Welcome Back to Out2Win’s Weekly Report!

For those that are new here, every week I’ll be in your inbox with everything you need to know in the world of athlete marketing.

What to expect in this week’s edition:

• 2024 Athlete-Influencer Energy Drink Partnerships: A showcase of key collaborations and 3 campaign recommendations for brands.

• How Raising Cane’s Grew by 98%: A comprehensive look into how athlete marketing has significantly driven Raising Cane’s business growth.

• Caleb Downs, Ohio State’s Star Safety: An analysis of Caleb’s standout partnerships and their impact.

• Top Trending NFL Rookie Influencers: Spotlighting the NFL rookies making waves in the influencer space.

⚡ Athlete-Influencer Energy Drink Partnership Analysis

Athletes have always been key to marketing energy drinks, but in 2024, brands are taking engagement to the next level with social media NIL deals. By activating creative and innovative strategies with top athletes, these partnerships are building strong connections with new audiences.

Strategic Partnerships Approaches

Youth Audience Targeting: Fast Twitch X Adrien Nunez
Partnership Execution: Fast Twitch features the former Michigan Basketball player in Instagram and TikTok content, including skits, workouts, and day-in-the-life videos. As a key brand ambassador, he connects with his 64% young audience (ages 13-24), effectively targeting the youth demographic.

Superstar Headliner Approach: Accelerator X Livvy Dunne
Partnership Execution: Accelerator strategically features Livvy alongside Travis Kelce to appeal to a massive, multi-sport audience. With Livvy’s content reaching nearly 70% male viewers and over 60% aged 24 or younger, she helps the brand target a younger male demographic.

Season Long Collaboration: CELSIUS X Essential Six
Partnership Execution: Led by Travis Hunter, Celsius partnered with six athletes boasting a 13.5% combined engagement rate. Each athlete shared personal reels, and boosts Celsius' visibility across this college football season.

Sweepstakes-Driven Campaign: C4 X Quinn Ewers
Partnership Execution: C4’s partnership with Quinn Ewers offers fans a chance to meet him by scanning a QR code at Quinn’s display in 7/11, encouraging product purchases and driving consumer engagement beyond social media.

Organic Product Integration: G Fuel X Caden Davis
Partnership Execution: Caden Davis' G Fuel partnership at Ohio State showcases authenticity through unscripted content, humorously linking his teammates' NCAA 25 speed ratings to G Fuel by gifting the product to OSU’s slowest player.

Our Value Picks For Future Campaigns

Leveraging Out2Win’s Intelligence Platform, our team has identified three standout athlete-influencers whose personalities and impressive social media metrics position them perfectly to lead the next wave of brand marketing campaigns for energy drinks.

To Discover 150,000+ Athlete’s Full Marketability Profiles:

🍗 Cane’s Athlete-Marketing Driving Massive Business Growth

This year, Raising Cane’s has executed hundreds of athlete partnerships, but these college athlete influencers have emerged as the standout stars in their social media campaigns with the company.

Top Performing College Athlete-Influencer Campaigns

1. Donovan Edwards: Michigan Football 

   Partnership Execution: In this video, which has garnered over 12 million reel plays, Michigan’s running back worked a busy day at Raising Cane's following their CFB National Championship win.

2. Sam Hurley: Texas Track & Field 

   Partnership Execution: To celebrate Cane’s Fashion Week, Sam Hurley headlined the event at their NYC location as an athlete, spotlighting both their chicken and their new clothing collection.

3. Livvy Dunne: LSU Gymnastics 

   Partnership Execution: Livvy Dunne brought her LSU teammates to celebrate their national gymnastics win by serving fans at a Louisiana Cane’s, with the entire company celebrating.

4. Angel Reese: LSU Basketball (Now Chicago Sky) 

   Partnership Execution: Right before being drafted by the Chicago Sky, Angel Reese starred in a reel serving box combos at Raising Cane’s in NYC, highlighting her connection with women’s sports and the brand.

5. Drake Maye: UNC Football (Now New England Patriots) 

   Partnership Execution: Drake Maye teamed up with a Cane’s chicken truck, connecting with fans and sharing his favorite menu pick while discussing the upcoming NFL draft.

Athlete Marketing Strategies Fueling Raising Cane’s Success

Since NIL's introduction in 2021, Raising Cane’s has leveraged athlete marketing to nearly double its social media following, driving significant business growth, higher ROI, expanded market share, and more locations nationwide. But it’s not just college athletes driving this growth—Raising Cane’s has crafted possibly the best athlete-influencer marketing strategy we’ve ever seen that stands as a model for other brands to follow.

