I am writing this new thread here in conjunction with the other thread that was started on LBS sponsorships. I just didn’t want to have this lost in the mix somewhere else. I am 30 years old, and I love marketing myself as well as other people. Here are a few things that I would try this winter to get your unicycling moving this next year. I hope you have fun with this.
Be as straight forward as you can. Try not to have a tone of voice that makes you sound desperate, or would take anything. All you might end up with that way is a few free t-shirts, or at best a set of set of platform pedals just to get you to leave the bikeshop.
I would recommend starting off something like this if you’re at the LBS…
Introduce yourself, and inform them that you are an accomplished unicyclist…even if you’re not, what the hell do they know, they’re bicyclists, and they most likely can’t ride a uni at all.
Let them know that you attend events, competitions, gatherings, parades, and are interested in representing their bike shop as a sponsored rider.
Now you should let them know what you’re looking for. State that you are interested in financial help with competiton entry fees, promotional wear, discounted products.
*** This might get you a good start.
I WOULD TRY THIS ROUTE THOUGH
I would also highly recommend making yourself a professional looking flyer/postcard at least that might even be laminated with a couple good pics of yourself unicycling. Include a short biography of your riding. Do not forget several types of contact info. Then have different types of sponsorship ideas listed. Maybe list them as levels 1-5.
*For example…
(Your Name Here) is now accepting different levels of sponsorship for the upcoming 2008 unicycle activities.
Sponsorships include…
-Level one sponsor (bike shops) = Discounted uni gear, apparel
-Level one sponsor (individual) =$100 towards uni gear, apparel with advertisement listing on jersey
-Level two sponsor = $250 towards event entry fees w/ advert. on jersey
-Level three sponsor = $500 towards uni events w/ advert on jersey.
-Level four = $750 etc.
-Level five = $1000 exclusive logo printed on jersey
You can get highly creative with this. This strategy will allow you to have custom jerseys/shirts made with logos for sponsors. This will also not limit you to just attacking the local LBS’s with a miniscule attempt at getting some discounted gear. You can now take these laminated flyers around to different businesses of all different sorts. Do not approach a chain store with this. Ideas include: any locally run business, hardware store, music shop, restaurant, etc… If you are under 18, I would even consider having your parents take you into a bar to drop them off for sponsorship attempts.
With any luck you will have a few hundred if not a few thousand dollars to buy gear, custom clothing, or use to travel during the next season. Have a plan to write professional looking receipts to the sponsors as well because this is also a tax deduction for them as well. This is the primary reason that this is a better attempt than trying to get discounted gear from the LBS. It’s easier to deduct a cash donation than it is to write-off given discounted items from a catalog.
***Go to a bookstore and buy some sales books. FED-EX Kinko’s usually has some good ones on their shelves as well.
Thanks for the help, I want to ask my LBS for a sort of sponsorship where I maybe wear their logo and tell people about their store. I know the owner pretty well and its only like a 2-3 minute walk from my house…
In return for advertisement and stuff, maybe a small discount on parts and stuff. There arent any uni competitions around here, and only like 2 (3 including the LBS owner) unicyclists in our town. I could tell people where to buy unicycles and give unicycle advice when I ride around (at least one and a half hours a day, or more) . Would this benefit the store enough to sponsor me? And i really dont have enough confidence to ask, because I’m scared to get rejected. Do you know a good way I can ask for this sponsorship?
I would recommend starting off something like this if you’re at the LBS…
Introduce yourself, and inform them that you are an accomplished unicyclist…even if you’re not, what the hell do they know, they’re bicyclists, and they most likely can’t ride a uni at all.
Let them know that you attend events, competitions, gatherings, parades, and are interested in representing their bike shop as a sponsored rider.
Now you should let them know what you’re looking for. State that you are interested in financial help with competiton entry fees, promotional wear, discounted products.
*** This might get you a good start.
Seriously try the flyer/promo idea. This way you can try getting a bunch of funding from various sources, thus giving you enough funds to travel to the competitions, and so forth.
But there arent any competitions around here, I think there might be some in Portland Oregon, but thats about 4 hours away, and would that benefit the stores at all? I dont know much about businesses…
I’ll try to explain a similar situation that happens to us at the tattoo shop everyday.
There is not a chance in the world that I’m just going to give a random tattoo collector a deal on a tattoo just because he is going to wear it all day and promise to tell everyone he sees about it, or refer our shop for that matter.
However, if someone comes in with a well organized thought looking for a team sponsorship we will gladly have custom shirts made for their team, fund their entry fees, or something of that nature.
I don’t know if this explains my thoughts any better, but I hope it will make some sense.
So, would I need to find a few more unicyclists in town to make a team to go to competitions and stuff?
Sorry for all these questions, I just dont wanna go there asking for a sponsorship and look like an idiot
I didn’t mean that you necessarily need a team, just present yourself differently than an ordinary kid looking for a deal on equipment. That’s why I explain a bit about the promo sheet. It’ll make it look like you care about what you do, and that you took a great effort to collect funds for your endeavors.
Take advantage of your age as well…
If you lived in our town I’d give you $50 just to unicycle through the mall with our shop’s shirt on, and get chased by security just because I’d know that you wouldn’t get in legal trouble for it. LOL! I’m old, they’d lock me up all day.:o
Most LBSs have very little to ofter us unicyclist except a pair of platform pedals. Id take them and smile, haha.
Some good info here, thanks for the heads up. Tho I have never been in a bike shop that has the stuff I want, and as they dont sell what I ride, they have little to no interest in helping me travle and pay contest fees.
I think the route for most of us out there is trying to big up unicycling, get people goin into your LBS asking about unis. Give the bike shop a reason to have an intrest in unicycles and your knowlageof them, then show off your abality to ride.
Ok, so I should maybe make a small video showing my skills and stuff, and say I can advertise his store while riding? Im sorta confused…
I know the owner pretty well, so he knows that I unicycle, he also unicycles too.
I like those ideas, Sarin.
I brought my resume and a cover letter to my LBS. They only asked me for a resume, but figured the cover letter would be a good touch.
The owner was not there at the time but I was told to give him a call tomorrow.
I may not be able to talk to him in person, but I have already shown him a few tricks and he was impressed.
I want to go to competitions eventually. What I think will help them most would be if I attended events with them and wore their stuff.
As I said in “LBS Sponsorships” I might try get them to help me get into Ride The Lobster if I can… But that would involve me getting a coker first. I like speed but I need to save for it.
Once I have that set, I’ll be asking for more sponsorships from other businesses/people.
Edit: As to the kind of resume… I just did my basic resume with actual jobs I’ve worked along with unicycling experience.
Why would your LBS first care about you going to comps? its not as if other unicyclists are gonna be buying off him cause they probably live real far away. Plus all they’ll stock will be pedals and tubes, maybe spokes/rim/tyre but thats probbaly for order so basically pointless if you have access to the internet.
Isnt riding simply because you enjoy it good enough for u guys?
i agree that bike shop sponsors would be nearly pointless, unless you are just amazing…a unicycle company sponsor would be nice for when i break stuff/ want to go to naucc or unicon…
