How in the world?

[zellamander]

So i don't get how in the world somebody can get sponsored these days. Everyone and there brother that can catch a fish wants to be sponsored and companies get hit up all the dang time. I love to bass fish, and I'm just really getting started with the bigger competitive fishing, I fished as a co-angler in an OKIE BFL last year and loved it, so I am going to try to continue to do that. But how can a person get a sponsor to maybe help with entry fee's or travel expenses? Heck, even product or discounted product would help a ton... How does it happen in this new world that we are in? Any suggestions would be appriciated! Thanks!

[roadwarrior]

Spend some time reviewing the threads in this section.

We have some guys that have offered some very

specific advice. JT and earthworm77 are a couple of

names that deserve special attention.

This will get you started:

https://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1170689666

8-)

[zellamander]

Ok, thanks!

[earthworm77]

The thing is that you should actually have some desirable traits or skills that your sponsor can take advantage of in its marketing/sales. A lot of people try to get sponsored but fail. Too many people assume that because they like fishing, they are entitled to be sponsored. It is a job, it is work and nothing comes out of it for free.

Here is my question, I don't mean any disrespect to you or anyone else considering this but why do you assume that you should be entitled to any "Help" with entry fees at all? Why you over the next guy? I read this in resumes all the time and I cringe. SO WHAT!! You have a hobby like the rest of us. In order to continue with that hobby, you need to make sure you have enough coin in your pocket. Don't have the cash, can't go to the big dance and you need a less expensive hobby.

Like clam shucking for instance, all you need is a knife and maybe a glove. You can dig your clams yourself and maybe you could turn it into a lucrative business. Ever see the clam shucking championships? don't laugh, it is true. Anyway, I digress.....

Unless you have it already figured out or are a big name Pro, chances are, in this day and age, nobody is giving you a cent. That is just the harsh reality.

Why do you suppose anyone would foot your bill? I ask this question because if you think about the sheer number of people participating in tournaments, and if you imagine each of them in this situation, it is a wonder how anybody actually fish' competitively at all.

I don't mean to be hard on you but this isn't simply you making up your mind and pursuing a sponsor, it is about you actually having something worthwhile for a sponsor to need and then having the bulletproof plan to actually do it. This isn't easy, yet many assume it is. The guys who try to get a free ride out of it and don't intend to put in the work necessary make it that much harder for the next guy who is 100% serious about it. My advice is, do the research, form a plan, read, read, read and then read some more about it.

[zellamander]

To be honest with you, as of right now, i don't have the package that companies are looking for. I do however think that I am on my way to becoming very close to what they are looking for. I am currently in school seeking a business major, and a minor in marketing. I think that is a desirable trait to have in this business sport.

I am an extremely confident person, and I am a very well spirited person. I help people whenever I can, and i'm very involved with youth outdoors. I actually do a thing that started with my little brothers, but became something actually more fun for me than them; I took my little brothers out and would teach them some basics and just let them have fun and get the feel of it, well that turned into there friends wanted to come, and then it just kept going year after year. So now my wife and I have a week long "day camp" that gets kids in the outdoors. It is still just a bunch of friends of the family and their kids, or kids from town, but one day we would like to go a little bigger, and actually have a camp where the kids can stay for a week, or a month, and enjoy the outdoors instead of feeling they have nothing to do but eat chips ahoy cookies and play video games or party at 13.

I still need to mold and improve my fishing skills. I only know my local water and I don't have a very strong backgroud with finese fishing, (being in kansas we don't use finese much) and that is something I will need in this sport if I get the oppertunity to persue it.

I'm not sure if that answered your question about the "what do I have that the next guy doesn't?"

[earthworm77]

That is a good start. Remember though, there is always someone out there who has tremendous qualifications for a position that you seek. Dare I say more qualified. That person is your competition. You must have intangibles that you can recognize and key in on as strong points.

[Ellesar]

First off, let me state I am just a weekend fisherman so I don't have any experience in the world of sponsorship and so forth. But it seems to me, on just a common sense basis, that the best approach is to focus on your fishing and the rest will take care of itself. When/if you become proficient enough as a fisherman, I would think the sponsors will find you, or atleast the opportunities to interact with them and talk to them about sponsorship will come along. But until you reach that point, focusing on sponsorship seems to be a waste of time. I would think you would be better off focusing on improving your fishing skills.

Just my $.02.

[zellamander]

I do improve my fishing skills as often as possible. When I get off work i'm on the water, weekends i'm on the water. As I said, I need to improve on finese fishing, but that really isn't possible on 1 of the lakes near me that our tournaments are on, you have to powerfish that lake, really no other option. As far as the other lake, that is where i'm trying to improve my finese, but they got that fat head minnow or whatever it is called that killed out a huge population of all game fish in the lake.

The town I'm from has about 3000 people in it, and only has 2 fishing stores/boat stores. There is Albers Marine, and Johns Sport Center. Johns sponsors fishing events, not fisherman, and they focus on the youth of the local cities holding fishing derby's and casting competitions and stuff, which is great.

Albers has a pro team, and quite a few people on that pro-team so they would be a hard catch.

So for me to get attention it seems like i'm going to have to hit the BFL's and make a name for myself right? Then from that attention hopefully comes action.