[Closed] Are you influenced by sponsorship ?

None of the above

None of the above

Influenced by reviews. Or in the case of shampoo, whatevers on offer in Sainsburys!

No, no and no. However, if a firm put money into building a trail centre or something else to give back to the fraternity (brother) then I would consider buying from them, more so if they're a small company. All the things you listed are competitive events and I don't really do those anymore.

To me, as a sponsor, it's more about saying "look what these lads what we sponsor did on our stuff".
It validates the product.

Probably a bit of both though.

Occasionally. Sometimes I buy Marshall's Pasta because it doesn't cost much more and it keeps a bike team going.

But in terms of equipment? No. Sram have a massive sponsorship programme and I'd never put any of their kit near my bike besides the forks. Ditto Crank brothers. I buy what is best, not what is pushed the most.

Sometimes the two work hand in hand however- for example, I run Pro Vanderham bars on my bike. Pro sponsors Vanderham then he develops a product that is better than anything else.

Being given free stuff at events has influenced my buying decisions: forgoodness shakes, zero salt tablets for example.

I'd never have bothered trying them if I hadn't been given a freebie, and now get both quite regularly.

None of the above though, sorry.

Interesting point that they are all competitive events, Rickos, I hadn't thought of that.
Formula One sponsorship is big business, but how many Formula One fans race a car them selves. It's all about image and association.

I'm struggling to think of a non-competitive sponsorship tie up.
Hasn't one of the Welsh trail centres got posters for an electricity supplier on the routes ?
Would this influence your choice of electricity supplier ?

Sometimes the two work hand in hand however- for example, I run Pro Vanderham bars on my bike. Pro sponsors Vanderham then he develops a product that is better than anything else.

Interesting.

Ah but sponsorship also raises awareness of brands/products, as hinted by damion. You'd never buy the product if you didn't know it existed. So it can influence in that way, by making a product part of the buying decision (rather than influencing that decision directly).

Yeah, the new Energy section on Whites is sponsored by nPower, but they're massive so don't need my pennies. Like I say, more likely to buy from a small outfit making a proper effort.

Altura trail at Whinlatter? That is effective advertisement IMO

Brand awareness, but to who? If you're doing the Kona Mash-Up, for example, then it's likely you already know of Kona.

As with damion, I've bought stuff later that was originally a freebie. I'd have never done so without trying it out first though, so that works.

Yes to be honest, when companies sponsor events, i try and support that brand. Not so much for an individual Ie the steve peat example, but if its borderline then it may swing the decision.

Brant- it is obviously not as clear cut as that, but it's his numbers and so on that make them good.

Usually works the other way round with me. I'll avoid products endorsed by celebs, cos I can't stand all that commercialism crap.

I'll buy what I need, and can afford. I'll buy what I perceive to be the best product in terms of value for money, and sometimes a product's reputation marks it out as worth buying. Heinz baked beans for example.

A mate of mine once bought a Renault Clio because he fancied 'Nicole' off the TV adverts. The knob. Did he ever get to cosy up with Nicole? Did he flip. He just ended up with a crap car. Idiot...

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Sponsorship is not aimed at smart people.

For a start it's usually thought up by marketing teams.

I think a lot of it is more to do with brand awareness, brand association and whether we like that association or not. We are all influenced to some degree by the images and placement of products.

From a personal point of view, I would hope that buying decisions were based on much more than whether an advertising campaign appealed. For instance, I like what Red Bull does and the areas it supports/sponsors but I have only ever drunk Red Bull once. Equally, I have seen myself really wanting an Intense frame and Palmer snowboard largely based on Shaun Palmer's achievements. On the other hand there are certain advertising/marketing/awareness campaigns which are so irritating that I would purposely look for an alternative. I will only go to a MacDonalds for instance if there really is no alternative other than go hungry.

It really can work both ways.

😆 at Elfin, Brant's point about validation of products/work is how I look at it, next year we've got two DH guys on with Diverse, an XC/ Enduro team and I'm also doing servicing for a DH team that helps disadvantaged children to get into downhill.
The first two are product validation and the last is because it's a good cause.
If I had the cash I would have tendered for Gethin too, workshop with purpose built trail centre on the doorstep, would be nice!

when I was about 18 I used a particular brand of shampoo in the hope that this massive surge in sales would encourage the continuation of an ad with a lovely lady in it

didn't work so I dumped the brand and later went bald as a protest measure

Hasn't one of the Welsh trail centres got posters for an electricity supplier on the routes ?
Would this influence your choice of electricity supplier ?

