Reaching out to Brands on LinkedIn
We highly recommend clients to do outreach and personally introduce yourself to companies you are a fan of. This can resonate on a higher level with some brands and increase interest. Make it a habit and you will see a big return over the long term.
An agent can certainly contact a company on your behalf. However a sponsor will always lean towards an athlete who has a genuine interest in their company and product. The best way to demonstrate this is to reach out and introduce yourself directly.
Our recommendation is to set up a premium profile on LinkedIn.
LinkedIn is a very powerful tool and allows you to connect directly with decision makers at companies. Athletes will have success reaching out to “marketing directors”, “Chief Marketing Officers” or “Director of Partnerships” at companies you are interested in.
Below is a powerful message template you can use. Let’s break down this simple yet effective format.
Introduce yourself: Hi I’m “Your Name”.
Say how you discovered their company: I found your company/product via “say how”. People like to hear how customers come across their products.
Quick 1-2 sentence bio: Say one athletic accomplishment. Then list one personal brand related fact. “A little about me, I’m a 2-time USA Olympian. I also speak to young athletes about Diversity and Equality.”
Show that you did your homework. Find a recent article, social media post or something from the company website and reference it. “I read on your company website that your core values are quality, service and community. This aligns closely with my values as an athlete both in competition and the work I do in the community.”
Say the next step, make it easy for them: “I’d love to setup a call and see if there are some opportunities to work together. Can we schedule a call with my team in the coming two weeks?”
Sign it with your name and highest athletic accomplishment: Your Name, 2-time USA Olympian.
Give this a try and let me know how it goes. Generating demand takes a team, but ultimately it is the responsibility of the talent. This is really important for athletes to understand and take ownership of. Hopefully this template will help!
