In the digital age, college sports have become commonly associated with the concept of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). Influxer, a tech-forward company, is positioning itself as a comprehensive solution for student-athletes looking to capitalize on their personal brands in the NIL arena. With a growing roster of 14,000+ signed athletes and ambitious plans to reach all 100,000 collegiate competitors nationwide, Influxer is gearing up in a market destined for explosive growth. The company’s Head of Marketplace, Kendra Eidam, a key figure in its expansion, predicts the NIL market could triple or even quadruple in size over the coming years. As athletics, entrepreneurship, and influencer marketing amalgamate, Kendra shares invaluable insights into the connection between college sports and the creator economy.

Building Brands: Kendra’s Journey from College to NIL Expert

Kendra’s journey into influencer marketing and the creator economy began organically during college. “I naturally and organically fell into the creator world,” she says. “I picked up some college apparel companies as [brand partners]. I loved doing it.” Kendra’s familiarity with social media and her experience in brand partnerships led her to develop an entrepreneurial mindset. 

This passion led Kendra to intern at No Offseason Sports, a sports marketing agency, where she created graphics and content. The experience solidified her desire to help athletes grow their brands.

At Influxer, Kendra focuses on educating student-athletes about NIL opportunities. “I noticed a big thing was that not a lot of education is out there yet, with NIL still being somewhat new,” she notes. “I wanted to specialize in helping student-athletes get the education they need for NIL to grow their brand.”

Influxer: A One-Stop Shop for NIL Opportunities

Influxer’s mission is to provide student-athletes with a centralized platform for education, brand partnerships, and merchandise sales. “Influxer is a one-stop shop for NIL,” Kendra explains. “We created a place for student-athletes to find education, safe deals, merchandise opportunities. Anything that is involved with growing your brand or involved with NIL, we do all of that.”

The company’s primary focus is co-licensed merchandise, allowing athletes to sell products featuring their name and number alongside school marks. This initiative serves a dual purpose: generating revenue for athletes and providing them with practical experience in e-commerce.

Kendra highlights Influxer’s expansion into new areas: “We’re breaking into the marketplace. We’re partnering with brands, helping [them] connect with athletes for NIL-based partnerships.” Additionally, the company is launching an alumni program, extending NIL opportunities to former college athletes.

According to Kendra, Influxer’s mantra is “NIL for all.” The company’s goal is to standardize NIL opportunities, challenging the perception that only star athletes can benefit. “We create an opportunity for every single athlete, whether you play on the field [or not]. It doesn’t matter the playing time you get; you have this equal opportunity to learn about NIL and to participate in it,” Kendra states.

This inclusive approach yields results. Kendra notes, It truthfully shows that there is a demographic for every athlete.”

Merging Technology and Sports in the NIL Space

Influxer distinguishes itself in the competitive NIL field through a diverse range of services and a tech-forward approach. Kendra outlines their comprehensive offerings: “Our largest [service] is merch. We source all of those, ensuring we bring our athletes the best quality merch.” The company introduces new co-licensed products monthly, ranging from apparel to accessories.

Influxer also operates a student-athlete internship program across its 330+ licensed schools. “We give a lot of tangible opportunities even past just playing the actual sport,” Kendra notes. These paid internships provide experience in social media management, NIL education, and industry operations.

The company’s marketplace facilitates brand partnerships through an iOS app. “You have access to every brand we have connections with,” Kendra says. “You have access to other athletes. You have access to information and education.”

Upcoming initiatives include an alumni program for former college athletes and career development services. “We’re going to offer job placement opportunities, education… everything from how to set up your LinkedIn [to] what an interview looks like,” Kendra reveals.

Influxer’s competitive edge, according to its marketplace chief, lies in its technological prowess. “We invest in our engineers and our technology programs more than any other company,” Kendra states. She emphasizes their agility: “We can change course if something changes immediately, and allowing it to happen quickly is everything.” 

She cites a recent example where Influxer swiftly updated merchandise and branding for a university following a logo change, outpacing competitors by weeks. “We are truthfully a tech company that works in sports,” Kendra concludes.

Customizing NIL Experiences for Brands and Athletes

Influxer’s approach to NIL partnerships is characterized by its dual-interface platform, which caters to both brands and athletes. 

Kendra explains the company’s strategy for balancing these diverse needs: “There are two different interfaces. There’s the interface from the brand’s perspective, and there’s the interface from the athlete’s perspective,” she explains the design’s purpose of allowing a customized experience for each party.

