In consideration of the good ol’ days.

The 2009 Indy 500 is history. Overall, I thought it was a pretty good show, but then, I am an easy audience. I have heard lots of people talking about the good ol’ days, including myself from time to time. So it got me to thinking.
What were the good ol’ days like?
To find out, I reviewed the box scores of two Indy 500s. The Indy 500 is a good source as they have a certain respect for the past at Indy. I know, there have been many changes at the Speedway, but traditions do carry over from year to year making comparisons both easy and interesting. Let’s see what the good ol’ days were like.
The first box score I looked at was the 1971 Indy 500, a race I attended as a wide-eyed high school student. It was my first visit to the “500”. The weather in 1971, as I remember, was perfect. I had seats along the main straightaway, across from the then pit exit. So all in all, pretty much a perfect memory.
So as a starting point, the 1971 event is the event to consider as my “good ol’ days” event. Let’s compare it to the 2009 event.
Here is what I found out.
1. The 1971 race was on SATURDAY, May 29, 1971. 2009 was on SUNDAY, May 24, 2009.
2. Al Unser won driving the Johnny Lightning P.J. Colt/Ford in 1971. Helio Castroneves driving for Team Penske in a Dallara/Honda won in 2009.
3. Unser started 5th and won in 1971. Castroneves started 1st and finished in 1st in 2009. In 1971, Peter Revson started 1st and finished 2nd. In 2009, Dan Wheldon finished 2nd and started 18th.
4. The 1971 500 was made up of nearly all American drivers. The 2009 event was completely dominated by foreign-born drivers.
5. 1971 had four previous winners in the race and the 2009 race had four previous winners in the field.
6. In 1971 the top 5 finishers had five different chassis, a Colt, a McLaren, a Coyote, an Eagle and a Brabham, two Ford powered and three Offys. In 2009, all 33 entries were in Dallara Hondas.
7. I count 15 different chassis in 1971 and two powerplants of Ford and Offy. The chassis were: P.J. Colt, McLaren, Coyote, Eagle, Brabham, Vollstedt, Kuzma, Gerhardt, Mongoose, Watson, Kingfish, Lola, Hawk, Scorpion and McNamara. 2009 had one chassis and one engine manufacturer in Dallara/Honda.
8. The 1971 race took 3:10:11.56 to complete and the 2009 event was 3:19:34.6427. It took LONGER in 2009!
9. Average speed in 1971 was 157.735 compared to 150.318 in 2009. 2009 had 8 cautions for 61 laps while the 1971 event box score does not note cautions, but obviously, they must have had fewer caution laps.
10. Fastest lap = 1971 Mark Donohue, lap 66 at 174.961. 2009 = Dario Franchitti, lap 187 at 222.044 mph!
11. The 1971 event had 13 lead changes among 5 drivers compared to 6 lead changes among 4 drivers in 2009.
12. Margin of victory in 1971 was 22.48 seconds. In 2009, it was 1.9819 seconds!
13. In 1971, five cars finished on the lead lap. In 2009, 19 cars finished on the lead lap!
14. 1971 is noted as having 12 cars finishing the race. 2009, 20 cars finished.
15. 1971 had four rookies. 2009 had five.
16. Prize money. 1971 Unser won $238,454.00. 2009 Castroneves won $3,048,005.
17. Total prize money in 1971 =1,000,490.00. 2009 = $14,315,315.00.
18. The only names that show up on both lists that I can find are: AJ Foyt as driver in 1971 to team owner/entrant in 2009. Penske as Car name in both 1971 as a sponsor of David Hobbs in 1971 (car name = Penske Products) to car name “team Penske” in 2009.
19. I can not find a single “sponsor” that was involved in 1971, still involved today, unless you consider Penske. Here are some of the sponsors in 1971: Johnny Lightning, ITT, Olsonite, Sugaripe Prune, Sprite, Thermo-King, TraveLodge, Patrick Petroleum, Classic Wax, Sunoco, Gilmore Broadcasting, Wynn’s and STP. Bring back memories?
20. Firestone won both the 1971 event and 2009.
So, here is the good and bad for 2009. The race cars are much faster. They are much more reliable. They had a much closer finish in 2009 and many more cars were on the lead lap. The bad is that not enough American drivers were in the race in 2009, cautions slowed the race considerably, and there is no variety in the chassis or powerplants.
Finally, listen to these names: Unser, Revson, Foyt, Malloy, Vukovich, Allison, Bettenhausen, Ruby, Simon, Follmer, Yarborough, Hulme, Rutherford, Leonard, Hobbs, Dallenbach, Donohue, Pollard, Sessions, Dickson, Johncock, Andretti, Krisiloff, Kenyon and Snyder. They were all in the 1971 race.
That’s the difference to me. To a race fan, albeit an older one like me, these names have great meaning. As a fan, I feel like I knew many of them. For example, Peter Revson was my favorite driver in the 1971 race and the McLaren my favorite car. It is who and what I cheered for. It is the drivers that ultimately make the difference. It is the principle reason why “the good ol’ days” really were “the good ol’ days”. The cars were not as fast, nor as reliable and the finish wasn’t that close. But it was the drivers that captivated our attention and drew us into the sport. We admired them, envied them, feared for them and cheered them every lap. I am certain that the management of Indy Car understands the critical importance drivers play in racing’s popularity. I am confident they are working hard to try and re-establish the relationship between drivers and fans. They can’t just snap their fingers and make it happen. It takes time, focus and energy. While we may not have sufficient number of American names in the entry list, let’s support these efforts by cheering for the drivers we choose to champion. They are all trying their best to bring back the good ol’ days. Indy Car has a new generation of names to cheer for. Andretti name is back. So is Rahal (not in the 1971 race, but you know what I mean!). New names are carving their own way into our consciousness. They may have a long way to travel, but the event of 1971 will go a long way toward showing them the way.
The names of the drivers count.

