14 Oct
The WNBA’s Most Influential Players on Social Media
2020 has been a year focused on adaptability for sports leagues, teams, and athletes. During the midst of uncertainty, the WNBA has taken the 2020 season as an opportunity to explode in growth, seeing an 68% increase in viewership. In April, the WNBA was the first league to host a virtual draft, in July they
10 Sep
State of Sponsored Social Report
The athlete and influencer marketing industry is big business on social media. Nowhere has this become more clear than Instagram in the form of Branded Content. You’ve surely seen it across your feed: “Paid partnership with brand.” Brands of all sizes now look to accounts with influence to power their message and media on Instagram
09 Sep
Athletes vs. Influencers: Who Really Delivers for Sponsors on Social Media?
It’s an attention economy and we’re all livin’ in it. As social media marketers, we can no longer hope to engage an audience by rolling out cookie-cutter content backed with a modest ad-spend. This publish-and-pray approach isn’t going to cut it. We’re not only competing with other marketers anymore. Instead, we’re competing for our audience’s
03 Sep
Top-Performing Athlete Influencer Marketing Campaigns of 2020
2020 has been a year has been unlike any other across the world and the sports industry. Despite seemingly constant uncertainty, the year has proved revolutionary for professional athletes. And even while restrictions that forced numerous events to be canceled or postponed — including March Madness and the Tokyo 2020 Olympics — the collective voice
07 Aug
NBA Players Building Endorsement Value From the Bubble
The NBA Bubble has brought the world’s top basketball players together. Although isolated, the NBA’s best have found a variety of ways to maintain engagement with their fans. Nowhere has this opportunity been more obvious than social media. NBA Players have seen a 46% increase in Instagram activity in the bubble. Away from their families
23 Jun
NIL Ready: Preparing Student-Athletes to Win in the New Era of Name, Image, and Likeness Rights | Part 3
Athlete marketing is an art and science. While industry marketers are armed with actionable data, there are many variables at play when it comes to how a brand determines which athlete to work with. A brand may be after affiliation with a select superstar. Perhaps an athlete’s ideals or interests align perfectly. Or maybe that
18 Jun
NIL Earning Potential of Nebraska Volleyball Student-Athletes
Almost all media coverage of Name, Image, and Likeness has focused on the superstars. The Heisman contenders and All Americans in the most nationally visible sports of football and men’s basketball. But the student-athlete NIL opportunity doesn’t stop with the Zion Williamson’s of the world. And it goes beyond the gridiron or the hardwood of
12 Jun
NIL Ready: Preparing Student-Athletes to Win in the New Era of Name, Image, and Likeness Rights | Part 2
Name, image, and likeness rights monetization is nothing new. In fact, athletes have been earning money this way for decades. Until recently — the moment that student-athlete compensation began to dominate the college athletics conversation — the term “NIL” was reserved for professional athlete marketing contracts and group licensing deals. But these opportunities activate in
19 May
NIL Ready: Preparing Student-Athletes to Win in the New Era of Name, Image, and Likeness Rights | Part 1
Build your brand. Be a storyteller. Share great content. These are all good pieces of advice student-athletes and recruits… but what do they really mean? In the era of name, image, and likeness rights in college sports, statements like these are on the right track, but offer little more than a generic reminder. Today’s student-athletes
01 May
It’s in the Game: How Much Can Esports Athletes Earn on Social Media?
The business of Esports is booming. Prior to Covid-19 changing the sports world as we know it, Newzoo predicted that esports revenue would grow by over 15% to reach $1.1 billion in 2020. Of that, up to 75% of the total market – over $800 million – is expected to come from media rights and
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