Legends and Icons: Jrue Holiday and David Ortiz partnered to build strong connections with Massachusetts audiences, USA Olympic swimmers Nic Fink and Katie Grimes worked in-store after returning from Paris, and Mookie Betts worked at a Los Angeles Cane’s and raised $100,000 for his foundation.

Team Collaborations: Donovan Clingan and his UConn teammates celebrated their national championship by working at a Cane’s location, while Kamilla Cardosa and Milaysia Fulwiley shared their women’s tournament victory meal with fans at a Cane’s in South Carolina.

Strategically Times Campaigns: After Kansas City’s Super Bowl win, Cane’s featured Mecole Hardman and L’Jarius Snead at a local location. The company also partners with college stars during the MLB, NBA, WNBA, and NFL draft to capture peak attention and build early relationships.

Inspiring Underdog Stories: After Yale's upset victory over Auburn in March Madness, Samson Aletan celebrated with Raising Cane’s by launching the Cane’s Underdog Challenge, offering free box combos for every underdog win in the tournament.

🌟 Caleb Downs: Partnership Analysis

Ohio State’s Star On and Off The Field

Caleb Downs has established himself as one of the top safeties in college football this year, and his recent NIL partnerships with brands like Beats by Dre and NXTRND are gaining substantial traction on social media as a result.

Executional Breakdown

Each of these partnerships utilize Instagram for distribution, but leverage different marketing techniques to get their messaging across:

1. Beats by Dre | August 21st: 1.2M Reel Plays

   • Spotlighted Caleb in a dynamic reel announcing him as their OSU representative.

   • Followed up with a high-energy video of Caleb gifting custom Beats to his team, creating an authentic connection with his audience.

2. NXTRND | April 20th: 630K Reel Plays

   • Quickly featured Caleb in his new Ohio State uniform with their accessories after his transfer.

   • Showcase Caleb wearing their gear on social media throughout the season, using affiliate code “Caleb” to track sales and offer a 10% discount.

3. Freddys Steakburgers | August 23rd: 82K Likes

   • Highlighted Caleb in a partnership announcement to target their 20 Ohio locations.

   • Caleb will share his favorite menu items on social media throughout the season to enhance the partnership’s local reach.

4. Rhoback | August 19th: 5K+ Likes

   • Signed Caleb as their official apparel sponsor, featuring him in an announcement post and video showcasing their training gear.

   • Aims to connect with his football audience through engaging content and position Caleb as a leading figure in their Rhoback U program.

5. American Eagle | August 6th: 305K Reel Plays

   • Featured Caleb in a reel modeling their clothing line at OSU’s stadium, timed for the back-to-school season.

   • Shared photos from the shoot on their Instagram to keep Caleb's presence prominent in their marketing.

For all CFB marketability insights, check out O2W’s College Football Athlete Marketability Report HERE

📈 From NCAA Stars to NFL Rookie Impact Influencers

NCAA → NFL: Influencer Journey’s

Caleb Williams: Since being named the #1 pick in this year’s NFL draft, Caleb has seen exponential growth on Instagram and TikTok. He’s also launched an investment firm, positioning himself as a top-tier influencer for business partnerships.
Brand Partnerships Profile: Trolli, Dr Teals, Postmates

Marvin Harrison Jr.: Since the draft, MHJ has grown his Instagram following to over 500K, transitioned his college partnership with New Balance to the pros, and frequently showcases his journey and style through engaging social media posts.
Brand Partnerships Profile: New Balance, Bleacher Report

Terrion Arnold: A successful multi-platform influencer, Terrion shares his NFL journey on TikTok, vlogs his life on YouTube, and showcases his genuine personality on Instagram. Achieving a 76% growth in following since the draft, he’s a valuable asset for any brand he represents.
Brand Partnership Profile: Buffalo Wild Wings/Pepsi

Ennis Rakestraw Jr.: Since being drafted by the Lions, Ennis has more than doubled his audience. He engages fans with NCAA 25 content, vlogs his NFL journey, and posts comedic football content, Ennis is a clear candidate for additional brand partnerships.
Brand Partnership Profile: Charlie Hustle

Blake Corum: The Michigan-to-Rams RB has a diverse brand profile, spanning fashion, electronics, energy drinks, and fitness highlighting his versatility as a brand ambassador. He also shares inside his life with his passion for his football camp and hosts his own podcast.
Brand Partnership Profile: Dove, Nieman Marcus, TCL, Peloton, SANA, Rocket Mortgage, Celsius

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