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Kelley Earnhardt
Vice President and General Manager of JR Motorsports
Considered one of the most prominent businesswomen in NASCAR today, Kelley Earnhardt is the backbone to the business interests of her brother, six-time NASCAR Most Popular driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Topic: Will discuss how JR Motorsports selected some of the young drivers such as Brad Keselowski who have competed for their organization, and how even she has had to become more creative in this difficult economic time to secure sponsorship for the most popular driver’s race team. Having started out as a late model stock car driver herself and now considered one of the most powerful people in motorsports, Earnhardt’s experience in nearly every aspect of the sport will provide valuable information to drivers at any level of competition.
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John Bickford
Stepfather of 4-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon, and General Manager of Jeff Gordon Inc. Made the many strategic decisions and coached a young Jeff Gordon on and off the track from the age of four.
Topic: Will share his vast knowledge and experience as it relates to what drivers need to think about now, some of the pitfalls and roadblocks that may exist, and how to be strategic about career choices. As the cliché goes, every driver aspiring to compete at the highest levels of motorsports wants to be “the next Jeff Gordon” and Bickford is responsible in many ways for developing Gordon into the four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion that he is today.
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Boston Reid
Former Hendrick Motorsports development driver in the NASCAR Nationwide Series under Ricky Hendrick. Personally mentored by Jeff Gordon's stepfather John Bickford.
Topic: Will talk specifically about making those strategic decisions that John Bickford will point out, and how his immense commitment and off-track efforts landed him at Hendrick Motorsports. He will talk about where he is now and provide insight about how development programs at the highest levels work and advice on how to get there.
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Michael Burch
Vice President of Business Development, Speedway Motorsports, Inc.
Since joining SMI in 2003, Michael has been responsible for developing and coordinating national sponsorship efforts as well as new business opportunities for Speedway Motorsports.
Topic: Best practices for approaching sponsors, how to qualify companies as potential sponsors and how to make sponsorship proposals all about providing a return on investment for prospective companies. Burch will talk about what to include and -- as importantly -- what not to include in sponsorship proposals.
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Chris McKee
Motorsports Business Manager for Aflac Racing.
Is responsible for all the B2B opportunities for one of the nation’s most recognizable brands as well as its Official Partner status with NASCAR.
Topic: What corporate sponsors look for and expect in a driver. Tips on how to attract and maintain relationships with sponsors. How sponsors choose a driver; and how you can make yourself a good sponsorship candidate.
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Rick Benjamin
20-plus year veteran of major-market and national television and radio, and has served as a local news anchor, producer, owner, consultant, and college instructor in addition to his extensive work hosting major motorsports events on networks including CBS, NBC, and SPEED.
Topic: How to interact with the media, good Interviewing techniques; will share his experience as All American Driver challenge judge and advice on other areas of driver development.
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Larry Camp
President of Camp & Associates, Inc., a Concord-NC based sports marketing firm in business primarily in the NASCAR arena since 1991. He also serves as Managing Partner of the USAR Pro Cup Series (formerly Hooters Pro Cup) which will sanction 16 nationally televised races during the 2010 season. Larry has more than 30 years involvement in NASCAR related and motorsports endeavors.
Topic: Racing at all levels, advice and information about what it takes to move to a regional touring series; and how to advance into a national touring series and get the best out of the exposure and experience.
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Megan Reitenour
Earned a position as one of only 12 in the 2009 NASCAR Drive for Diversity program competing in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series at Tri-County Speedway and winning Rookie-of-the-Year honors.
Topic: As a Driver Advancement Marketing Summit alumnus, Reitenour and her father Bill will talk about how they are applying information they learned from last year's Summit that has put her on the doorstep of top team owners and potential major sponsors.
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Annamarie Malfitana-Strawhand
Owner/President; Drive-In Webdesign and Marketing, LLC. and Motorsports Consultant Services. 25 years experience in motorsports marketing, sponsorship, PR, driver and team management on all levels of racing.
Topic: Summit co-host. Building effective websites, driver resumes and sponsorship packages. In depth examples of these tools and how to properly utillize them to advance your career. How to properly market yourself on the web. Will give tips and advice on how to use social media and networking websites to your promotional and marketing advantage
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Kymberly Brantigan
President of Performance PR Plus, the agency most widely known for handling DuPont Motorsports marketing activation program and Jeff Gordon's public relations for the last 17 years.
Topic: Summit host; will touch upon a variety of topics throughout the Summit including the challenges of gaining sponsorship, public relations, sponsorship marketing, utilizing business to business relationships, sponsorship activation and the importance of networking. Will also share her personal experiences as a professional in NASCAR racing, and what is expected of drivers in the sport today.
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