Nirupam Singh's Linkedin Analytics

One thing has stayed true through my 10+ years in marketing. I’ve always gravitated toward motorsport and automotive. Last week, I joined the Driven Project as Head of Comms. The first plan of action is to help with acquiring more partners and work on the founder-led approach and email marketing. Watch more updates from our Vancouver event coming up very soon in the next few weeks. Saying goodbye to the agency, as I felt it was always something short-term. I’m not shelving the newsletter though. I’m building it even more aggressively alongside the Driven Project. Expect a lot more behind-the-scenes content, too. Go follow their page as well Driven Project

Stop obsessing over partnership deals. Start focusing on what problem you're solving. Partnership deals are easy to find nowadays. The ones that solve actual business problems are much harder. Here's what partnerships actually solve: For Brands: → Brand awareness at scale (when paid media CPMs are too expensive) → Credibility transfer (when you need borrowed authority/trust) → Access to engaged communities (when your owned media isn't working) → Cultural relevance (when you're losing relevance with key demographics) → Content creation at scale (when your creative is getting stale) For Properties: → Revenue diversification (when ticket/media revenue has plateaued) → Audience growth (when you need cross-pollination with new demographics) → Content amplification (when you need distribution beyond owned channels) → Premium positioning (when association elevates your brand equity) → Operational efficiency (when the partner provides resources you lack) Before your next partnership conversation, write down the specific business problem you're trying to solve. If you can't articulate it in one sentence, you're not ready. Could micro-influencers, community sponsorships, or direct fan monetisation solve the same problem for less money and better results?

I surveyed 50 commercial leaders in my newsletter about 2 partnership questions. 48 responded to: 1. What's your biggest partnership challenge right now? 2. What would partnership success look like for you? For the 1st question: → 19.6% said they had difficulty finding the right partnership opportunities. → 17.4% said they don’t have enough budget/resources for proper activations. → 26.1% said other: Going to interview people individually about their responses. For the 2nd question: → 30.4% said they want partnerships that consistently drive measurable results. → 15% said that they want activations that generate buzz and get noticed. → 19% said other: Going to interview people individually about their responses. → 13% said they it would be getting more budget for partnership programs. As I dig into more into these answers. Here are some questions that I will answer in the newsletter: 1. Why are activations so hard to execute 2. What type of activations are out there 3. Which ones drive the most revenue? 4. Which ones drive the most brand lift? 5. What channels should you use every time? 6. What are the best tools to use to activate a partnership? 7. Which is the easiest to the most complex activation Tier system? 8. What systems do you need to have in place to monetise? 9. Creators who know how to activate properly 10. How do partnerships turn to revenue? 11. Why should you activate? 12. What are some examples? 13. Tips to activate 14. Steps to activate These responses honestly don't surprise me - partnerships are messy when teams aren't aligned. But the fact that so many leaders are struggling with the same activation challenges tells me we're onto something important here. I'm going to dig into all of these questions over the next few weeks in The Commercial Table newsletter. Real talk about what actually works, what doesn't, and how to get your teams working together instead of against each other. If you're dealing with any of these partnership headaches, you may want to take a look. Link in comments ⬇️

Got this DM from a follower - perfect example of why people are confused about partnership pitches. "I hooked them with the narrative, but now I'm struggling to connect it to ROI and sales. 'Leveraging exposure for brand awareness' feels weak." Leading with a story but then connecting it to business value. What this person did right: - Identified a narrative tension (AI as villain vs. creative tool) - Positioned their event as the solution - Got the meeting What's missing: → Clear business problem the partnership solves → Specific value proposition for the potential sponsor → Measurable outcomes beyond "brand awareness" The fix: Instead of "brand awareness," focus on what the sponsor actually needs: → Talent acquisition (reaching creative professionals who use AI) → Thought leadership positioning (being seen as AI enablers) → Customer education (showing how their AI tools enhance creativity) → Market perception shift (from "AI kills creativity" to "AI amplifies creativity") Better pitch angle: "This event gives you (sponsor) a platform to demonstrate that AI enhances human creativity. Perfect for recruiting top creative talent and repositioning your brand in the creative community." Then you would show them how. Either through content, webinars, or live debates. Anything that has some form of natural conversation. The narrative hooked them, but the business value closes them.

Sponsorship deals of August 7, 2025: I know 6 brands from this list → Oreo is sponsoring Post Malone (I had to do a double-take) → Allianz is sponsoring the Women's Rugby World Cup → Chubb is sponsoring the Australian Open → KP Snacks (McCoy's) is sponsoring The Hundred → Bally's Corporation is sponsoring Nottingham Forest FC → Volkswagen is sponsoring La Liga → Monster Energy is sponsoring the Super Motocross World Championship → ABB Group is sponsoring Formula E → Stake.com is sponsoring Team Vitality → 84 Lumber is sponsoring U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree

