Entry 124-2

Mike Wurm - How to be a Pro Fisherman

How to Keep Your Sponsors

Editor's Note: Do you know who has struck out more times than any other baseball player in history—Babe Ruth. Did you know that Gone With The Wind was turned down by 32 publishers? Did you know that most great athletes, at some time during their career, usually have a streak of bad luck that either puts them out of the game or that they come back from it with a vengeance and reach even greater heights than they’ve achieved before the disaster? We all like the story of the “come-back kid” who overcomes adversity, picks himself up, and dusts himself off not only go back into battle but to charge. But how does the tournament fisherman who has done so well for many years recharge his batteries and come back from a devastating season to compete again against the best of the best? This is what Mike Wurm will teach us this week.

Question: Mike, every tournament fishermen, has good years and bad years. During the good years you feel really comfortable with your sponsors. During the bad years, you have to wonder, “Are my sponsors going to keep supporting me even though I’ve had a down year?” How do you live with that insecurity?

Wurm: The real secret is having great sponsors who have been a part of the fishing industry for many years, and understand that during any year, a fisherman can have a real bummer of a year, but the next year, that same fisherman may come back to win the Angler-of-the-Year title, Bassmasters Classic or the FLW Championship. So, you have to have sponsors that believe in you and your ability and that see you working for them, no matter how you do in tournaments.

I have been extremely fortunate to have some of these great sponsors like Strike King, Evinrude Motors, Ranger Boats and many others. What I appreciate about these sponsors is they grieve with you when you’re having a bad year, and they celebrate with you when you have a good year. They are as much a part of your support team as you are a part of their support team. Good sponsors are going to stay with you during the tough times and celebrate with you the long haul, not just when you are winning and doing well.

As much as winning tournaments is important to sponsors, being a salesman and a promoter for their products is as important or more important. If you win a tournament, and don’t help your sponsors sell their products, then you have very little value to that sponsor. Sponsors want pros that the public is not afraid to approach, talk to, ask questions and learn from. They don’t want pros that just catch fish, so I work hard for my sponsors not only by trying to catch bass, but trying to help promote their products and their company to the public.




 

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