yakass

Good work DB. Negotiating sponsorship isn't always easy. Its even harder to hold on to it to. The whole sponsorship thing is something I get asked about often, so here and now is a good time to talk about that.

With respect to maintaining sponsorship, it has to be remembered by both parties that its all a big game of 'what have you done for me lately'. The best arrangements are the ones where there are no grey areas, and that the commitment from both parties is up front to begin with. Most sponsorship arrangements I have observed (in this industry and others) that start out with a very loose agreement usually go no where and don't last and it's usually because both parties are unclear about what the other party wants/requires to keep everything kosher. So lesson #1 on sponsorship arrangements - get the relevant details in writing.

Not all that long ago (just after i finished up working with Hobie) one of the Hobie team members mentioned to me that they were worried that they wouldn't be part of the team for long if they didn't start performing better in the events. Much the same concern you might have if you weren't ranking well in KFT DB.

My response was to tell him not to worry about that, and the suggestion I made was that his place in the team had more to do with how active he was and whether or not he was doing or producing anything that others might look up to.

Turns out I was right about that. This particular person hasn't achieved great results in any of the ABT events I'm aware of, but is still a part of the team and still has an excellent relationship with Hobie. And that has everything to do with his presence and actions (online and in real-world) that contribute to the scene. So no... it doesn't have as much to do with winning as you might think. It has more to do with simply getting actively involved.

As for the KFT, as good as the event is, it is promoted at a very low level. Almost like the guys who run it don't want to promote it. In my opinion, an agreement to simply turn up, fish these events and try and do well is not going to result in notable exposure for Barra jacks, and depending on what their sponsorship commitment is, probably not bring a return on investment.. No on it's own anyway. And because of this, is thats all the agreement (and effort) amounts to, trust me, it won't last.

Don't get me wrong - being part of it is exactly what any sponsor would want to see you do. But there is far far more that you can do to help promote that sponsor that just try and win a fishing tournament. Far far more. And you're in a better position than most to take the bull by the horns to.

You have a platform to share written thoughts, a blog profile to use, a video gallery, the ability to share video footage to the world to an attentive audience, and to top all that off, loads of free time to go crazy.

In short, you're in a real good position to make it all work rather nicely, even if you score donuts at every single KFT event you enter. Think outside of the box.

I should add, that ranking well in tourneys is destined to help no end as well, for sure. Placing 2nd amongst that mass of mojo is a pretty good accomplishment, so thats definitely something that you should focus on.

Also, that Barra jacks is an awesome tackle store. I gave them a plug on yakabout when I fished my way through the area in 07. They helped me out on lure selection for one of the ABt rounds there to. Great shop, so it's pleasing to see that you've got yourself a quality sponsor there

Firstly congrats on your new sponsorship . I agree totally with Josh that positive exposure is what a sponsor would be looking for first and foremost .
Your involvement in forums and comps will all contribute to this as long as your spreading the word !
A few of us goldcoasters will be travelling to the sunny coast for the kft and i look forward to catching up with you . One of the guys i will be coming up with finished 2nd overall in the recent gc series so now im torn as to which one of you to follow !
In all seriousness though good stuff and good luck .

Congratulations on the sponsorship, Stu - I am sure both of you will gain from the relationship.

Well done Stu. you deserve it.

Thanks for the positive words everyone. It's great to have some moral support from other yak fishers and more important than that is the fact that so many new friendships have been forged through this sport. I love it.

hello all