But the commonality comes on the front quarterpanel. If Cup cars as a group have one signature feature, it’s the mass of stickers that stretch from the front corner to just behind the wheel.
Most of them are parts manufacturers: Raybestos, Wix, Moog, Clevite, Comp, Edelbrock, Holley, Jegs, Jesel. Some represent NASCAR’s different contingency programs: DirecTV, Checker’s, Budweiser, USG.
Why, then, would so many companies be interested in, comparatively speaking, such a small piece of real estate?
The simple answer: “It gives us the ability to use high [profile] teams without writing a $15 million check,” said Jason Wonderly, sports marketing manager for Checker’s.
If only the complete answer were that simple. But it starts with this: Unlike primary sponsors, the decal isn’t the centerpiece of the sponsorship.
Companies that are ‘official partners’ of NASCAR have the opportunity to sponsor contingency programs as well, though they are not obligated to do so. And for Checker’s and DirecTV, their sponsorship with NASCAR runs in conjunction with other entities in the sport: DirecTV runs occasionally as the primary sponsor on Clint Bowyer’s car, and Checker’s has sponsorships at four ISC-owned tracks (Daytona, Homestead, Michigan, Richmond) and with Busch and Truck teams.
But where the contingency programs go from there is up to the sponsor.
In DirecTV’s case, the company decided it wanted a contingency program. NASCAR set up the program, which honors a crew chief after each race and at the end of the year, according to Josh Stern, DirecTV’s director of advertising.
An award for crew chiefs made sense for the company, since they’re the ones that have the most direct connection to DirecTV’s product. Their dishes are a common sight on pit boxes up and down pit road, since crew chiefs and crew members can only see a small portion of the track.
“We have 40 teams participating, and that gets our logo on the front quarterpanel. In return for that, we provide service at [the team’s] pit box. They get a branded dish,” Stern said, meaning the dish’s logo is easily distinguishable. He added that the company has a representative on-site in case of a problem, as happened with Dale Earnhardt Jr. earlier this year. The technician swapped out the problem dish and had the new one online within minutes.
Stern added that DirecTV’s decal is one of the most visible on the cars and runs on both the right and left front quarterpanel. The decals, the dishes and the mentions with its contingency program give DirecTV the visibility it desires.
For its sponsorship, Checker’s is similar to DirecTV in that it’s not a driver-based award; instead, Checker’s rewards the highest-finishing eligible team that spends the least amount of time on pit road. It’s also similar to DirecTV in that the award dovetails nicely with what Checker’s does as a business.
“We have two drive-thrus in every restaurant,” Wonderly said. “We’re all about speed and accuracy, and those are the same brand attributes that NASCAR carries over.”
Moreover, he added, the workers in the restaurant are called crew members. And Checker’s runs an incentive program for its crew members, just like the NASCAR teams.
As with DirecTV, the appeal lies in the large number of teams on board with the program. Instead of always being tied to one driver, both companies can use a range of drivers — and, therefore, a range of performances — to associate their name with.
Checker’s even produces a TV commercial immediately after each Cup race to celebrate that week’s winner of the contingency program. Last year, they came to Daytona armed with contracts for each team to sign; the contracts allowed the use of images of each team’s car and driver, though Wonderly said they promised teams the focus would be more on the car than the driver.
The teams were fine with it, because their primary sponsors suddenly had a chance to get some free exposure if their team appeared in the Checker’s ads.
To make the ads, Checker’s works with NASCAR Images after each race to get 15 seconds of footage from the winning team. The final 15 seconds of the ad promote a limited time offer from Checker’s. They are then uploaded to a satellite for stations to download when they’re ready; viewers may see them on the late local news on the day of the race, and Wonderly said the spots run in 48 markets.
“For us, it’s not all about the decal, which might get you some [extra] Joyce Julius numbers,” Wonderly said.
Maybe that’s the simple answer: That little decal on the front isn’t the end, but only the beginning.
(Photo by Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR)
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There’s only one look that’s common to every Nextel Cup car. Each driver has a different primary color, a different paint scheme, a different primary sponsor, a different number, making each car distinguishable no matter how fast it’s going.