Ask.com has the answer for Bobby Labonte, Hall of Fame sponsorship search
By Bob Pockrass - Associate Editor
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Getting a sponsor new to the sport to commit during these economic times can be a tough sell, but Internet search engine Ask.com has decided to see if NASCAR can help its business.
Ask.com has signed on as the “official search engine of NASCAR” as well as the primary sponsor of the No. 96 Hall of Fame Racing entry driven by Bobby Labonte.
“When everybody else hunkers down, we want to be stepping it up,” Ask.com Chief Executive Officer Jim Safka said. “It makes us much more visible, being one of the very few companies that is putting new money into the sport.
“I think the fans will notice that and appreciate that.”
Ask.com will sponsor the Labonte car in 18 of the first 21 races and the option for a total of 29 races during the season. The company is looking to increase its market share against rivals Google, Yahoo, etc.
“We love the choice of Bobby Labonte because our search engine has got to be associated with speed, and we needed somebody who has got a chance to win in any given race,” Safka said. “He’s a former champion and has a large, established fan base.”
Safka and other Ask.com executives visited the NASCAR finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway last year. He said the company was looking for a platform for a national campaign, and it will activate at the track and will spend money on television advertising.
“It became very clear that NASCAR is an extraordinary opportunity to connect with an audience,” Safka said. “I began thinking of it like a marketing distribution channel. I just can’t think of any other distribution channel as big as NASCAR.
“People are very emotionally connected to the sport. It’s such a lifestyle that my feeling became that if we could get into the sport and do it properly and do it with real authenticity, we’d have a good chance of winning over some of the fans to try our product.”
Because NASCAR has a deep history and a plethora of race statistics, Safka hopes that NASCAR fans will use the portal to find answers to NASCAR trivia.
“NASCAR is our primary marketing platform for 2009,” Safka said. “After looking at everything, we chose NASCAR. … As we looked at this sport, we really fell in love with it. We didn’t go in expecting for that to happen. We’re really going to embrace it in an authentic way.”
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10 responses to "Ask.com has the answer for Bobby Labonte, Hall of Fame sponsorship search". Post a Comment.
Jozef Colomy said:
Jan 14, 2009 at 9:38 PMExcellent news
Christina Ellzey said:
Jan 15, 2009 at 2:33 PMAwesome! I love Bobby and was sad to see him get burnt in the Petty mess. And my husband loves Hall of Fame (Cowboys fan and all that) so we are both thrilled to see this partnership. I will definitely be trying Ask.com now.
Pat Draper said:
Jan 15, 2009 at 4:01 PMI think Ask.com made a wise choice to come to nascar. Having Bobby as their driver is just frosting on the cake. You can give me a drivers name and i can tell you who his sponsor is. So its true people remember who sponsor's who and it should help their business greatly.
Betty Stoneman said:
Jan 15, 2009 at 4:28 PMPeople do remember sponsors of "their" driver and I believe most of us try to support those sponsors. I know that I do. Best of luck to Bobby and Ask.com.
Lynne Michelle said:
Jan 15, 2009 at 5:20 PMReally interesting, forward-looking development for Bobby. I'm dying to see who his crew chief will be!
Lynne Michelle
Chuck Kalvaitis said:
Jan 15, 2009 at 6:17 PMAsk.com is now my first choice in search engines. Go Bobby!!!!
Priscilla Bartels said:
Jan 15, 2009 at 8:02 PMThank you Ask.com for thinking like the rest of us do that Bobby Labonte is a special person a gentleman and great driver given a chance at a good car and the money to keep it running as much as I think the Petty,s are a mane in NASCAR they didnt have the resourses to help Bobby keep a decent car it seemed that their never was enough money. Ask will always be my serch engine from now on I wore the green colors of joe gibbs no 18 the Cherrios jacket and t-shirts and now I will wear whtever color and ask. com puts Bobby in ,so everyone will know who my driver is.
Roger Cox said:
Jan 15, 2009 at 8:57 PMAwesome news. It is a proven fact that NASCAR fans are the loyal to sponsors and Ask.com will find that they have made a very wise decision. Being from Corpus Christi I am a huge fan of Booby and Terry, I can't say the same for Ford (I have an SS Impala) but give Bobby quality equipment and he will give you quality finishes.
Gladys Bedwell said:
Jan 15, 2009 at 10:15 PMWhat a great idea for Ask.com to come to NASCAR. Becoming more visible is key in making a business successful. I am pretty optimistic this will increase their business. Just reading the article will remind me to use Ask.com more often even though I love to Google.
Lori Braun said:
Jan 21, 2009 at 9:31 AMWell! I did ask and I did receive! Ask.com is the answer to my prayers for my favorite driver to have a ride this season! I am not a real Ford fan, but I was not a Dodge fan either. I drive Chevy, but that doesn't really matter. It has alway been a burning question to NASCAR fans... who do you follow: the driver, the owner or the car make? I follow my driver Bobby because he is still one of the "gentlemen" racers left in the series and I am proud to wear his gear. I hope you come up with some really cool stuff! This 51 year old loves her NASCAR and will wear the #96 gear proudly! Thanks for giving my man a ride!!!! God Bless you!