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It is very important
to spend some time on your portfolio, resume and letter. Make
sure you use proper grammar and don’t have any misspellings,
they don’t want to sponsor an idiot.
Send out a package that
includes your resume, portfolio and letter to everyone on
your list. Give it a week or two then start making some calls.
Don’t pester or annoy them and be considerate for their
time, reps are notoriously busy people. Make sure you do follow
up.
When you do get a hold
of the rep then ask them if they received your package (portfolio,
resume and letter) and what they thought. They may have liked
it or maybe not. If not then ask them what they didn’t
like or what they think you should do better with. Don’t
take a NO and run away to cry. Get as much feedback as possible
because this will only help you later on.
If they like what they
see then ask when the next time they will be in town is or
when you could meet them again or go riding with them. Don’t
get greedy but ask them if they have some gear that you could
use or even have for the coming season. Work with them to
make sure that the gear they have is something that will work
for you. Make sure to thank them for their time and working
with you.
Typically at this level
you will get some of the companies gear for free and possibly
some incentive for winning contests or getting into a magazine
or video. You also sometimes get some sort of small travel
reimbursement.
Once you get one or
maybe two gear sponsors you are going to be feeling like a
million bucks. It is great if you can get different sponsors
for different equipment. It is usually a bad spot if you are
supporting two companies that directly compete against each
other. If this is the case you may have to call one back and
explain the situation and politely decline their sponsorship
offer. They will respect you for this and you don’t
end up burning a bridge and pissing someone off. The best
you can do here is maintaining a relationship with the other
rep. Who you choose is your choice.
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