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For years, college athletes have racked up Twitter and Instagram followers due to their on-the-field fame, but despite these large followings, a quarterback known for slinging touchdowns was prohibited from slinging endorsements thanks to a system that prohibited athletes from profiting off of their image or performance. But this summer that changed, and with college athletes now able to profit off their name, image, and likeness, it’s left companies such as Captiv8, an influencer marketing platform, ready to hit the ground running with a new pool of talent. 

“Scale for creators or athletes within specific verticals is pretty tough. It's hard to snap your fingers and get a hundred college athletes activated in minutes. Platforms like Captiv8 have made it easier to do that in the digital creator space. With creators that have been around for a while, you can go through specific verticals. With college athletes, it's a green field right now.”

Krishna Subramanian, is the Co-founder of Captiv8, and on this episode of Marketing Trends, Krishna goes deep into the weeds of influencer marketing and how these new opportunities with college athletes can help brands. Plus Krishna provides some dos and don’t for brands that are looking to partner with influences. Enjoy!

Main Takeaways

• Influencers are an Extension of the Brand: Over the last year, brands have leaned more and more on influencer marketing. But despite how loyal an influencer’s audience might be, that audience might not be a match with your brand. Make sure the values of your brand align with that of the creator and with the people who make up their pool of followers.
• Fighting for Control: How much creative control the brand and the creator requires is one of the main things to consider when partnering with an influencer. If a brand wants more control, don’t partner with top influencers. Instead, partner with lower-level creators that are looking to grow their audience.
• Going Further Down the Funnel: Right now, influencer marketing is specifically focused on branding and building awareness, but there are far more areas for marketers to derive value from it, including measuring a product viability and the ability to scale content across multiple channels.

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