required for the entire industry to succeed.

We covered off our thoughts on the sessions listed below by topic.

Topics: Culture

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Topics: Culture

Sponsorship Rights vs. Sponsorship Activation

Posted by Austin Schneider on 4/11/23 3:26 PM

What sounds like a simple difference in wording turns out to be the most important distinction in sports business. As digital media continues to command more of our attention and marketing dollars, there have been some important changes to traditional approaches to sports and entertainment. To maximize value for your brand, the key is finding the balance of investment between sponsorship rights and activation programs. 

Topics: Sponsorship Activation

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Topics: Sponsorship Activation

How is Sponsorship Different Than Other Marketing?

Posted by Austin Schneider on 4/5/23 2:07 PM

Marketing your product and service through sponsorship offers a different experience than if you were to market through more traditional media or even a digital platform. There are more risks, challenges, opportunities, and ultimately a host of unique benefits that come with marketing through sports business. The differences involved may have led you never to try sponsorship before. 

Topics: Sports Business

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Topics: Sports Business

What is Your Objective?

Posted by Austin Schneider on 3/28/23 1:13 PM

Let's zoom out from sports and sponsorship for a moment to take a look at marketing as a whole.

The need to measure your marketing has come a long way since early advertising. The requirements to demonstrate ROI or effectiveness have only intensified for the mainstream since AdWords and other data-rich platforms have been opened up to marketers around the world in every industry.

Topics: Sponsorship ROI

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Topics: Sponsorship ROI

What Even is Sponsorship Activation?

Posted by Austin Schneider on 3/14/23 9:41 AM

Sponsorship activation is what you do with what you own. Simple as that.

This can take many forms, but activation is all about bringing your brand to life from things as simple as booth spaces at an event to more sophisticated programs like employee engagement initiatives, virtual engagements, sales contests, once-in-a-lifetime experiences, and customer celebrations.

Topics: Sponsorship Activation

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Topics: Sponsorship Activation

Helping Yourself with Expertise

Posted by Austin Schneider on 3/7/23 9:28 AM

When you enter into something as specific as a motorsports sponsorship to promote your product, service or technology, it is going to pay off to consult experts before you invest any resources. It is hard to know for sure which way is the way forward when this environment functions so much different than other platforms.

In the short run, you will be temporarily "busier" with bringing an agency partner up to speed on your objectives and projects. It takes a bit of time to onboard properly, and this can be a source of fear in starting something new.

Topics: Sports Business

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Topics: Sports Business

Finding the Right Platform to Engage Your Customers

Posted by Austin Schneider on 2/21/23 8:32 AM

Sponsorship continues to prove itself beyond a logo on a car. In the last 10 years, the business side of sports has exploded and has opened up year-round opportunities to engage your customer base. This expanded hunt for value in sponsorship has turned these brand and team relationships into full-on B2B partnerships that extend far beyond the race track.

Activate your sponsorship with a dynamic approach that engages your customer base where they are. 

Topics: Marketing Strategy

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Topics: Marketing Strategy