Since the completion of an Ironman triathlon in Kona will involve lots of different costs, I am going to get a sponsor (or two or three).
Notice that I didn’t say “I am going to TRY to get a sponsor.” I want my words to reflect a positive anticipation … and I hate it when people say “try”. It usually means that they are not committed to making it happen.
My other “pet peeve” (that I have to fight within myself as much as anyone) is “self-centered thinking” that says someone would sponsor my efforts “just because I need money.” This is one of those ineffective ways of thinking that we all have to battle in the marketing & business world. “People should buy my product because I need the money” doesn’t work very well as a tagline for a product or service so you have to think about what the sponsor (or customer) wants instead of what you want from the customer.
Why should a Sponsor sign up?
Here are some reasons I came up with. Which one do you think will resonate with sponsors? Which one would convince YOU to become a sponsor? Leave a comment below with your own ideas.
1) A first-time Ironman athlete is more relate-able to the general public than the professional athletes so sponsoring me could be like Jared from the Subway commercials. [Note: anyone have contacts at Subway?]
2) Baby boomers are retiring in record numbers and even though I am on the tail end of that generation, my gray hair (what’s left) means that I can be an inspiration to millions of people who dream of finishing an endurance event like a triathlon or marathon. Plus, free exposure on www.GreatnessAfter50.com where I will be featured during training could be of value to a sponsor targeting the Baby Boomer demographic. [Who should I target? Retirement homes? P&G must have products for older adults, right?]
3) I could offer exposure for a company’s brand on www.TheWishBuilder.com. For a charity or business, this could be a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor before TheWishBuilder becomes a worldwide phenomenon. Motivational speakers might be a good target since many of them talk about goal setting and inspiring their audience to achieve great things.
4) “Dave is just so darn adorable that everyone will want be a sponsor.”
[Mom, I can’t put that. Well, okay… for you.]
5) My faithful sidekick, Sampson, and I have spent so much time at Starbucks you would think that they would name a table after him at least. As an added bonus, they could sponsor Sampson as well and get prominent logo placement on his collar and warm-up jacket. Other pet-friendly companies might be interested such as Petco or a pet food provider such as Costco (where we get Sampson’s food).
Other reasons to Sponsor?
What other reasons can we use to get a sponsor to sign up? Please leave your ideas in the comments below. If you want to sponsor this project, you can leave a note below and I will respond via email.
Your first triathlon is going to be tough. Their is no way to sugar coat it. Go into it with the goal of having fun and finishing it. Focus on your strengths. Running. Run 4-5 times a week and mix 2-4 days of biking in there. Make sure you do some brick workouts (ie. bike and then run workout right afterwords). Mix in some swim training when you can, and make sure your comfortable in open water (lake, ponds, river). This is prob more important than actually being good at swimming. Also, practice your transitions (taking off wetsuit, getting on bike, putting on running shoes), you can save alot of time, just by being good in between the swim, bike, and run.The training program you mentioned is decent, but it depends on what the distance of the triathlon is. Sprint Distance, Olympic Distance, other? I would personally always take one day off a week. I also don’t substitute strength workout for a cardio workout, because the cardio is much more important in triathlon. The min amount of time you should spend training each time on the bike is 1hr, run 30-45min, and swim 30min.Hope this helps.
Dave,
On my first Ironman Triathlon in Kona I raised over 10,000 in sponsorship dollars. Glad to help in any way that I can.
Doug
Thanks Doug! Where did most of your sponsorship dollars come from? What “pitch” did you find most effective?
Dave