This is how you do sponsor activations to perfection. Shoutout to Honda and their team, & if you're interested in sponsorship activations. Take notes. Here’s the 5 things they did well. 1. Follow the scroll. It’s so natural for you to follow a scroll on social media. They integrate the copy in the scroll to maintain your attention. 2. Words matter It looks simple, but simplicity is often the toughest. For this ad to work, the poem needed to flow from bottom to top and vice versa. Otherwise, it would have fallen flat. 3. Archival footage Not relying on your current or past athletes for footage does help Honda. Instead, you focus on being creative, not on managing a schedule. 4. John Cena Let actors act and narrate, and let athletes do what they are best at. John Cena is a huge Honda fan and has often spoken about his Honda Type R. Brand association plays a role here. 5. Timing The ad debuted on Oct. 6 during the Sunday Night Football broadcast. Honda also serves as the title sponsor in the U.S. for releasing “Senna” and will be part of an F1 Las Vegas takeover. Exceptional execution. Modern-day sponsor activations in motorsport feel stale, but an ad like this always comes along. Copywriting masterpiece: 10/10. There is more nuance in my newsletter about topics like this. Subscribe here: https://lnkd.in/gCqNhzqU

Brands like Oakbery that are in F1 or frankly any popular commercial property seem to understand one thing: "They see that and they understand" It's understanding that you need to close the education gap between you and the consumer. Which property you go to gives you a better chance at closing the gap, because they will hand hold their audience/customers into understanding who you're (hopefully). Some brands and properties do it better than others. A tech company for example will have a higher education gap A finance company will also have a higher education gap With Oakberry, the education gap still exists but it's much easier to explain. This IG video from gstaadguypodcast will play a part in closing that gap. You can have the shelf space at the grocery store, but what you do with it in terms of touchpoints with your audience/customer is just as important.

Santander vs. Crypto.com in F1... Everyone thinks it's about who spends more. I analysed both strategies and found the real winner isn't who you think. Tomorrow, I'm sharing: - How a 167-year-old bank is outplaying a crypto giant - The activation strategy that's actually working - Why the "calculated retreat" might be genius Join others getting the full case study in the comments below.

Turned 30, no injuries or back pain to report! I've been asking my friends, "What do you wish you'd known when you turned 30?" Curious to hear what advice y'all have to give. Photo by Roberto Baldea

I will be at the Honda Indy Toronto race this weekend. Doing driver interviews with Track Limits today. And of course...always good to see Mac Clark race. If you'll be around, please feel free to message me. I would love to meet you in person.

During the weekend at the Toronto Honda Indy, I spoke with the FanAmp team about how IndyCar goes international. There is clearly a desire for it among fans and demand, but expanding it and how is a different story. FanAmp wrote about the IndyCar Toronto race and what it represents to fans outside the US. Today's newsletter is in 2 hours. I will discuss how IndyCar goes international, based on the NBA model. Subscribe here: https://lnkd.in/gCqNhzqU

In 2013, Santander flew the Ferrari F1 car into Barcelona. In 2025, however, partnership activations are more sophisticated. These marketing stunts had their place then, and they still work sometimes (hi, Lego and WhatsApp). But to win the activation game nowadays, it requires a level of nuance by going deeper in understanding your core and casual audience behaviours. Even Santander has changed their approach in 2025 with Williams and F1. Compare their partnership activation strategy to Crypto, and they are very different. Crypto.com is getting absolutely schooled by a 167-year-old Spanish bank. Crypto.com invested over $100M in F1 naming rights and maximum visibility; their market share has dropped to 6.2% (9th place among exchanges). Meanwhile, Santander ditched their $60M Ferrari deal, partnered with Williams instead, and quietly built 100,000 US customers through some smart integrations with creators and their social accounts. Crypto.com bought attention. Santander earned it. One brand treats F1 fans like ATMs to extract from. The other treats them like a community to join. The painful reality for 90% of partnership deals: - You're paying premium prices for commodity exposure. - Your "activation" is just expensive wallpaper. - You're measuring vanity metrics while competitors steal your customers. - Stop trying to impress everyone and start serving someone. Their @formulasantander account doesn't scream "BANK WITH US!" it creates genuine F1 content that fans actually want. In a $2.9 billion sponsorship market, the brands that win are the ones that understand the most (Like the one friend you have who just listens to you). Flying cars into cities hoping someone notices won't cut it anymore (unless it really makes sense). The smart money is having conversations, not shouting matches. Full deep-dive analysis in my latest newsletter issue in the comments below.

I was watching the Monaco Grand Prix highlights for research, and something struck me about the sheer density of financial services logos flashing past at 200mph. American Express. Crypto.com. Santander. Each writing checks north of $40 million annually. Walk through the Monaco paddock during race weekend, and you'll witness the real transactions happening. American Express cardholders sipping champagne while mechanics change tires in the background. Santander executives shake hands with potential clients as engineers adjust aerodynamics. These moments cannot be manufactured in a boardroom. They can only be accessed through your platform. Most people see expensive advertising. I see something much more layered. Your premium partners are buying platform infrastructure, association architecture, and content creation rights that function like having a Hollywood production team on retainer. Much of partnership evaluation misses this. We obsess over reach metrics, trying to distil every partnership down to a single ROI calculation. Partnership value is rarely so reductive. Wrote about it in this week's Commercial Table newsletter. Link in comments, coming out in 2 hours.

Toronto Honda Indy complete. Fun to be in front of the camera again, interviewing the drivers. Track Limits Claudia O. Henok (Henny) Yeshanew Photos by Roberto Baldea