NIL has officially become the Wild Wild West as many predicted it would.

I want to take some time today to demystify it and answer the common questions I get on a daily basis through Twitter and Email.

First off, I want to thank those of you that work in the NIL industry and are subscribed to The Petcash Post — I greatly appreciate it.

Many of us have good relationships and I would tell them this info right to their face (which they would likely debate after).

Let’s get started 👇

Value Per Post is a myth.

Paige Bueckers is crushing it, there’s no doubt about that.

But no company is paying $60,000 for ONE social media post from a college athlete. 1

A true $60,000 deal would include a lot more than just that.

Let me show you why:

Paige did a deal with CashApp and the Instagram post only got 77,000 views and 40 comments.

paigebueckers

A post shared by Paige💕 (@paigebueckers)

The CPM (cost per 1000 impressions) for this ad would be $779.

1000 x $60,000 / 77,000 views = $779.

For reference, the average CPM advertisers pay on Instagram is $8.96.2

With some simple math, you can see why $60,000 for one post is absurd.

The CashApp video would have had to get 7,000,000 views on IG for it to have a CPM of $8.57 and be justified at that cost.

However, these big brands do like to put together package deals.

CashApp probably paid Paige Bueckers a handsome amount — but that deal would include multiple social media promotions across several platforms (TikTok, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat).

And this is on top of her showing up at events, doing signatures, and the ability to use her for commercials, etc.

So why these misleading graphs?

It’s About Attention

Many of these graphics you see around NIL are clickbait.

Why?

Because all the major media companies pick them up and go “according to x Paige Bueckers is making $60,000 per post”.

But that number is usually just thrown on the wall — it’s for marketing purposes.

No one would care if it says $3000 per post…but $60,000 will get people’s attention.

The other thing you’ll seen thrown around is the mean amount athletes are getting paid, but what should be reported is the median amount.

Why?

Because outliers drastically skew the numbers higher, making NIL seem more lucrative than it really is for the majority of athletes.

Agents Are Often Useless

NIL has been (and still is) a gold rush.

What does that breed?

Agents, lawyers, management, and others looking to find a way in.

And hate to burst your bubble, but most of the time it’s not to truly help the athletes, but to line their own pockets.

Jordon Rooney is a good friend who I have conversations about this with on a weekly basis.

He sums it best:

Jordon Rooney @jordonr

Signing with an agent for NIL isn’t the flex that you think it is. NIL - You benefit from marketing. Agents - Negotiate pro contracts. Don’t sign with an agent who doesn’t know how to use instagram to build your brand/market you.

Rock solid advice.

Keep in mind, many athletes will need help along the way, but they need to do their research before signing anything and learn about what services they’re getting.

Are College Athletes Getting Paid?

Yes.

The days of amateur sports are over.

At every power 5 school NIL collectives are being set up to “legally” pay players.

Does it break NCAA rules?

100%.

Will the NCAA do anything about it?

No.

If you’re a big time player in men’s football or basketball and are looking to attend a Power 5 school (and even some high mid-majors in hoops) you will sit down with NIL collectives and negotiate a contract.

Whether you like it or not that’s a fact.

It’s no longer just about the school, facilities, alumni — but how much money you can make.

Several inside sources VERY close to the matter have told me that recruits and transfers are setting up meetings with multiple NIL collectives to negotiate how much money they can make.

The amount they can make plays in to their final decision.

If you want to learn more about this check out my article here:

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And keep in mind, I’m all for the players getting paid — but the fact we needed to set up NIL collectives as a loophole is ridiculous.

Athletes Have Been Taken Advantage Of

NIL is showing us the behind-the-scenes shenanigans that’s been going on for years.

Many people (mostly across the internet) are still squawking that a scholarship is plenty and athletes should be happy with a free ~ $200,000 education.

But that’s misleading…

Scholarships are arbitrary and extremely over-priced.

Charted: The Rising Average Cost of College in the U.S.

Just because a school says your education is worth x doesn’t mean you’re actually getting x out of it.

Like for example:

Are Duke basketball players really getting ~ $70,000 a year in education when they miss half the classes and tutors do their work?

No.

And what about the $30M+ in revenue the players help drive to Duke University every year?

What about all the media attention and untold money they drive to the school from regular students wanting to be a Cameron Crazy and paying full tuition for it?

Duke rewards Coach Krzyzewski $7M a year for it — so they must see the importance.

NIL is showing us how valuable college athletes really are and how badly schools have ripped them off over the years.

Brands Will Take Advantage To

You’re naive if you think most of these companies care about college athletes finally getting their fair share.

They’re trying to pat their bottom dollar as well.

You might think it’s about a signing a woman athlete, or doing a team-wide deal, or diversity, but a lot of the time it’s just fluff.

These companies want the story, media attention, and revenue it will bring in.

Adidas is genius for the deal they recently set up.

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But here’s a hot tip…

College athletes will make pennies on their dollars.

The company with three stripes received millions in free publicity for “helping athletes get paid” and “giving back”.

If athletes are set to make 7-15% commission on a sale, how much do you think Adidas makes?

Athletes Flipping The Script

The good news is that NIL has given more power to the players than ever before. Athletes just need to be smart and get a trusted circle around them.

It’s about boosting your own personal brand.

Put yourself in a position to succeed off the court, field, rink, etc…

If you aren’t posting on:

Tik Tok
Twitter
Instagram
Snapchat

you’re at a major disadvantage.

From there you need to get educated (and this includes parents as well).

I’ll Leave You With This

At the end of the day I’m here for the players.

I’m entertained with this stuff — which is why I write about it and break down the business/money fueling it — but I also like to educate.

Just like athletes have a plethora of people, brands, and opportunities knocking at their door — ever since I started putting out content on social media I’ve had more than I can handle come my way.

It comes down to trusting your gut, listening to all sides, and moving forward with the people/brands that match your beliefs.

And with that said, everyone should take the aim to be a creator, not just athletes.

Social Media gets your story out there and connects you with the world. The athletes doing it are 2 steps ahead of everyone else.

Paige Bueckers might not be worth $60k a post, but she’s still a millionaire because of her hard work on the court and the content she posts to social media.

Kudos to her and all the other athletes/creators/businesspeople/artists/musicians doing the same.

Well that was a fun one — I appreciate you taking the time to read all the way to the bottom!

Want to publicly state something or start a friendly debate?

Drop some wisdom in the comments

Leave a comment

Have a personal question or just want to converse with me?

Shoot me an email: andrewpetcash05@gmail.com

Let’s have a great week,

-AP

1

https://www.insider.com/paige-bueckers-nil-money-greater-than-mens-sweet-16-stars-2022-3

2

https://www.topdraw.com/insights/is-online-advertising-expensive/

Profluence Sports by Andrew Petcash

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