[K1NGofTH3farW3ST]

How does sponsorship go down? we play local d3 and are pretty good for being 16/20/22. I know empire and ansgear has a big precent of money set aside for sponsorship, but how about local shops, fields, but what can we expect to get out of it?

[CPS]

discounts

[pb=life]

If you're lucky a small discount may be given. From what I've heard not even D1 teams get free gear. I could and probably am mistaken though. Just talk to your local shops and such, it differs from buisness to buisness.

[REDCOBRA]

you will probably only get ~10% discount from most sponsors

[TheGuy]

From what I hear field sponsorships are the best. You usually get free entry and air, and paint for what the field gets it at. But you are also expected to ref occasionally.

[NJC]

start with a field sponsorship, which normally get's you free entry, air and discounts. company sponsorships normally get you 20% discount and maybe a free T shirt or hat

[DivineRampage]

Sponsorship works like this, at first they give you a lil discount, 10 on large ticket items, 20 percent on smaller items. But you are expected to represent their company well, and get them known, and help get sales. once you start making improvments, winning, and helping them out, proving yourself too them they will gradually increase your incentive.

[MrBk]

Pretty much what everyone else said we have a couple of sponsors (1 store 1 online store 1 field), and the field is proving to be the best so far. The field usually charges ridiculous prices but now we get cases for less then half price. The store sponsors aren't bad if your looking to save a few bucks we've gotten some gats with $50 discount. Don't expect to much just be happy you got it and that you can save a few buck here and there

[crich775]

Your a local D3 team, a small discount may happen, back in the day we refereed and did field work in exchange for free field fee's and paint at cost.

[BRUTE]

It all depends on the shop/company. D1 teams do get free gear but that depends on their sponsor. and its never anything too big. maybe they get a free loader or something. but not like a new marker. I'm pritty sure only pro teams get free markers.

[BRUTE]

And my teams sponsorship is by a shop that is no were near our local field. so before events he calls and pays half of our paint cost per case. so if we need lets say 10 cases at $45 a case thats $450 for an event well he will pay half that. so we only pay $225 of it. i have only gotten one free item from him and it was a detent. lol

[TechPB-Mike]

sponsorship is alot easier to understand, if you just use the words "group discount"

[Orange Chicken]

First after mike! This account is now legit. No but our team is sponsored by our local pro shop, and we just get bulk paint discounts and whenever we buy their jerseys and pants in a team set, they give us like a small discount. That is all. No free stuff here.
EDIT:
And the sponsors do expect us to represent them well. I have yet to be in a *legitimate* tourny as we're practicing for the 2013 season, but they shipped me a small box full of their stickers and such to put on it.

This post has been edited by MangoPhett: 05 December 2012 - 08:01 PM

[Pump Player]

Alien Paintball has an amazing sponsorship, local teams can get 20 percent discounts

[tallsmallboy44]

Pump Player, on 08 December 2012 - 11:03 PM, said:

Alien Paintball has an amazing sponsorship, local teams can get 20 percent discounts

That is pretty much what you will get from most companies. Not really "amazing".

[Darthdoug]

As people have said, as a starting team you will get discounts. Something that still lets them make money but helps you out. 10-20% discounts are normal. FIELD sponsorships are key here because a field can give you some very nice discounts and still make a profit. If they allow you to play, get air, and practice for free and give you a small discount on paint that's a huge savings to you and they can still make money. Everyone wins. If you as a team promise (and carry through) to help around the field, ref, clean, whatever they might need, then you'll likely get an even better deal.

The only way sponsorships get better than that is if you offer your sponsor something. Do you get written up in national magazines and do you mention your sponsors? Do you show up at national events, hang your sponsors banners, and talk them up? If you do these kinds of things and do well... both winning AND getting a good reputation... then you may get more. This is normally for D1 teams (great deals) and pro teams (now you can think about free stuff).

There are exceptions to this, where a certain sponsor may give you a really great deal on a product they are really trying to push or introduce, but don't expect to find that often.

Until you are WINNING at the D1 level... as Mike said... think of sponsorship as group discounts for your advertisement of your sponsor. Fields are the best sponsors out there for divisional teams. Talk to field owners, work with them, see what can be done. Support your local fields.

