Pleased with the results of its initial foray into NASCAR this year, Aflac Inc. plans to beef up its presence with the stock car circuit in 2008.

The Columbus-based insurer is nearing an agreement that would double the number of times that it acts as the primary sponsor on one of the Roush Fenway Racing team’s cars. One expert estimates that the sponsorship, the cost of which Aflac would not reveal, could be between $4 million and $5 million.

Aflac President Paul Amos, a huge NASCAR fan, said he has seen the dividends of being a NASCAR sponsor. It didn’t hurt that Greg Biffle won the Kansas 400 on Sept. 30, one of the days when Aflac was the primary sponsor — with Amos calling it “a culminating experience.”

“We’ve absolutely created more business as a result of NASCAR on multiple levels,” said Amos, a Columbus native who visited North Carolina’s many tracks during his college days at Duke University. “At the track there are business owners and decision-makers. We entertain. We’ve already been able to procure a good return for business, locally and nationally. We are working with NASCAR, Roush Fenway and other sponsors of NASCAR and are attempting to enroll as many clients as possible within the NASCAR venue.”

Bizjournals.com