It's would me. If they have developed a way to generate electricity from the power of gnar I'm all for it. This could be the next new renewable energy source. If they put a plant on the Surrey hills we might bealbe to power all of London from the pure sickness that oozes from them there hills.

and sometimes a product's reputation marks it out as worth buying. Heinz baked beans for example.

See, you've been influenced by their image and advertising. Why? Because Branston baked beans are much nicer! 😉

To be honest, I only drink Nastro Peroni becasue they used to sponsor Valentino Rossi. I tried it, I liked it.... 🙂

No it's not funny; I had to sit in that car sometimes. It was embarrassing. 😳

I've actually missed the point of this thread, and instead gone off on a tangent of celebrity endorsement and advertising.

Actually, there are a few products I'd buy because of event sponsorship; Early Rider bikes for example because they are on of the sponsors of the BigBikeBash, and kindly donated several little bikes to give away as prizes. Superb. In fact all the BBB sponsors are wonderful people with wonderful products. 😀

Bike stuff; dunno if the sponsorship 'works' in terms of getting me to notice the brands and that, but certainly stuff like Easton bars, Shimano bits, stuff like that I'd buy.

What people do on a product to validate it counts for something, I agree there. We sponsor good blokes who ride hard as I think brands should support riders who work hard and have a similar outlook, if they can afford to.

I couldn't give a monkeys if a pro puts their name to a product tho, i buy stuff it it does the job, actual brand name and pro endorsement don't register.

if a car brand sponsors a race, well that's just marketing by numbers, there's rarely any real understanding of a market / scene there. it's just demographics and averages and logo exposure per buck.
the exception would be bike brands sponsoring bike events, ie helping keep that side of the scene going as race orgainisers need funding to keep it all going and few of them end up rich! singular sponsoring kielder, the kona mash-up, etc.

loco, supporting good causes like that counts for a lot, good work..

Some of it, yes; all of it, no. If a company wants to get involved in a worthy project and help get it off the ground then I'll give them a second thought when it comes to a purchasing decision. This is particularly the case when all other things are equal.

I think it also depends on whether it is clear opportunism or whether there is a good fit between the culture and orientation behind the business, and the thing being sponsored. Mutual advantage is not necessarily a bad thing and sponsorship is useful in a sport like ours.

I find it interesting that most people are saying they are not influenced, yet sponsorship is such a big part of mountain biking.
Either the marketing people have got it wrong and are wasting their time, or they are so subtle that nobody realises that they have fallen for it. 😉

Regarding Red Bull, Torq and the like.
Their products are so cheap it's easy to try equivalents from every manufacturer to compare, then stick with the one you like.
The odd freeby here and there doesn't make any difference to my long term spend.

Sponsorship can backfire as well.
After feeling like I got conned out of £35 by Kona for entering the Mash Up, when they knew the timing system was unreliable, I'd say yes, it has influenced my decision as to whether I would want to spend £1000+ on one of their bikes.

We are all influenced by sponsorship to a greater or lesser degree. It's part of the human condition. You might like to think that you are not being influenced, but somewhere, deep inside, a little seed is sown and it will develop.

After all, the brand managers wouldn't pump so much £££ into sponsorship and brand awareness if there wasn't a return of ££££££. It all boils down to making money. If there wasn't money to be made it wouldn't be done.

Of course sponsorship / awareness isn't necessarily positive. There maybe certain brands that you cannot abide - for no rational reason - and yet when you see them plastered all over the next event you go to watch your eyes roll in despair.

For me the interesting brand at the moment is RedBull - associated with so many top level extreme sports I sometimes have to remind myself what it is they actually are / do.

Either the marketing people have got it wrong

yes, but they are also well-funded departments in most companies that have them, so money gets spent as it's set aside. if you can't measure the result you shouldn't do it they say, but they carry on doing it anyway.

we spend little on sponsorship as we're a small brand and i don't think serious racing is high on most rider's priority lists, but it doesn't stop me wanting to help support a dedicated rider who wants to ride somewhere i find inspiring. does that sell bikes for us? probably not. it gives us a nice story and images for a catalogue, it gives a rider great experiences and if i'm honest, i get to see things through thier eyes as i can't take enough time off work to travel round the world riding and i find their expereinces motivate me to do more. i hope it motivates others to do more too.

a kind of 'do as you'd like to be done by if you were a skint but fast bike-bum or a naturally hard-as-nails rider needing £ to ride a big race' take on sponsorship.

I'd say yes, it has influenced my decision as to whether I would want to spend £1000+ on one of their bikes.

Rightly or wrongly, the fact that they are sold in Halfords would be a bigger no no for me. I don't think they'll lose any sleep over it somehow.

