Driving Diversity
Car racing inherently has its risks. So it makes perfect sense for Allstate to be the official insurance company for NASCAR.
It also makes sense that Allstate recently advanced its deal by agreeing to sponsor a rising Hispanic NASCAR driver, Jesus Hernandez. The partnership underscores the racing series’ plan to broaden the sport’s reach with the Hispanic community, which makes up about 9% of its fan base.
As a result, Allstate’s brand is now painted on the car of rising Hispanic NASCAR star Jesus Hernandez, whose fire suit and helmet are also adorned with the company logo.
The latest push is part of an ongoing NASCAR Drive for Diversity program started in 2004 to develop minority drivers and crew members for the racing circuit.
“Diversity as a whole has always been important to Allstate,” says Pam Hollander, director of integrated marketing for Allstate, which has been aligned with NASCAR since 2005. “We know that this is an area for growth opportunities for NASCAR in developing a more diverse audience.”
Most new NASCAR fans get hooked by following individual drivers. But finding sponsors to give Hispanic drivers a higher profile in the sport is a “chicken-and-egg” problem, says Andrew Giangola, a NASCAR spokesperson.
Sponsors want to back established drivers, but few Hispanic racers have long track records.
Hernandez, 26, has been driving for NASCAR for three years.
Allstate’s sponsorship of the driver goes deeper than the glossy finish on Hernandez’s No. 4 Ginn Racing Chevrolet.
The company is also the official insurer for Evernham Motorsports in Evernham, N.C. As part of that deal, Allstate is sponsoring a tour on Aug. 7-8 of the professional race team’s facilities and garages for 20 to 25 promising minority students. They will visit the Urban Youth Racing School locations in Philadelphia, PA, and Washington, DC with a chance to meet team owners, crew chiefs and drivers.
“We look to give these kids an exposure to the sport,” Hollander says. “It’s a new piece that we’ve brought to the table.”
This is the second year that Allstate has supported the Youth Urban Racing School.
“We actively recruit minority interns and provide them with an opportunity to work at NASCAR and throughout the industry,” Giangola says.
Besides Allstate, the association has coordinated sponsorship of Drive for Diversity with other businesses such as Sears Craftsman, Octagon and Speed Channel. Participating racing teams include Hendrick Motor Sports, Roush Fenway Racing, and Richard Childress Racing.
In addition, Rockwell Automation, Conagra Brands, Slim Jim and Act II Popcorn have sponsored the diversity program adopted by Joe Gibbs’ racing team, whose drivers include a Cuban, Aric Armarola.
Since 2001 Coca Cola has co-sponsored NASCAR visits to black and Hispanic colleges to raise awareness about job opportunities within stock-car racing.
Another Hispanic NASCAR-Formula I driver, Juan Pablo Montoya, was featured last month in a 30-second, Spanish-language television commercial promoting Sprint Nextel.
In the spot, Montoya helps his wife negotiate with a plumber over a Nextel walkie-talkie phone during a pit stop. The ad plugs the Viva la Copa Nextel de NASCAR national sweepstakes, offering NASCAR fans a chance to win a trip to the upcoming race at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, including a face-to-face encounter with Montoya.
Montoya is host of a Sirius Radio program on NASCAR, the “Juan Pablo Report.” The driver will also have significant presence in a behind-the-scenes, five-episode NASCAR prime-time TV series debuting Aug. 15 on ABC.
Several NASCAR tracks are located in areas with heavily Hispanic populations, notably the California Speedway in Montana, CA; Texas Motor Speedway, in Dallas/Fort Worth, Phoenix International Raceway and Homestead Miami Speedway.
As for NASCAR’s efforts to deliver a more diverse fan base, Giangola says, “We absolutely believe that number can grow. Hispanic culture is such a strong car culture and Hispanics have an affinity for auto sports.”