For brands, the platform offers education opportunities and customizable ad campaigns. Kendra emphasizes the value of athlete influencers, noting, “They’re generating 2.3 times the interaction and engagement of traditional influencers.” The platform allows brands to tailor their campaigns based on gender, sport, follower count, and location.

On the athlete side, Influxer provides educational resources and personalized guidance. “I hop on meetings with many of my athletes and physically teach them how to create content, make it meaningful, and deepen their engagement,” Kendra states.

Influxer also prioritizes quality control in merchandise production. “We spend no joke hundreds of hours researching,” Kendra states. The company vets potential partners through a rigorous process, including product sample reviews.

Kendra highlights a successful partnership with Gold Presidents, a jewelry line offering customizable gold chains for athletes. “We’re able to check all that sourcing and ensure everything was of high quality,” she notes Influxer’s commitment to authentic, high-quality merchandise while ensuring athletes benefit financially, with a 60% profit share on these products.

Influxer’s Role in Bridging School and Athlete NIL Relations

Kendra discusses the unique challenges faced working with athletes. According to her, the primary hurdle is the volatile industry. “It’s a changing landscape because the laws are changing all the time,” Kendra explains. “We look at different states and schools changing how they deal with NIL, their different policies, the laws based on it.”

Another significant challenge is the varying attitudes of different schools towards NIL. Kendra likens working with schools to “a Thanksgiving dinner with your family,” where each institution’s representative has a distinct personality and approach to NIL.

“One school’s representative may love NIL and want to jump into it more, whereas another might have someone who’s very apprehensive about it, doesn’t want to go too deep, and needs way more hand-holding,” Kendra notes.

To overcome these challenges, Influxer focuses on building relationships with schools and educating them about the benefits of NIL. “It’s more about engaging and making a healthy relationship with schools and getting them to understand the front and back end so that they feel comfortable and confident about it,” Kendra says.

Kendra stresses the importance of framing NIL as a positive development for schools and athletes. “Instead of viewing it like this scary new thing is ruining sports… [we’re] showing them that technology is here to stay and how they can utilize this to benefit schools for recruiting, student-athletes, and everything else.”

Challenges and Opportunities in College Sports

Kendra highlights the significant impact of changing social media algorithms on content creation strategies. “We’re looking at a huge adjustment on Instagram with the algorithms,” she notes. “Every single platform is changing in such a big way.” This shift is forcing a new approach to content creation, with athlete creators leading the charge.

The entrepreneur emphasizes authenticity in content. “Something that’s going to be big now is authenticity creation,” she says. “Are we creating an actual community that my fans can interact with and engage with me?”

Regarding the future, Kendra points to the uncertain future of the NCAA as a major challenge. “We’re looking at a very unsure future ground with the NCAA. That could change college sports as a whole.” According to Kendra, Influxer is preparing for various scenarios, including a potential future without the NCAA.

The marketing expert advocates for more comprehensive NIL education in colleges. “Athlete creators need a course. They need a class. They need a coach,” she asserts. “We need classes at every college about marketing and creation as an athlete in the NIL space.”

Kendra points out that NIL skills extend beyond college athletics. “NIL is entrepreneurship. These skills need to be understood because they are life skills—finance and marketing. These are things that you will need in your day-to-day life.”

Influxer’s Vision of Scaling Opportunities and Empowering Athletes

Kendra outlines the company’s ambitious NIL goals for the coming years. The primary focus is on continued growth and market dominance. 

“We have over 14,000 signed athletes,” Kendra states. “There are over 100,000 student-athletes out there. We need every one of them because they deserve to be making money on their name, image, and likeness.”

Influxer aims to enhance its existing services while developing new initiatives. “We need the deals to be bigger. We need the partnerships to go longer so our athletes are secure for longer periods,” Kendra explains.

The company is also expanding its focus beyond college athletics. “Post-graduation job placement and career advancement are going to be our next big focus,” Kendra reveals.

Looking at the broader NIL domain, Kendra predicts significant growth. “I don’t think it’s crazy to say that this market will triple in the next few years—quadruple even,” she says. Influxer’s exec emphasizes the rising prominence of athlete creators, noting their perceived authenticity compared to traditional influencers.

Kendra’s advice to athletes is clear: “NIL is for you. Whether you think it is or not, it is.”