[i]or they are so subtle that nobody realises that they have fallen for it. [/i]

You've never met anyone in marketing have you?

Sponsorship is different to advertising and it's very different to 'being a good product'. Redbull for example, they sponsor everything on earth but the product tastes like sick.
As above, I will generally regard any attempt to associate a personality with a product as suspicious at best.

Good luck to people who can get themselves sponsored though, I appreciate that it can help those guys out a lot.

I think everyone is influenced by sponsorship really, even if its just about product awareness. If a shampoo sponsored a bike event, next time I was in the supermarket buying a shampoo I might give it a try out of curiosity, if it smells nice, cleans my hair and doesn't all fall out in one dollop when I squeeze some into my hands, then I might buy it again.

As far as santa cruz, I probably believe that their involvement in racing helps develop a better bike, so if I were in the market for a bike they would make my list, it would influence my decision along with other factors.

Rightly or wrongly, the fact that they are sold in Halfords would be a bigger no no for me. I don't think they'll lose any sleep over it somehow.

See, that, to me, is just snobbery. What has it got to do with the bikes? Nowt.

"For me the interesting brand at the moment is RedBull - associated with so many top level extreme sports I sometimes have to remind myself what it is they actually are / do. "

er, sell an old drink recipe for a fortune, have so much profit that they don't know what to do with it, and do things like this? http://kellycordes.wordpress.com/2010/06/25/cerro-torre-david-lama-and-red-bullshit/
that undoes any good exposure from mtb sponsorship for me.. call me sensitive but it's not on. don't get involved with sponsorship in areas you don't understand and if you screw up, 'fess up and deal with it.

and look up 'Vermonster vs monster' too. big marketing depts too often seem to go hand in hand with big legal depts.

Indirectly, yes - that fact that the OP used Steve peat & Santa Cruz as an example means that they have brand recognition with him thanks to the sponsorship and so he is more likely to add Santa Cruz to his list of bikes to consider should he be in the market for a new DH bike.

Just like I'd now be more likely to consider a trek if I was after an XC whippet bike after I learned that this nice young lady rides one
http://www.singletrackworld.com/2010/12/willow-koerber-joins-trek-world-racing/

Once we have our lists we will then undertake a logical and analytical analysis of the various merits of each bike Vs our own riding requirements and buy the one that's a nice colour 😉

1) Direct Sponsorship - No, I don't believe someone racing a product proves anything other than that product, with the help of several professional mechanics and a professional rider, works long enough to win a race. Not very useful for the average rider!

2) The only race i've done recently is the Selkirk Merida. I enjoyed it hugely but still struggle to remember what it is Merida do...

3) For some daft reason, I still have some fondness for Grundig and Toyota RAV4s after their involvement in the DH race scene years ago. Not really sure what it is Grundig do, and am unlikely to ever buy a Toyota though.

Conversely, I used to support Juventus when I was a kid, and bought the strip they won the European Cup in, the blue strip with the 'Sony' sponsorship. Even today I still own a sony personal stereo, a sony CD player, sony speakers and a sony phone. I think Sony may have won this one...* 😳

*or perhaps its just a stubborn reaction to the ubiquity of the iPhone..

trb, I think that's the right point. I may feel more goodwill toward a brand who support riders that I like or respect etc, but actual bike / product sales are based on colour / £ / suitability etc.

You could say that as long as we're familiar with a brand and it's basic position / range type, any more spend on sponsorship is unecessary as most people take advise or research before buying higher price items, but where would pro riders and a big part of the industry be without sponsorship? In turn, where would cycling in general be without something like the DH World Cup or the Pro Tour?

...the OP...

Willow Koerber would have been a better example. Again, I would have to look up the make of bike she rides, but the fact that she is 5'2" and has won XC races on a 29er sticks in my memory, if only because it makes me laugh when I read the same old "You need to be 6'6" to ride a 29er and they're no good on single track" posts on here.

Regarding Red Bull, if you look at the ingredients list, it contains exactly the same amount of taurine and caffeine as the supermarket own brand drinks do at 1/4 the price. As far as I can tell, it tastes exactly the same too.

if a shop/brand actually went out into my local woods and helped build/maintain trails then they'd see my custom 🙂

if a company wants to give out little free tasters/testers and i like the product then yes i'm more likely to purchase/use that product in the future than if i had to buy it to test it in the first place.

brands association with sports does nothing for me, i'm one of those people who waits until others have purchased/tried and informed the rest of the world about its problems before i invest in anything. sponsorship of an event means nuffink to my wallet.

