Derrick Beach, a well-known PDRA and NHRA announcer, has assumed the position of Senior Vice President of Marketing with the Professional Drag Racers Association.

Beach joined the PDRA as a commentator for the 2015 season, having worked alongside veteran announcer Brian Olson. An Ohio native, Beach is working toward a degree in accounting and sports marketing from the Ohio State University and has cut his teeth at his own Beach Marketing Solutions company.


“The PDRA has a really good brand,” said Beach. “It’s the fastest eighth mile drag racing series in the world. So there’s nothing else like what we’re doing. We’re the only family-based organization in drag racing. We can relate to every single person that comes through the gate because they are families, and they bring their family to the race track. Our organization is run by families. So we have a pretty unique brand to market.”



At the top of his list of objectives is building brand awareness for the budding organization. 



"We also want to make it more of an interactive fan experience for the fans that come to our events," he added. "I want to do something during the downtime between third and fourth rounds…. Social media is big [too]. We’re going to work on that. We’re also going to take a look at ticket distribution in all the markets we go to. The overall goal is to get the PDRA to where it should be, and that is sold-out crowds at every race.



Beach has also mentioned block parties, featuring cars on display along with live music and activities.

"Not only does it bring business to the local town, but it draws attention to the PDRA and our event that weekend," he said. "We go to some of the same markets that NHRA goes to, and there’s no doubt in my mind we can’t get some of the same results that NHRA gets at their national events in the same markets. We want to improve our relationships with the chambers of commerce, cities, and towns in the markets we go to, as well.”


Beach further plans to build upon PDRA's online TV following to create a more substantial social media presence. “In today’s world, it doesn’t matter if you’re 10 years old or 50 something years old, everything is run by social media, by phones and tablets, the whole deal. So we have to really look at who we’re marketing to, the demographics and age groups we’re trying to appeal to. It goes back to ramping up our social media presence."

For more information, visit www.pdra660.com.