How Pocono Raceway and Winmo Initiate Sponsorship Relationships That Are All in the Family
ABOUT POCONO RACEWAY
Pocono Raceway, in the beautiful Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania, has been a family-owned business for more than 50 years. The Raceway hosts multiple national motorsports events like the ARCA Menards Series, NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and Camping World Truck Series. Plus more than 200 annual events such as car clubs and racing schools.
As the world’s first, privately-owned solar-powered sports facility, a 25-acre, three-megawatt solar farm provides the energy needs of the Raceway, as well as electricity to the local power grid. Business Development Manager, Eric Flood, and Partnership Sales & Service Manager, JJ LaRose, both attended motorsport events at the Raceway as children.
CHALLENGES AND OBJECTIVES
Pocono Raceway has been a Winmo client since 2015. Both Flood and LaRose moved into sales roles after Winmo was already in place for the sales division.
“Before Winmo at the Raceway, a clear pain point for me was when I had a great idea for a company and couldn’t find any way to contact them other than a general contact form or a customer service line,” said Flood. “Just being able to reach someone directly, whether they are the person you need or if they need to pass you along within the company.”
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020, Pocono Raceway’s entire strategy pivoted from actively prospecting to supporting and saving existing partnerships. Flood and LaRose’s teams had to adjust to fanless events with a focus on their own facility and alternative methods to engage fans.
“There were basic needs that had to be covered to ensure that everything operated correctly and the onsite staff members were safe. This is where our focus turned to target companies who could provide items such as masks and hand sanitizers,” said Flood.
HOW WINMO HELPS POCONO RACEWAY SUCCEED
Pocono Raceway was drawn to Winmo because of the ability to deep dive into not only a company, but key decision-making contacts as well. Flood and LaRose are able to begin a cold-call, email, or pitch armed with the knowledge of who they’re talking to thanks to the personality insights feature.
“The contact information and the personality insights are the biggest things,” said Flood. “The ability to see a large sampling of employees at a company really helps narrow down who would be the best target. Every company has different titles for different job tasks, so all of these people housed in one place is valuable.”
In an industry so heavily impacted by sponsors, Flood and LaRose often utilize the quick link to Sponsorship Contacts.
In addition to scouting the right contacts at target accounts, Flood and LaRose use Winmo to identify accounts that were not previously on their radar, particularly via the daily opportunity briefing provided by WinmoEdge.
“The daily WinmoEdge emails are huge. They bring so much insight and new ideas. Every day there is at least one company, but usually more, that we never would have even considered on our own,” said LaRose. “We’ve taken information from current partners’ competitors from the Accounts on the Move section directly to that partner to create opportunities that will stand toe to toe.”
FUTURE PLANS
As the only family-owned and operated facility on the NASCAR schedule, the Raceway has the freedom to create unique and meaningful experiences for fans and corporate partners. The ability to go straight to the Chairman of the Board at the end of the hall allows both Flood and LaRose to get answers fast and implement partner ideas immediately.
There’s a saying at Pocono, if it sounds crazy, we’re willing to give it a shot.
“Every day we learn what else Winmo can be used for, not only sales prospecting and leads, but marketing as well,” said Flood. “I foresee Pocono Raceway partnered with Winmo for a long time. We’re looking forward to the constant development and what’s ahead.”