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From: TSN.ca Danica Patrick is now the second-most famous person tied to the Indy Racing League. In a bold move meant to increase the humdrum circuit's pull beyond its prettiest face, the IRL handed its marketing duties Tuesday to a company run by longtime KISS frontman GENE SIMMONS and partner Richard Abramson. "It's certainly unique, no doubt about that," Brian Barnhart, the IRL's president and chief operating officer, said during a conference call. "It is aggressive and that's a stance I think we have to take. ... "I think it's exactly what the Indy-Car racing series needs." The move will at least in the short-term bring more attention to open-wheel racing, which has steadily lost ground among fans, sponsors and TV networks to NASCAR in the decade since Tony George's split from now defunct CART Series. The long-tongued, blood-spitting Simmons and Abramson, whose varied career on the business-side of Hollywood includes managing Pee-wee Herman, want to rebrand the IRL, positioning races as ideal family outings. Their new campaign is dubbed I am INDY, complete with a rock-anthem type theme song penned by Simmons, and they want to portray a day at the track as an apple-pie, all-American event with a dose of glitz and glamour. "We want to involve Hollywood in it more, we want to involve music in it more," said Abramson. Added Simmons: "We intend to take Indy in areas perhaps that we haven't been before. There's going to be Indy-girl clothing lines, going to be Indy fashion shows. The idea is to virally spread this message because above and beyond the sport we plan to make this a family lifestyle." The IRL received more than its usual share of attention last year thanks to Patrick, the photogenic female driver who finished fourth at Indianapolis 500 last year and was repeatedly profiled in the media. But the spotlight on her irked some of her competitors, especially when it seemed that putting her before the cameras was the IRL's only marketing plan, and Simmons insisted she won't be the selling point this time around. "What a glorious story," said Simmons. "It appeals to women, you're on the cover of Sports Illustrated, that's cool. That's a good beginning. "Danica I'm sure will be the first one to say, 'Look, this is a great story but it's only one of a lot great stories.' And we intend to make sure that all these stories get out there. "The stories, by the way, are the people who actually go around the track at 220 miles per hour. That's what I am INDY is all about." Of course getting the message to resonate among North Americans - Patrick Carpentier of Joliette, Que., is the only Canadian driver on the circuit - is another challenge. NASCAR is where it's at in racing right now, with all the other loops miles behind. "Our job is to make sure the message is clear and has a tug of the heart," said Simmons. "Less technical and more emotional, less sport, more icon, less about the idea of people go around the track and more about this is a part of America." Abramson chose his words carefully when asked which areas of marketing the IRL needed to improve on, saying only: "Just to get the word out better and bigger. We're going to have some big announcements in the coming months. I'll leave it at that." The rebranding is a risk, one the IRL feels it had to take. "I think we're at a point and time where we need to be thinking outside the box," said Barnhart. "And with what they bring in terms of connections and opportunities ... it's amazing the doors that can get opened." |
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