NASCAR Team Races into School Advertising

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By: Dwayne W. Waite Jr.

School budgets are not getting any bigger, which means the creative ways for schools to raise funds are still receiving attention. And with more schools looking at advertising, businesses and industries are starting to pay more attention to schools. We covered the rise of advertising in schools a while ago, and since then it has been becoming increasingly popular.

In Georgia, an entire school district is looking to sign an advertising deal that would infuse some cash into its budget. The article, which is featured in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, also notes that school districts in Colorado, Florida, and Arizona are doing the same. It's tough out there, and the schools have a market that has only recently been accessible.

Now we are beginning to see the players in the school advertising business promote themselves. In a PR Web press release, School Media, an organization specializing in the school advertising business, has signed a partnership with TRG Motorsports, a NASCAR team that races car No. 71. School Media has made a name for itself by advocating positive messages about health, nutrition, safety, and overall lifestyle to kids. School Media believes that the partnership will "help spread [its] message to millions of teachers, administrators and students around the country." Other than the No. 71 car placing the School Media logo on the car, the press release did not disclose any other activities that the two organizations will engage in to increase awareness of School Media and TRG Motorsports.

How far will TRG Motorsports go to help School Media and the school it represents? This isn't the first time a NASCAR-associated team has gotten involved with a school program, especially in North Carolina (TRG Motorsports is based in Mooresville). Hendricks Automotive Group, based about 20 miles south of TRG in Charlotte, will be sponsoring all the middle school sports programs for Charlotte's school district. If it weren't for that $250,000 deal, the school district was slated to cut the programs for the 2011–2012 school year. Will TRG follow in line with their colleagues? Time will tell.

Where will this advertising in schools go? What will the end of this look like?

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About the Author

Dwayne W. Waite Jr. is partner and principal at JDW: The Charlotte Agency, a marketing and advertising shop in Charlotte, NC. He enjoys consumer behavior, economics, and football.

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