These days, more people are spending their time online than ever before. For most, that time is spent scrolling through social media pages and checking out videos that they might find interesting. For athletes, staying active on social media is an absolute must if they want to increase their following and reach new fans. That’s where professional social media and sports marketing management come into play.
Though every situation is unique, the right strategy can help any athlete, pro or amateur, reach new people quickly. And the more people you reach, the more you can profit. Here are a few ways you’ll increase your brand’s impact.
1. Build a Long-Term Following
Social media gives athletes the opportunity to share more about themselves, their processes, and their goals than almost any other marketing platform. This gives both current and new fans a chance to get to know the person they look up to.
The more they get to know them, the more personal the experience feels. And when those athletes are using social media to interact with their fans, the stronger their support gets. Over time, this creates an ongoing relationship between the athlete and their fan base and that relationship can last for many years.
Why? Because athletes who interact with their fans and offer those fans a behind-the-scenes look at their daily lives show that they care about their supporters. If fans feel that the athlete doesn’t care or doesn’t respond to their concerns on social media, they’ll find someone else to look up to.
The longer your fans support you, the more merchandise, tickets, and products you can sell to them easily.
2. Gain More Sponsorships
Sponsorship is one of the best ways to create long-term income year-round. But unless you’re looking at professional athletes, getting sponsorships can be tough. Athletes must have tons of visibility to gain sponsors in the first place. After all, they’re responsible for selling their products, even if indirectly.
With social media, athletes of all skill levels have the opportunity to become athlete influencers. The bigger the following, the more willing brands will be to partner with those athletes.
Social media as part of a comprehensive sports marketing strategy will help athletes increase their online visibility and thus improve their sponsorship opportunities. The more sponsorships they can get, the more money they can make.
3. Improve Game Attendance
Performances are the core of most athlete’s jobs. But those performances are only successful if they have people attending the game, event, or competition. That means reliable ticket sales and steady attendance is absolutely vital.
With social media and sports marketing, athletes will see an increase in attendance at those events.
It’s a volume game. By sending out emails, updating schedules, and making sure social media channels show when major events are going to happen, more people will stay in the loop. And when more people know about events in advance, they’ll be able to get tickets, time off from work, and make the time to show up.
4. Create a Brand That Grows with You
There are monetary profits and there’s brand growth. Both are important for up and coming athletes. But brand growth and development is essential if athletes want to set themselves up for long-term success.
Sports marketing strategies can help even mid-level athletes become athlete influencers. How? By helping them establish a consistent brand. Athletes have a personality and that personality is their business, both during the game and in daily life.
When that brand has a different voice across different platforms, sponsors won’t know what to expect from their partnerships. By establishing a solid brand, athletes will have something to work with for the rest of their career. This increases the number of opportunities, partnerships, and events they can participate in.
5. Frees Up Time
Believe it or not, time really does equal money. And the more time athletes have to pursue other business relationships and sponsorships, the more money they can make.
For athletes using social media, managing their sports marketing plan while interacting with fans can be overwhelming. Worse, hunting down those possible sponsorships can take up the better part of their week.
With a solid social media and sports marketing strategy in place, athletes have more time to focus on their business. Because they’re more visible, new sponsors will start to approach them instead of the other way around.
And the larger the following is online, the more tempted sponsors will be to work with the athlete. This means less time spent negotiating payment agreements and more freedom to just get down to work.
Social media is one part of a sports marketing strategy that every athlete should be taking advantage of already. Get your social media presence back on track and let our pros show you what to do. Reach out today.