Bob Reif-The Indianapolis Motor Speedway's Senior Vice President of Marketing
Bob
Reif
Outlines His Organization's Plans
Source: Racer, America's Auto Racing Magazine
As Senior Vice President of Marketing for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Bob
Reif
has emerged as an important figure in American open-wheel auto racing. President Tony George recruited
Reif
last year from Wayne
Huizenga's
Miami sports empire. As a result Bob has tried to bring some ideas from the marketing of traditional stick-and-ball sports to auto racing, including trying to market the personalities of the individual athletes.
George also entrusted
Reif
with the task of building up the Indy Racing Northern Light Series schedule from nine races that were held in 2000. The result of his effort is a 13 race slate for 2001 that will feature more races but will have less down time between events.
Reif
is often on the run, whether traveling around the Midwest to negotiate with track promoters to going to California to observe the production of an Indy Racing television "infomercial". We began by asking for self-evaluation.
What do you consider to be the high points of your first year on the job?
First of all, (
internet
search engine) Northern Light helped us out of the box in January (by signing on as the title sponsor for the series). They certainly gave us a shot in the
ar
, and, along with our ABC contract, it shows that we have committed partners over the long term. In the past, it may not have been clear that we were in it for the long haul.
Could you identify some of your goals for the forthcoming 2001 season?
We've made it a specific objective to sell out events next year. In the past, we've only been able to sell out the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. We really believe we're going to be in a great position to sell out (races at new tracks in) Kansas City and
Joliet
. There is an acceptance for our product in those markets.
The 2001 schedule has a distinctly Midwestern emphasis. Can you explain why it's been connected that way
?
Kentucky (Speedway) was the first race we ran outside of Indianapolis that was in the Midwest. We were very encouraged by the reception there. We did some exit surveys, and found that people will travel two to three hours from Indianapolis and surrounding areas to see our races.
We also know that open-wheel fan base is centered in the Midwest, just like the Southeast was the
NASCAR
fan base.
Do you feel the series has the
ability
to attract new fans?
We have been testing different programs in different markets. The
IRL
is not going to charge $100 a ticket. We need people to sample our product. Once folks come in...we're going to convert them. We've got a great entertaining product. We've met with race promoters and they are embracing our ideas.
The
IRL
is producing an "infomercial". First, why did you choose that format?
Education. A 30-minute television program communicates a story. We need to tell our story, and this infomercial tells people what we're all about. It's much more cost-effective than a 30-second television commercial.
How would you describe the format of the infomercial?
There will be a high-energy introduction of about nine minutes, featuring our drivers and telling who they are. We're relying on the driver's to tell our story. Then there's a call to action (buying tickets for races). Other segments will include people in the garage and autograph sessions.
When will the infomercial be seen?
Six weeks in advance of the race in every market that we race in. The whole marketing
mantra
is trial and conversion. We need to get people to come out to the track.
Do you believe that the series has been gaining momentum?
From a marketing perspective, if you think of where open-wheel racing was a year ago at this time (after George dismissed hopes of a merger between the
IRL
and CART), we let the world know we're committed. We've always had a great product. We have great competitive races.
It's our job to market it. I think people are starting to take notice that we have a good product. We want to educate people about the on-track product. That's why we're doing programs like the infomercial.
Does the
IRL
need to have a superstar in its driver lineup?
There is no magic bullet. I've always said. It's about developing your stars and having your stars' performance on the track speak for itself. There are few people in sports, like
Tiger
Woods and Joe Montana for example, who transcend the sport. It's going to take a lot of hard work and getting people to take notice of what we do. It's our job to communicate the heroic activity these people do when they get on the track.
Some of the
IRL
teams have struggled to sell sponsorships. What has the league been doing to assist in that situation?
We have formed a group called team sponsorship services. These people int hat group assist teams in soliciting and closing sponsorships. We identify companies that are qualified to spend money on the Indy
racing
Northern
Light Series.
We think we're best qualified to identify these companies, and we send those (names and contacts) off to the teams. We think
our
job is about customer service.