What common mistakes do racers make when approaching sponsors?

The biggest mistakes include: 1) Approaching companies saying 'I want this' instead of 'here's what I can do for you,' 2) Making promises about racing series or events and not delivering on them, 3) Not having a professional-looking program from an outside perspective, 4) Not having results to show, 5) Not knowing the sponsor's products (like not knowing the difference between Optima battery colors), and 6) Communicating only via email instead of building personal relationships through phone calls and video chats. Athletes also fail by giving up after being told no once, rather than continuing to foster the relationship.