[Jack Rice]

Pump Player, on 08 December 2012 - 11:03 PM, said:

Alien Paintball has an amazing sponsorship, local teams can get 20 percent discounts

Thanks and all... but... none of the "teams" that have gotten gun for the last 6 months have received less than a 30% discount. Considering the already low, low price, and the SMC valve, and the Virtue board, and the efficiency, and the low LPR pressure, and the low maintenance and the.....
I think amazing is an understatement
But then I may not be the most objective one on that

[Kirko017]

Jack Rice, on 13 December 2012 - 10:16 AM, said:

Pump Player, on 08 December 2012 - 11:03 PM, said:

Alien Paintball has an amazing sponsorship, local teams can get 20 percent discounts

Thanks and all... but... none of the "teams" that have gotten gun for the last 6 months have received less than a 30% discount. Considering the already low, low price, and the SMC valve, and the Virtue board, and the efficiency, and the low LPR pressure, and the low maintenance and the.....
I think amazing is an understatement
But then I may not be the most objective one on that

Hm, what. That's it? I was expecting more...

I like team discounts, it does help teams out to save a buck, plus you look more legit and like a team using the same gear, plus other benefits like everyone knowing the equipment so you can use a teammates setup and be more comfortable with it while playing etc etc.. But it does hurt stores/fields when your team is able to go directly to the manufacture and get it at a prices the dealers get the gear for and even sometimes a better deal.. That's why some stores/fields don't care much for some local teams/manufactures who don't go through them. Just something to think about. You might save a few extra bucks on that one order of equipment because you are not going through a dealer, but you're also not supporting your local paintball dealers, not helping them stay in business nor creating a good relationship with them, which is typically where you play and shop buy from... Nothing worse than showing up to a field and not feeling as welcomed as you would like

This post has been edited by Kirko017: 13 December 2012 - 11:01 AM

[Jack Rice]

Kirko017, on 13 December 2012 - 10:55 AM, said:

Nothing worse than showing up to a field and not feeling as welcomed as you would like

Old School was that car dealers made a big deal about those that bought cars from them, special lines for service and extra benefits. Then they figured out that many more in the service department didn't buy from them than had bought from them AND they made more $ from the service than they did the sales - so they stopped insulting the bigger income source.If a store or field is giving a team an unwelcome feeling because they didn't buy from them - they don't understand where their income comes from. No one is everything to all. The big guys have decided they want the multi-player packages and will give deals (sponsorships discounts) to get them. That has nothing to do with me.

That doesn't mean that a store can't let players know that they get bigger discounts or whatever for those that buy, but at some point it's trading dollars, and stores/fields have to accept that "sponsorship" means that in order to get teams to buy from them, it has been decided to give teams the biggest discounts possible. That means the profit margin for dealers has been included in the discount. Again, has nothing to do with me. This has been happening more, and more, and I too am hard pressed to keep up with the discounts because my guns are already priced with less markup than others. While it would seem that stores get less profit - that is because teams pay less profit overall, paying less profit to buy guns - or whatever - that should leave more money available for paint, accessories and individual items with their associated profits.

This post has been edited by Jack Rice: 13 December 2012 - 11:56 AM

[cybermaniac15]

Jack Rice, on 13 December 2012 - 11:55 AM, said:

Kirko017, on 13 December 2012 - 10:55 AM, said:

Nothing worse than showing up to a field and not feeling as welcomed as you would like

Old School was that car dealers made a big deal about those that bought cars from them, special lines for service and extra benefits. Then they figured out that many more in the service department didn't buy from them than had bought from them AND they made more $ from the service than they did the sales - so they stopped insulting the bigger income source.If a store or field is giving a team an unwelcome feeling because they didn't buy from them - they don't understand where their income comes from. No one is everything to all. The big guys have decided they want the multi-player packages and will give deals (sponsorships discounts) to get them. That has nothing to do with me.

That doesn't mean that a store can't let players know that they get bigger discounts or whatever for those that buy, but at some point it's trading dollars, and stores/fields have to accept that "sponsorship" means that in order to get teams to buy from them, it has been decided to give teams the biggest discounts possible. That means the profit margin for dealers has been included in the discount. Again, has nothing to do with me. This has been happening more, and more, and I too am hard pressed to keep up with the discounts because my guns are already priced with less markup than others. While it would seem that stores get less profit - that is because teams pay less profit overall, paying less profit to buy guns - or whatever - that should leave more money available for paint, accessories and individual items with their associated profits.