What is your favorite race car of all time? The results.

Tabulations of informal poll on Linkedin.com

Recently I asked on Linkedin.com “what is your favorite race car of all time?”  The response was relatively heavy with 48 responses, about triple the number of any other discussion in this motorsport group.  Each response and each car mentioned were tallied as a vote, providing more than 100 cars mentioned as the favorite.  Some responders could not narrow the field to just one, so they mentioned several cars.  Each was given one vote.  Here are the results of my informal poll.

Here are some interesting facts:
No current F1 car mentioned
No current Indy Car mentioned
No current NASCAR mentioned
Ferraris appear in the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and 00s.

The decade that the favorite car first appears
20’s and 30’s                         2%
40’s                                     0%
50’s                                     6%
60’s                                     31%
70’s                                     28%
80’s                                     18%
90’s                                     11%
00’s                                     4%

The basic classification of race car
Racing Sports Car                 46%
Formula One                        18%
Can-Am                                12.5%
Indy                                     10%
Other various                         13%

The marque of the favorite car
Porsche                                13%
Lotus                                   11%
Ferrari                                  10%
Ford (various)                        7%
Chevy (various)                     6%
McLaren                                6%
Chaparral                              4%
Tyrell                                   3%
Shadow                                3%
Maserati                               3%
Jaguar                                  2%
Mercedes                              2%
Others                                  30%

And, drum roll please….

The favorite race car of all time by specific name is….

1. Porsche 917
2. McLaren Can-Am M8 series
3. Porsche 956/962

Thanks to all who participated.  In the end, it seems to be a pretty accurate list of some of the greatest race cars of all time! 

“Why the Versus/IRL television agreement is a good move”

I have read numerous negative stories regarding the recent IRL television agreement with Versus cable network. While I am not a stalwart supporter of IRL (I was in the CART camp of supporters), I do believe that the direction and the philosophy regarding this choice to be on target. Without inside knowledge to the “deal”, I can only go on what’s been published. Allow me to share some contrarian input on why I believe the IRL television agreement with Versus is an overall positive.