[b]Sometimes the two work hand in hand however- for example, I run Pro Vanderham bars on my bike. Pro sponsors Vanderham then he develops a product that is better than anything else.[/b]

Vanderham had no direct role in developing that handlebar - its actually a rebadged catalogue bar manufactured by HL Corp (who have their own component brand "Zoom"), same is true of the Atherton bar by Pro 😉

the association is what brings riders to buy these products....

[b]Yes[/b], i bought an orange 224 in 2007. Clearly to me, if orange hadn't been sponsoring the mojo team or their own riders then I might well not have been aware of the product. Outside DH racing not influenced by sponsorship.

No no no. Im very cynical particulary regarding sports equipment, the stars and slonsorship. Everyone knows they get special equipment and we get a cheaper version, dont we?
And talking of Clios I never ever thought they'd sell a car with a girls name to men, just shows ya.

Vanderham had no direct role in developing that handlebar - its actually a rebadged catalogue bar manufactured by HL Corp (who have their own component brand "Zoom"), same is true of the Atherton bar by Pro

the association is what brings riders to buy these products....

I think Brant said this above in one word: "interesting"

made me laugh anyway..

I think the point may have already been made, but sponsorship also allows the further development and testing of products.
Both the xc and dh guys will be testing new parts and tunes over the upcoming season.

Doesn't it depend somewhat on who's being sponsored.

If the team has a reputation for demanding the lightest, fastest componentry, and then changes supplier from one to another, say for example team Garmin, with the change from Felt to Cervelo, are they doing that for purely financial reasons, or does the change validate the product? would they even ride it if it was not the epitomy cutting edge fastest product - I think in their case there is likely to be an element of both.

Everything THINKS they are independent minded mavericks with a mind full of original thought.

But very few people actually are.

I'd say 99% of people are influenced by sponsorship/marketing/advertising.

Having said that, Quiksilver have always sponsored most the most successful surfer ever, Kelly Slater. Will I buy their wetsuits or kit? No because it's all pretty naff (allowed word?!!).

Liam Kileen's success reinforced my view that Specialized make some decent bikes though and I bet many fancy a bike like Danny McCaskill (not me - I'd kill myself on one).

From my point of view it is a case of both, the members of both teams have proven results and will be riding far faster and harder than I could or have time for.
In the case of Felt Cervelo I'd guess it's of more a financial choice.

Surf-Mat - Member
Everything THINKS they are independent minded mavericks with a mind full of original thought.

But very few people actually are.

I'd say 99% of people are influenced by sponsorship/marketing/advertising.

But the OP asked who was influenced by sponsorship specifically. Other than it being used as a form of advertising (brand awareness) I can't think of one situation where I've selected a product based on sponsorship.

Mat, Chris Akrigg (sp?) rides for mongoose doesn't he 😕

I can think of many products where good sponsorship has sold a lot more.

Yet everyone denies they are influenced - that's my point. No one, especially on STW will ADMIT sponsorship plays any part in decision making but I bet it does in many cases. Less relevant in MTBing I reckon (I'm more review/opinion led myself) but in many sports, it's vital that your spangly new product is "endorsed" by someone at the top of their game.

Vanderham had no direct role in developing that handlebar - its actually a rebadged catalogue bar manufactured by HL Corp (who have their own component brand "Zoom"), same is true of the Atherton bar by Pro

I would be amazed if that was true, simply because in reality, if you're selling more than 10 bars a year, it costs pretty much the same price to get "your own" spec bend and rise as it would to take an off the shelf one.

Not sure about the HL Corp bit, but I do know who makes the Pro seatpost 🙂

I didn't comment on that post but did seem rather unlikely, even taking into account the incestuous nature of the bicycle manufacturing industry.

A mate of mine once bought a Renault Clio because he fancied 'Nicole' off the TV adverts. The knob. Did he ever get to cosy up with Nicole? Did he flip. He just ended up with a crap car. Idiot...

Funniest thing I have read in ages

Willow looks nice
[url= http://www.willowkoerber.com/gallery.php ]Willow's Gallery[/url]

Is sponsorship not just a tax fiddle for companies?

I would be amazed if that was true, simply because in reality, if you're selling more than 10 bars a year, it costs pretty much the same price to get "your own" spec bend and rise as it would to take an off the shelf one.

OH, I misunderstood your humour... What did the "interesting" mean then?

Depends how much money you make, costs me money.............

Sorry LoCo, I should rephrase it - It's probably a tax fiddle for some companies.

I wouldn't have known the Mondraker brand had they not sponsored a DH team so chances are I may not have considered them for my last bike. I didn't buy it because Barel rides one though.

