So I question, is their enough of a demand to offset the loss of beer ads? If so, I certainly would be surprised if that demand will withstand the current economic pressure. But for sure, no one expected the self-interested actions of Teresa Earnhardt to have such a negative impact and affect so many other parts of the NASCAR food chain. It seems apparent that you can add the broadcasters to the list of people and companies that are keeping their distance from Teresa Earnhardt.

Every year, there is always one driver who defines all of Silly Season and in 2008 – that man is Tony Stewart. But to be realistic – you must believe that most, if not all sponsors considering a change (or any potential new sponsors – are there any?) will wait until Stewart makes up his mind before finalizing their 2009 plans.

It is well known that Stewart wants back into the Chevy camp where he has won two NASCAR Sprint Cup Championships and over 30 races. So that leaves Stewart with only two legitimate options – Hendrick Motorsports or Richard Childress Racing (RCR). Yes, RCR has won more races than Hendrick in 2008 but I would be shocked to see Stewart join RCR and race the Cheerios car. But on the other hand, Hendrick already has four drivers – didn’t they say they had “no room at the inn” last year before signing Dale Jr.? Could Casey Mears be moved to a satellite team like Hass CNC? Let’s just imagine – Dale Jr., Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart all as teammates?

Only time will tell where Tony Stewart lands in 2009 – but the drivers better be ready to grab a seat because once Stewart decides on his plans – it will be pretty easy to be left without a seat once the music stops in the high stakes game of NASCAR Silly Season 2008.

But fast forward to 2008 and so called “super teams” – Yates Racing, Chip Ganassi Racing, Bill Davis Racing and Dale Earnhardt Inc. all have primary sponsor vacancies and may shutter one or more of their teams. Some may ask “How did this happen?” You will hear many say the principle cause is the rising costs of drivers, personnel and other expenses. And YES, while these are all contributing factors; the fundamental flaw of a NASCAR sponsorship program is the inability to measure the performance and success of the program. While NASCAR has always positioned itself as a branding vehicle; in 2008 branding is only achieved through customer acquisition; and NASCAR sponsorship does not provide an effective means to measure its performance.

With the rapid growth of online advertising opportunities and pay-for-performance models, why would one invest a large portion of their marketing budget into a non-quantifiable advertising campaign? If motorsports’ agencies and teams cannot provide an answer to this daunting question – NASCAR fans will be more disappointed as more and more teams become sponsorless and face the inevitable loss of their favorite teams.

When a potential corporate sponsor investigates a NASCAR sponsorship opportunity, the chief value proposition that is touted – is the high brand loyalty that sponsors’ receive. This approach is not only out-dated but the  value proposition is severely overrated.  As many know, I grew up as a die-hard Dale Earnhardt Sr. fan and subsequently, in recent years have cheered for Dale Jr. But do I drink AMP, Mountain Dew or any other Pepsi product? Ah No. Do I drive a Chevrolet? No. Clearly, brand loyalty is not enough to justify $20 Million dollars to sponsor a Sprint Cup team.

NASCAR teams, unlike Formula 1, completely rely on advertising revenue to fund their operations – and the option of reducing operating expenses is just not realistic. Consequently, unless NASCAR decides to “share the wealth” and allocate a larger percentage of television revenue to their racing teams, those teams MUST reinvent their marketing approach to survive.  But it’s not doomsday for everyone in the sport – Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing and Roush Fenway Racing are on top of the racing world – with world-class drivers and premiere equipment – to drive their considerable sponsorship demand. But where does that leave, lesser know drivers and less significant teams, and perhaps even future teams?

As the youngest NASCAR team owner in history and with the best track record for any first year team, I scored Toyota’s first two NASCAR victories and know what it takes to perform on the race track and in the corporate board room. I personally pioneered the development of online loyalty and incentive programs in NASCAR and leveraged internet marketing strategies to secure companies such as, eBay to sponsor Bang! Racing. But without an integrated approach whereby teams can leverage the NASCAR brand, innovative business models will not prosper and teams will continue to fail at an alarming pace.

I implore NASCAR, its team owners and motorsports agencies to collaborate to develop and implement a better approach and solution before the majority of teams become bankrupt and are forced to be remembered as simply “defunct.”

By: Alex Meshkin, former owner of Bang Racing