1. An underlying aspect that one needs to understand is that event marketing as a whole, and motorsports perhaps in particular, relies on the relationship between fan and sponsor to generate value. Motor racing has an extended enviable track record of doing this. As evidenced primarily by NASCAR, race fans have proven to be exceptionally and reliably brand loyal to sponsor products. Event marketing, including motorsports, sell their value based on this relationship and not solely on the size of the audience reached. The reason why this form of more intimate marketing rather than the more “traditional” mass marketing of the past is growing, is the relationship that is developed between sponsor and consumer. It’s why a sponsor sponsors a race car, why they sponsor concerts, festivals and just about anything where people gather for a particular interest.  Sponsors want to show this targeted audience that they share their particular passion and hope and believe this interactive relationship will result in greater product sales. It’s not primarily about “exposure,” it’s about relationships. There is no other leading reason for doing it.
2. The other element that one needs to understand is that television exposure does not primarily beget fans, events do. I keep hearing about “exposure” generating fans and the need to get a racing series on television. While it may do so to some degree, the vast and more efficient means of generating fans is to get people to the races. Television numbers follow the trend of a series ability to attract fans. NASCAR? It has fans. Subsequently, a stronger television package because networks, sponsors and series all understand that fans (aka television audience) will watch – and buy sponsor product. Several years ago, I read a report that indicated that 30% of the television viewers (aka fans) who watched a NASCAR event on TV reported that they purchased a particular sponsor product, PURELY due to the motor racing sponsorship. That’s a heady number and mind-boggling influence over consumers. No wonder sponsors have gravitated to this form of motorsport success. If NASCAR is now losing viewers on television, it isn’t due to less “exposure” of the sport; it is due to NASCAR losing fans. If one understands that “viewers” of racing events on television are primarily “fans” and vice versa, then the ratings numbers generated and the corollary impact on sponsor influence begins to emerge clearly.
3. That brings us to Versus. IRL did not choose to “buy” their way onto commercial network television, in my estimation, properly so. It would have cost millions to generate a modest television rating number because the IRL does not have sufficient FANS to instantly produce big numbers! And buying television time will not generate them economically enough to impact rating numbers. See CART.
4. Some have suggested that IRL is losing sponsor interest due to the weak television deal and not the economy. I doubt this is true. I do believe the economy may be driving away prospective sponsors with or without Versus. It’s a difficult environment out there. However, my contrarian viewpoint is that motorsport marketing (and the event marketing industry as a whole) may be able to gain advantage among sponsor companies due to the increased value placed on the influential manner in which these audiences are reached. In today’s environment, advertisers may not desire to continue to throw enormous numbers of advertising dollars at a passive mass audience. They want response and event marketing is the place to find it. It does bode well for motor racing if sold from the proper perspective. But right now it is difficult time to find willing sponsors.
5. I think we all can agree that the IRL is in a regrouping phase after the prolonged and difficult split. I believe the IRL must focus their energies on building event strengths and then take those strengths to further their television coverage. They already have built-in strength in the Indy 500, a pivotal starting point. I think we can agree that the primary force that race events have to attract people to races are the drivers. Rather than spending millions on weak network television numbers, it is better to spend money on generating interest in events. NASCAR has demonstrated this and built their series around generating driver stars. IRL also seems to understand that drivers drive fans to the races. Like her or not, they have Danica Patrick. They also have a growing list of marketable and popular names to build their fan base, including the important aspect of American drivers. While the whole grid should reflect an international element to build a scale of importance, the grid should have a measurable American presence. Names like Andretti, Rahal and others bode well for the IRL.
6. Finally, the advantage of Versus. We all understand that the rating numbers generated by the Versus television network is likely to be smaller than one generated by a commercial network coverage. But if you’ve been listening, you know that size of the audience is not the only measurable element. The number of “fans” watching the coverage is also an important factor. Fans will search and find the television coverage whereas passive television viewers won’t. If the audience grows to significant numbers by Versus scale, then the IRL will be successful in generating new and loyal fans. Fans who purchase sponsor products. And sponsor product sales are what keep sponsors happy. It is just as important to demonstrate to perspective sponsors the growth of a fan base rather than relying on comparably weak network rating number from a passive audience of viewers.
7. From the Versus perspective, IRL is a plum. It enables Versus to feature IRL and drive the IRL fans to watch the events on their network. By becoming a lead featured program of Versus, the IRL gains a marketing partner in helping to build fans and not just a broadcast outlet.

All in all, I feel that the Versus television deal is a good one. It has all the elements needed, promotes growth, enables greater focus on the IRL through features, expanded coverage and higher network priority. And the millions off dollars saved can be diverted to greater purpose.

All of us who view open wheel with high regard can help by supporting this growth period and redevelopment of the brand. The Versus TV deal may only be a first critical step, but I am confidant a step in the right direction.

Visit our website at www.mackeymarketing.com

State of the Industry

by Brian Mackey

I think we are in for a bit of a sea change.  And for my agency, I think we are ideally positioned to take advantage.  In these economicly challenging days, bigger may not always be better any more.  The days of more than $15M per race car promotional budgets may be shrinking.  Not only the size of the budgets but in the number of race teams that can command these kinds of huge promotional commitments from sponsors.  There will always be some major commercial players, but more and more race cars in premier series will be sidelined with sponsor troubles.  You are already beginning to see this happen.  You will see more.

MMG has long been an agency where different is better, not bigger is better.  We specialize in motorsport racing properties that represent alternatives to the standard fare.  We’re not overloaded with NASCAR themes.  We don’t just focus on one “most popular” form of racing.  I like to think that we are first and foremost marketers.  We represent a variety of motorsport themes.  We have grass-roots campaigns as well as high profile ones – series, drivers, teams, cars, boats or aiplanes, you’ll find MMG promotions across the country, across the ocean and across the board.  But what you won’t find are campaigns that are heavy on cost and congruently light on content.   We try to develop campaigns where marketing budgets match the property, provide realistic results and give every sponsor participant a chance to gain results from an investment in motorsport marketing.  It’s not just for the big guys anymore.  More and more companies will be seeking the kind of racing properties that we represent here. 

We have exciting news in store.  New and old clients are lining up that will provide MMG the most exciting opportunties in our history.  And all of them are the kind of racing campaigns that will meet the demands of future priorities.  

See you at the races.

Welcome to MMG weblog!

Welcome to Mackey Marketing Group’s weblog.  We’re here to talk racing, our agency, our industry and our clients.  We’ll take up the issues of the day or what happened over the weekend or perhaps simply wax poetic about the good ol’ days.  This will be our space but don’t let it be a one way street.  We want to hear from you.  Let’s make this a regular thing.  Looking forward to hearing from you.