The NCAA’s new interim policy allows college athletes to monetize their name, image, and likeness.
Learn how you can use Symposium to earn money as a college athlete from this opportunity.
“Tradition alone cannot justify the NCAA’s decision to build a massive money-raising enterprise on the backs of student-athletes who are not fairly compensated”- Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh in the concurring opinion.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) had this coming. Their historical practice of limiting college athletes from making money from US college sports, a multi-billion dollar industry, has finally ended. As things were progressing, the NCAA paying athletes seemed like a distant dream. 42% of US adults believe schools should pay student-athletes.
Student-athletes in college sports are among the best influencers on social media, with hundreds and thousands of followers backing them up. For too long, student-athletes have had no opportunity to profit from their name, image, or likeness.
However, after the unanimous court ruling by the Supreme court, the NCAA changed its rules on July 1st, 2021.
The new set of rules now allows all college athletes participating in college athletics to monetize and earn money their fame. NIL policy ruling is a big win for all college athletes because they can make money outside of their scholarships for the first time in history. Although the days of student-athletes suffering from housing insecurities and starvation while college coaches dominate the list of highest-paid public employees have improved, there is still a long way to go.
Will confusing NIL rules pose a problem for student-athletes?
The name, image, and likeness (NIL) rules vary from one state to another. For instance, some states prohibit wearing school uniforms during NIL campaigns. So, when college athletes go live, they cannot be seen in the videos wearing their college uniforms and have to choose between the two.
A 22-year-old student-athlete from the University of Texas women’s softball team is in such a predicament. She could either sign up for TikTok’s creator fund or cease wearing her Texas uniform in videos.
“The NCAA had a chance to work on an actual solution, and instead they punted, and now essentially we’re gonna see the market largely create its realities.”- Clavio, a fellow member of Indiana University’s NIL task force.
The task force advises schools on how to handle these changes, and they are confused as to why NCAA withdrew from the opportunity to work towards a fix that will help schools transition into the new era of paying college athletes.
As a result, businesses seek to profit from new market opportunities by helping college athletes monetize their fame while taking a cut for themselves. Some companies are even positioning themselves as experts, which is impossible because laws are still going into effect, and universities are in the process of writing down the rules.
Athletes should exercise caution and think twice while assessing their self-worth because, according to Matt Brown, author of Extra Points Newsletter, “Every Division I college athlete has a NIL value greater than one.” Athletes who are told otherwise or to keep their profiles private may be misguided.
How student-athletes can maximize NIL opportunities right now
The current NIL marketplace is highly volatile, and as a student-athlete, you have to be extremely careful while signing up for endorsements. Being clear on what you want out of your NIL is the best way to start your brand because it gives you clarity when approaching other brands for endorsements.
For instance, if your goal is to create a professional network within a conservative industry such as corporate finance, undertaking controversial grey-area type deals could hurt your reputation. It may even close future doors, and what seems like an acceptable trade-off might end up being a regret in the future.
It’s a decision you should make for yourself and not have someone make it for you. “Should college athletes be paid?” is a question that has been a part of a long-drawn-out discussion for a long time.
The recent outburst of influencer student-athletes taking to social media is a change for the better and one they deserve. However, there is a margin for error and knowing how to deal with it optimally is the first step towards maximizing NIL opportunities.
College Athletes are finally getting paid.
Several athletes participating in college sports have already gone live, not wasting a moment’s opportunity to cash in their influence, such as:
– Hanna and Haley Cavinder, Fresno State women’s basketball
– Bo Nix, Auburn football
– Gable Stevenson, Minnesota wrestling
– Dontaie Allen, Kentucky men’s basketball
– McKenzie Milton, Florida State football, and D’Eriq King, Miami Football
All student-athletes and you can take advantage of this opportunity and make your brand shine by becoming an expert on Symposium. Do what you love and help others achieve their goals, all while being fairly compensated for your efforts. Symposium lets all of their creators set their prices and keep 100 % of their profits.
How to Build Your Business as A College Athlete
Creating a business as a college athlete is not easy if you do not know where to start. Brainstorm ideas for productive ways to promote your small business. Keep your goals simple. Focus on your target audience. Take advantage of all of the platforms, channels, and available marketing techniques.
Symposium – Connecting you with your fans
Building a business is challenging. You must worry about finding customers and create a website to host your live streams. Symposium is a live-streaming marketplace that takes care of all that hassle so that you can concentrate on what matters, making money.
You can start right away by visiting the Symposium website or downloading the app. Thus, Symposium connects you with your fan in the simplest way possible.
Once you’ve created an account, here are the steps you can follow to make your first listing on Symposium:
1. Set up your profile.
2. Create a listing.
3. Choose visibility, title your services, and give a brief description of your listing.
4. Add relevant tags.
5. Choose your category.
6. Pick video or voice(whichever you’re comfortable with).
7. Decide the Symtalk duration(session length).
8. Align start times so that you have enough buffer between each session.
9. Choose whether you want to auto-confirm bookings when a user selects your service.
10. Pick an image and set time availability.
11. Decide the frequency of your class(weekly, monthly, yearly).
12. Choose your hours and end date.
Now, you’re all set to teach your first student!