Haha no offence taken 😀

😀

No, my purchases are usually based on recommendations from friends, on here or previous experience. Magazines are good for product awareness.

With regard to previous experience - the above and beyond customer service I've received from [b]Turner Bikes[/b], even though they're on the other side of the world will keep me loyal!

i keep changing my mind about sponsership for my company. i like the independence of choice

Well you've got a shock waiting for you when you get your new bike if it's got a stroke of 2.5" or above 😉

high5 loco! i will buy a new frame in feb. i cant decide yet but will get it sprayed up and corperateized 🙂

Would you buy Original Source shampoo

Jedi, no probs just let me know when you decide what to do, the shorter length Duelers will be available next year

i got a new dhx air at the moment. feels better than the old one

Not really, or not consciously anyway, but I will never, ever buy a Kenda tyre thanks to the way some of their sponsored riders behaved towards others at a 24-hour event I was racing at a few years back. People who are sponsored need to be aware that they're effectively an ambassador for the brand they're representing.

Yes one of the main issues in choosing the riders was that they weren't going to act like primadonas and annoy people.
Why would I want to have to deal with asshats for a season 🙂

I tried some Monster Energy drink in a Wetherspoons once in the mistaken impression that it would turn me into Sam Hill.

Didn't make me ride any better, but it did [i]taste[/i] pretty sick.

Seriously though - The bike association was what made me curious to try it I think.

Sponsorship defnitely builds awareness. Not always in a good way. Seeing carbon frames snap in front of you can put you off a brand.

Sponsorship affects my choices.

Some friends are sponsored racers, and in return for work I do for them I get access to their trade accounts. Consequently what they use, I tend to as well...

Although saying that, a lot of the stuff is kit I'd use regardless, because it happens to be "the right thing" for me to use.

Would I drink Monster instead of Red Bull just because Peaty is now paid by Monster? Nope - I'll drink either if they're given to me for free just for the ginormous belches one can do after necking a can of the stuff. 😀

Can't see Monster being so popular if it didn't do some serious sponsorship.

Then there's the Iron Horse Sunday - before the CRC offer, there were still shed loads of them around in Morzine (now there's a few more!).

....and I'm sure we'll see a lot more Demo 8s next summer.

Sure there's a lot of great bikes out there, and on of the deciding factors between them will be the image you're trying (sub consciously or otherwise) to convey.

I'm sure Continental will get a bigger bite of the tyre market with the Athertons on board.
Even Kenda probably sell more tyres because they sponsor World Cup teams even though those teams just use Maxxis anyway.

Sponsorship sells stuff - when it's used in the right context, and the event / person / thing you're sponsoring reflects the brand. It can equally go the other way if the event / person / thing goes wrong.

It's definitely had an effect on what I've bought in the past - I remember choosing a Cannondale over a Specialized many years back becuase I knew the same frame (well, not literally the same one...the same model) had won the World Champs a couple of years before. I'd seen it being raced at the very highest level and wanted a piece of that action, even if it was only at little local races rather than at the World Cup 🙂

I've never been in any doubt that companies sponsor people/events as it's great advertising, but I've always seen it as probably the 'nicest' way of advertising your stuff...not altruistic or anything quite that noble of course, but it does make them easier to identify with (IYSWIM)

I imagine we are all influenced in some way by sponsorship and other forms of advertising and thats why the companies partake in such activities. Exactly how much each of us is influenced i guess is down to the individual, for me it just plants a seed until i'm on that particular wavelength but for me it also has to be a great deal to take the plunge......

Shimano and Campagnolo dominated the road bike groupset market almost exclusively before SRAM came along.
We all use groupsets but who would of bought anything other than the main two players when SRAM was a relative newcomer?
The quality of it's product has been validated in the eyes of the cycling public in part by it's sponsored winning riders as a real alternative. Getting the name out there helped too. Obviously price,the quality of the product and buyer experience/reviews/word of mouth etc come into play but without the sponsorhship and success who would pay an equivalent price for a "untried" new product. Would you be using SRAM?
Oh winning their court case against Shimano helped too

UK sales manager, SRAM(astroturf my a***) 😀

🙂 🙂

I think that for small companies wanting to get their name and their products out there, it can be effective. Even to cynical mountain bikers.

I trust my eyes and my peers more than anything else when it comes to bikes/parts/clothing. My first stop is personal recommendations from people I know, but if I see something good at a race or on the trail, I might consider buying it. It's good grass-roots marketing.

And having riders doing interesting stuff on your bikes give magazines/websites more opportunities to mention you. They might only review your bike once, but then it gets mentioned/seen in action later. That's the kind of thing that sticks in people's subconscious.

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