With sports on an indefinite hiatus because of COVID-19, professional and amateur athletes are left wondering what is next for them. Elite college athletes were looking forward to their respective upcoming drafts and current players are missing out on competing in something they’ve spent their whole lives working towards. Without sports being in season, it’s hard for a lot of athletes to stay relevant and keep their brands afloat. Some players were able to stay relevant based on their production “between the lines,” but now more than ever, off the field efforts are a necessity to maintain an image. Athletes around the country are enlisting the assistance of content teams to share news about their progress and training, continue building their brands, and much more. Some athletes are falling behind given the free time they may have now, but others are staying on top of their brand efforts. Here are five athletes that have been publishing fantastic content during the quarantine.
The NFL Draft is now virtual and so is each team’s recruiting efforts. Tagovailoa recently put out a video highlighting his journey over the past year in a short, one-minute clip. The Alabama Quarterback has gone through a lot in his young career including injuries, and now he’s trying to overcome even more adversity. While he’s still likely to go near the top of this year’s NFL Draft, the campaign doesn’t stop. The NFL Draft is coming, and Tua is doing a great job in preparing his brand.
Toppin finds himself in a similar situation to Tua Tagovailoa. The NBA Draft doesn’t have a defined date at the moment, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be happening sometime in the future. Toppin was a second-year Power Forward for the Dayton Flyers who recently announced his departure from the NCAA. The Wooden Award winner had a stellar sophomore season and needed to spread the news of his decision. Rather than sending out a note, he made his statement in an emotional video with clips from various points in his college career. This video is a fantastic example of a player using content to not only grow their brand but also inform a community of fans anxiously awaiting to hear their next move.
The postponement of the 2020 Summer Olympics is a devastating occurrence for many athletes all over the world. Athletes who worked so hard to build brands and condition their bodies leading up to the big event now have to nearly start all over again. Content is especially important in keeping relevant for Olympic hopefuls, and Steven Benedict is doing a great job of keeping relevant. The sprinter regularly posts motivation and workout highlights in Instagram videos. In doing so, his fans can keep up with how he’s doing during these odd times. Olympic hopefuls looking to stay relevant in this extra year off should absolutely be creating content to build upon what they’ve already created for themselves, and Benedict is doing a great job.
When you have a personal brand like NBA All-Star, Jimmy Butler, your name stays relevant in social media conversations whether you like it or not. To further craft his image, Butler has been building upon his YouTube presence. Recently, Butler posted one of his quarantine workout routines. Fans love to see the behind the scenes of an athlete’s process, and Butler seems to enjoy keeping them involved. Through these videos, he is working on growing and maintaining his brand while also working on his health and readiness for when the NBA resumes.
Everyone knows who Tom Brady is! All-time greats like him don’t need to build upon a brand, work on their image, or worry too much about what their future in sport holds. When you make as big of a move as Brady did by signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, content is important in making a smooth transition. It’s no secret that Brady has a great content team, so he used it to his advantage. He recently posted a video saying thank you to his fans in New England. With career highlights and personal moments sprinkled throughout the video, it was a fitting goodbye for the New England legend. As Brady’s content team follows him to Tampa Bay, we expect more terrific content from the six-time Super Bowl champion.
Content is important for personal and corporate brands alike to stay afloat during this time. It is being consumed at an increasing rate due to the number of people staying home, so there isn’t a better time than now to improve upon your content!