My daughter races a soapbox derby car. Recently she won her local event and was awarded the once in a lifetime opportunity to attend the All American Soapbox Derby Championship in Akron, Ohio.
Now, I confess that as supportive as I was of this pastime, I am not much involved in it. My husband used to be a race car driver and is very enthusiastic about it, so I let him take care of the whole of it. I like to say 'it is their Daddy/Daughter thing' and let them at it.
However, with her recent accomplishment, my involvement is now called upon as this championship requires a week long stay in Akron by the whole family during which we will attend many planned events. I certainly do not want to attend these events having no knowledge of the sport, so I was prompted to do a little research and find out what it really is all about.
That leads me to the point of this blog:
In doing my research, I stumbled upon some recent newspaper articles on Ohio.com that came as quite a surprise to me.
It seems that this much loved family pastime is struggling to keep its head above water because of lack of corporate sponsorship. In that past, companies such as Levi Strauss, Chevrolet, Home Depot and NASCAR have given what seems like (to me) nominal sponsorship fees considering the size of these corporations but have recently backed out for some reason or another, leaving the AASBD Association high and dry.
Admittedly, some of these sponsorship issues seem to stem from a past leadership problem within the AASBD itself, but new leadership is now in place and looking to rebuild. So how, you may ask, does this apply to Real Estate Companies and Realtors at large?
1. How many times have we heard - especially from national real estate companies - that all real estate is local? So it is with soapbox derby. The championship is a once a year - and as I've stated, often once in a lifetime - event, but the local associations are where the real activity happens, just like your local real estate office. Many local groups not only run their local championships, but what they call rallies as well. These rallies are run for racers to earn points and experience behind the wheel. Plus they have a whole lot of fun.
2. If a national company were to take advantage of the corporate sponsorship level, that would give their local offices the opportunity to market themselves in this venue as well (not that you couldn't do that anyway). Sponsorship at the local level happens in many ways. Some companies offer prizes, other give as little as $200 for a 'corporate' sponsorship for operating costs, others (such as myself) sponsor an individual racer to help them defray necessary racing expenses - just like NASCAR. That sponsorship need is based on the individual racer and can be as much as you are willing to give.
3. Most racers spend a minimum of $500 to build a car and any sponsorship is appreciated - and can get your logo on the side of their car. Believe me, these racers pay attention to who the sponsors are and patronize them out of pure appreciation. They are a die hard crowd and want to see the sport and those who support it thrive.
I'm sure I could come up with 100 more reasons why this is a worthy sport in which to invest your marketing dollars, but what it comes down to - for me - is that this is an organization that encourages family togetherness and community involvement like no other.
To encourage the family dynamic, the rules state that the child driver must be involved in the building of the vehicle, making it a joint effort between parent and child. The rules are designed to give everyone a fair chance at being a winner, but in the end, everyone is treated like one no matter where they placed.
In the realm of community, the individuals involved in this sport are there for the love of their kids, but are also very supportive of their competitors as well, much like we find here in the AR community. I can tell you that at our local association, there are few exceptions to that rule. Of course, there are a few who are there to win at any cost and are always looking to bend the rules to get ahead, but once their intentions are figured out, they are not much welcome among those who are there for the right reasons.
As my daughter climbed into her car for the champion- deciding run, she was cheered on by almost every parent and child she had previously beaten and was heartily congratulated on her win by those who quite reasonably could have been bitter at their own loss, but that is not the soapbox way. And who does not want to be part of that?
So, big real estate, I encourage you to put your national money where your local mouth is and give this sport a chance to make a financial comeback. Your community will love you for it.
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