Networking: Be the Person in the Center of the Room

Years ago, when I was with CORE, we needed a new logo for the series. A young creative at an agency helped make it happen. Eighteen years later, that same person, Travis Clarke, was an executive vice president at Wasserman, and we were friends. Nobody planned that. We simply kept in touch.

That's what networking in racing really looks like. It isn't a pitch at a trade show. It's a long series of conversations with people you like, many of whom have nothing to offer you yet. The people who spoke on networking at my Sponsorship Summits all described it the same way.

Walk to the center of the room

Kathryn Reinhardt, executive vice president of marketing at Hemmings and a SEMA board member, sorts people at any event into two groups: corner people and center-of-the-room people. "There are people that go to rooms and they're what I call corner people," she said. "They hang out in the corner and they just hope that somebody comes up to them and says hello." She does the opposite. "I want to walk up to people that I don't know, introduce myself, give them a compliment, start a conversation and just see where our path can connect." ▶ Watch Kathryn Reinhardt describe it

She also goes to events where she doesn't know anyone. "I go to everything I possibly can. If it's a trail ride, if it's a car show, if it's a race, whether I know somebody or don't, I'm willing to just put myself out there and go find people and introduce myself at new events." ▶ See the clip

Most racers are corner people at industry events. They stay with their own crew and wait. Being the one who walks over and says hello is a skill, and you can practice it.

Meet the people who will rise with you

Here's something I learned only in hindsight, after a 30-year career. Early on, I called all the big names, the presidents and CEOs, trying to get to know them. Those weren't the people who ended up helping me. Most of them retired or moved on. The people who made the difference were the young ones I met at the beginning, the people at the track doing the work, who grew in their careers as I grew in mine.

Tony Yorkman, who spent a couple of decades at K&N before joining RTR, agreed. The most useful relationships, he said, come from people on the same level as you, not necessarily a CEO when you're starting out. And the value you trade doesn't have to be a sale. "Really identify where you can add value, because any kind of relationship doesn't become fruitful unless you can add value, and that goes for anything in life," Yorkman said. "That value doesn't necessarily have to relate to sales, but it could just be a good sounding board." ▶ Watch Tony Yorkman's answer

Formula Drift driver Amanda Sorensen put it in racing terms at the Drift Sponsorship Summit. "It's crazy that the racing atmosphere and industry is so big, but it's so little at the end of the day," she said. "...That person that you've seen maybe standing in the driver's meeting next to you, or even the person working the kitchen, you never know, could go a long way into this racing industry." In her experience, "everyone's always changing shirts and different titles, but those relationships go so far." ▶ Watch Amanda Sorensen on this

Stay in touch when you don't need anything

Travis Clarke, executive vice president of action sports and Olympics at Wasserman, described why staying connected matters so much in a small industry. "You hear the expression, it's not what you know, it's who you know, and that really is true, especially in the sports community, which is a pretty tight-knit community of folks," he said. ▶ Watch Travis Clarke on this

The key players, he added, move around. "They may not always be with one brand, but oftentimes end up in another brand. So it's all about staying connected and saying hi and being friendly and not just always calling for deals, but just checking in and seeing how things are going." ▶ Watch his full answer

The marketing coordinator who likes you today may be running the sponsorship budget at a different company in five years. If you only call when you need money, you'll be just another request. If you've been checking in all along, you'll be an old friend.

Meet them away from the track

David Morton, senior vice president at Fifth Third Bank, suggested looking for places to meet a brand's people outside of races and trade shows. "If there's a brand that you think would be a good potential sponsor in your general community and they're passionate about supporting homeless shelters, go volunteer at the homeless shelters," he said. A setting like that shows your values and "puts you in a setting that's, I think, much more conducive to building a personal relationship, because it's not in an office someplace where everybody's got their guards up." ▶ Watch David Morton explain this

It only works with repetition. "You can't just show up and volunteer once, for example, and expect to get something out of it," Morton said. "You got to keep doing it over and over again." ▶ See the full answer

Sometimes the connection comes from nowhere. Morton told of a friend who owns a technology company and ran into a driver on the streets of Las Vegas. That chance meeting turned into a sponsorship of a driver who went on to race full time in the NASCAR Cup Series. His lesson: "Be intentional about it, but also be open to uncovering relationships maybe in unexpected places." ▶ Watch the clip

Leave sponsorship out of the first conversation

Alex Licklider, who has raced in Formula Drift for several seasons with a long list of sponsors, has a simple rule for first meetings. "If you're actually trying to get sponsored by a company, don't even mention the word sponsorship," he said. "Introduce yourself as a normal person, just have that good energy and that good communication." ▶ Watch Alex Licklider on first meetings

What he aims for instead is a shared experience. "If you go somewhere like a PRI or something and you had a good laugh with a sponsor, or even if you got invited to go out to a dinner and you guys have drinks and having a good time, it's those memories that you guys will share. It's what's going to set you apart from another driver who's trying to be sponsored by the same company." ▶ Hear him explain it

Be the one who connects people

Reinhardt added one more habit that separates good networkers from great ones: making introductions that don't benefit you at all. "That introduction you may have right now may not be for you, but maybe for someone else," she said, "and being able to connect those dots for people I think is so valuable and makes you an authentic person." ▶ Watch Reinhardt on connecting people

People remember who helped them. When you're the racer who connected a marketing manager with the right supplier, you won't need a cold call later.

The takeaway

• At every event, walk up to at least three people you don't know, introduce yourself and ask about them.
• Go to events outside your usual circle: car shows, trail rides, other series' races.
• Invest in people at your level, not just executives. They'll grow with you.
• Check in with contacts when you don't need anything, and keep doing it when they change companies.
• Leave the word "sponsorship" out of first meetings, and introduce other people whenever you can.