You may not realize it but the 2000 Cup Series Champion Bobby Labonte is one of the most technology friendly drivers in the garage area. You might even go as far as saying he’s a gadget geek. More than that, he was one of the first in the sport to leverage the power of Twitter (@bobby_labonte) Facebook and his website to interact with his fans.
To answer your next question, yes it’s actually him on the other end and not a PR representative or sponsor, so go ahead and Tweet him directly! Besides using the social media to promote and interact with fans, he’s also got a list of gear and gadgets a mile long. I asked him straight up, what gadgets he’s currently using, and it’s quite extensive.
-Blackberry
-Apple iPhone
-6 iPods
-Apple Macbook (his third)
-Apple Macbooks for everyone in his family
-Navigation systems
-Remotes for his hot tub (very important)
-On board computer for his bicycle that he offloads the data for his trainer
-Apple TV
Listen to Bobby on his Gadgets
MORE Q & A WITH BOBBY LABONTE
*What technology are you currently using to promote yourself as a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver?
BOBBY LABONTE: Website, Fan Club, Mass e-mail, mass texting, twitter, facebook.
*As CEO of Breaking Limits Marketing, are you using technology to enhance your communication with clients?
BOBBY LABONTE: We are using technology in most of our interactions with the press, clients and fans. We use a program to help them manage their relationships with the press. The program allows them to see who opens the press release e-mails they send and who deletes them without reading them. They use RSS feeds to help disseminate information about the teams we do PR for as well as follow industry news. We are managing and using the Racing Gal blog. The Racing Gal also uses Twitter to communicate with fans about Chex Most Popular Driver voting and other information. We have used a video technology to e-mail video messages from me to potential clients and we have video conferencing capabilities. We also manage my Facebook page. Of course mobile communication at the track like phones, e-mail, text and IM are extremely important for everyone to communicate with clients while on the road. We have also used YouTube to help potential clients learn about 24 Hours of Booty. 24HofB posted some great videos of the event this past weekend. They had a camera guy and an interviewer capturing peoples thoughts about the event and they posted them as the event was taking place. Very powerful. We referenced the videos in e-mails to potential sponsors for next years event so they could see for themselves what it’s like. But the most important factor that I have and the best secret weapon is…the right people to make it all work.
*In terms of technology, what things seem to be working for you, and is there anything that you’ve stopped using after trying?
BOBBY LABONTE: I feel like I have tried them all. From speech typing, Instant messaging, etc. I love my Apple products, I phone and a notebook. Pretty much can’t survive without. Haven’t absolutely stopped anything, just might not use it as much.
Q&A from finallapradio.com’s participation in the Citizen Journalists Media Corps Town Hall Meeting
Check out Bobby at the following links.
–Twitter
–Facebook
–Website
–Foundation
–Breaking Limits (Bobby is the CEO)
The Final Lap Weekly 