Apple-sponsored racing...

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 34
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    Snobs
  • Reply 22 of 34
    fiatfiat Posts: 13member
    Well, I used to have an Apple sponsored Ferrari Formula 1 automobile image I created on my web site...

    Ferrari asked me to remove it since it did not represent reality. :-(



    Alessandro

    <a href="http://www.autografica.com"; target="_blank">http://www.autografica.com</a>;
  • Reply 23 of 34
    [quote]Originally posted by DoctorGonzo:

    <strong>



    Apple is looking to get the affluent, always-have-a-new-SUV, soccer moms and related demographics.



    The NASCAR audience isn't looking to pay $400 for an MP3 player.</strong><hr></blockquote>



    Don't sell NASCAR short. Them there good old boys want 1000 red neck songs in there pocket too. Both kinds Country and Western. They gots money too. But it aint just the good old boys. Them gals get into it too. Heck even Tide has a car. Whoda thunk it?



    I think it's a cool idea.
  • Reply 24 of 34
    It's true that there's a fair amount of money out in Rednecksville, USA, but the stuff that money gets spent on tends not to be of the "paying extra because it has a certain je ne sais quoi" variety..... like Macs.



    Most NASCAR fans have plenty of money to spend on jet skis, trips to Reno, king sized waterbeds, and recreational vehicles, though.
  • Reply 25 of 34
    andersanders Posts: 6,523member
    Retrograde: Have you read the Foucault thing? It seems strange to me that he has written a book about Magritte. I know him from his philosophicalÂ*/sociological work. Is it worth a read?



    Apple as a sports sponsor: They should sponsor a road cycling team. The sports of road cycling is much like Apple itself: Bike riders are true individualists and and creative people. And there are lots of stories like Armstrongs recovery from his cancer aso. that people can relate to and can be related to the Apple as well (the hard struggle against MS/the mountains. Periodes when the riders just can´t deliver and suddenly do something extraordinaire. And it could make the Apple brand as known here in Europe as it is in US.
  • Reply 26 of 34
    [quote]Originally posted by Anders:

    <strong>Apple as a sports sponsor: They should sponsor a road cycling team. The sports of road cycling is much like Apple itself: Bike riders are true individualists and and creative people. And there are lots of stories like Armstrongs recovery from his cancer aso. that people can relate to and can be related to the Apple as well (the hard struggle against MS/the mountains. Periodes when the riders just can´t deliver and suddenly do something extraordinaire. And it could make the Apple brand as known here in Europe as it is in US.</strong><hr></blockquote>





    For a long time, prior to the USPS team, Motorola was the #1 American team. Andy Hampsten made his name on that team. Even Lance Armstrong rode for Motorola, before he grew to fame on the USPS team.



    So with the Motorola-Apple connection, maybe Apple would be a natural for a cycling team sponsorship.
  • Reply 27 of 34
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    The thing about cycling and NASCAR and even F1, they are highly regionalized. NASCAR is not popular outside the US. F1 is not very popular within the US. Cycling is not very popular *anywhere.*



    However, CART is a US-based racing series with an increasingly diverse international schedule. Half the races are in the US, half in Europe, Oceania, Asia.







    <a href="http://www.cart.com/"; target="_blank">http://www.cart.com/</a>;
  • Reply 28 of 34
    [quote]Originally posted by Eugene:

    <strong>The thing about cycling and NASCAR and even F1, they are highly regionalized. NASCAR is not popular outside the US. F1 is not very popular within the US. Cycling is not very popular *anywhere.*

    </strong><hr></blockquote>





    Cycling is gigantically popular in Europe. The question is, does an American company benefit by sponsoring an American cycling team that races (and gets 99% of its exposure) in Europe?
  • Reply 29 of 34
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    sizzlechest, perhaps in Europe, but not nearly as popular was WRC, LeMans, F1, soccer, etc. And it's not popular in Asia...and it's not popular in the US...



    And Apple needs to build up its worldwide marketshare more than its domestic...



    If it's going to enter one arena...it may as well represent interests from as many regions as possible.
  • Reply 30 of 34
    andersanders Posts: 6,523member
    The problem is that almost no sport is seen anywhere and those who come close (like soccer I suppose. Its gaining popularity in US, no?) are still regionalised. You have national teams that don´t play very often and then you have the local teams that only get limited attention from outside the countries they play in.



    Cycling on the other hand has international teams and a certain international awareness around special events like TdF, Giro d´italia and Vuelta a España. And if Apple got involved in U.S. Postal they may even get some attention in US. But the main thing is that the place where Apple have lost most of its brand awareness during the dark ages is here in Europe and brand awareness is what you get from sponsoring sports teams.



    And I would love to see Armstrong in a helmet that looked like the base of the iMac. Wouldn´t that be cool?
  • Reply 31 of 34
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    As great a rider as Lance Armstrong is, I don't think he'll pull off a fourth win in a row in the Tour de France...you never know though. If Apple came out and sponsored US Postal 3 years or even 2 years ago, then that would have made sense...now it seems a little too late.



    And as much as I hate NASCAR, it is a very sponsor friendly environment with tons of US-based fans. You can't go wrong with sponsoring NASCAR...but you can do better.



    As far as internaionalized events, the Olympics = the farthest reaching.



    As for Europe and Asia...F1 demands too much from the sponsor, IMO. I don't want to know how much it costs to sponsor one of the worthier teams...
  • Reply 32 of 34
    If I post an apple sticker in the window of my Rx-7, how about that? Hey, it sure beats putting something silly like a "Nos" sticker on there.



    Anyway, this thread has actually come up before, on the previous AI board. The cost of sponsoring a race team doesn't really justify the advertising benefit for a company like Apple. You don't come off the sofa (or away from the racetrack) and think "Gee, I'm going to buy an Apple computer for $1800." If you're already somewhat sloshed and you see a guy in a Budweiser car go flying by, maybe it's time to grab another Bud.
  • Reply 33 of 34
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    Splinemodel, I disagree with you there. I'm sure even the good ole boys of NASCAR need computers every once in a while. Probably a good portion of them want to shed a bit their redneckedness as well.



    By targeting NASCAR fans, Apple is targeting people that look at things differently than the traditional Apple customer. If Apple can convince a guy that usually shops for horsepower to buy something based on aesthetics or elegance, then that's the goldmine



    The Apple Stores are there for the yuppie crowd, but Apple still needs to extend its reach. NASCAR fans are probably less tech savvy than other demographics, so it's a great market to start mining for customers.
  • Reply 34 of 34
    [quote]Originally posted by Anders:

    <strong>Retrograde: Have you read the Foucault thing? It seems strange to me that he has written a book about Magritte. I know him from his philosophicalÂ*/sociological work. Is it worth a read?</strong><hr></blockquote>



    Anders: Sorry, I have been out of the fold for a while and just noticed your post. Foucault's book is a quick and enjoyable read with only 40 pages of Foucault's text (the book is actually longer with copies of paintings and letters of Magritte's to Foucault). I haven't read this in a long time but I think I remember feeling that it wasn't amazingly illuminating--but I certainly enjoyed reading it! I say read it, because it is short and fun and offers a slightly different work to those currently used in most sociology classes.
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