/ Athlete Marketing & Branding Course

Learn How to Master Athlete Marketing and Branding

In just eight weeks, you will learn how to build a marketing machine behind an athlete that leads to endless revenue generating opportunities. This course will put you at the cutting edge of one of the fastest changing parts of the sports industry.

Pro and college athletes need more than just trainers, coaches, and contract negotiators – they need a marketing team behind them! Athletes are themselves brands and have more and more revenue opportunities outside of performance.

Learn from 20-year Sports Agent Kristen Kuliga on how to become an expert in athlete marketing and branding in our 8-week online course.

NEXT START DATE: February 24
Weekly Live Interactive Zoom Chats with Larry Lundy

NEXT START DATE:
February 24

Weekly Live Interactive Zoom Chats with Larry Lundy

TUESDAYS 4 pm PT 7 pm ET TUESDAYS 11 pm GMT
8-week online course
Access to SMWW network
Resume enhancement
Ongoing career advice
Class size limited to 15 students

Mentors

Chania

TAKE THE FIRST STEP

Learn More About Becoming a Athlete Marketing and Branding Student

We want to help you find the right course for your career. Fill out the form below and an SMWW Career Counselor will follow up directly with you.

CONNECT WITH A CAREER COUNSELOR

The SMWW Team will contact you
within two business days.

Who Should Take This Course

  • Agents
  • Athletes
  • Marketers
  • Parents

Why You Should Take Our Athlete Marketing and Branding Course

For decades the main revenue streams for most professional athletes were their game check and TV advertisements for local car dealerships.

Everything has changed.

Pro athletes are monetizing their personal brand in a plethora of modern ways off the field of play. They need experienced people to help them manage opportunities, unify their voice, and expand their brand!

But that’s not all – the opportunities in athlete marketing and branding isn’t limited to pro athletes!

The NCAA has finally agreed to let student-athletes profit off of their Names, Images, and Likeness without losing eligibility, so student-athletes will need people on their side guiding them through the new rules and regulations and optimizing their revenue potential.

This could be you! You can get in early on this powerful new trend in sports business!

What You Will Learn in Our Athlete Marketing and Branding Course

In our 8-week online course, Kristen Kuliga, SVP of business development at Vanguard Sports Group and successful sports agent, will begin teaching you all of the intricacies of athlete marketing and branding.

Are you excited yet?!

Unlike most online classes, we focus our program on video chats directly with your course mentor, which allows you the opportunity to build personal relationships and rapport with a successful leader in sports.

After completing our Athlete Marketing and Branding course, we will help you redesign your resume to highlight your new skills and include that you have been taught first-hand by industry expert, Kristen Kuliga.

Weekly Topics Include:

Week 1: Introduction to Kristen, background, and why branding is important
Week 2: The Sports Marketing and Branding Industry. Who are the players? 
Week 3: Name, Image, and Likeness. The future of athlete representation for the college athlete. 
Week 4: Creating a brand for your athlete. Understanding your athlete's expectations, brand affinities, market value, and matching it to a company's goals. 
Week 5: Athlete marketing and branding in the age of technology and COVID. How agencies and athletes have pivoted to virtual deals, important endorsement contract clauses, and using technology for branding and marketing. 
Week 6: Understanding various structures of branding/endorsement deals: Cash guarantees, equity, royalties, and what is a cracking deal.
Week 7: The power of social media: Leveraging your athlete's social media and online profile for successful marketing campaigns. 
Week 8: Building charities, podcasts, and off-field entrepreneurial ventures. 

Now that is powerful!

Meet Your Course Mentor

Kristen Kuliga

Kristen Kuliga has worked in the sports and entertainment industry for over 20 years and is currently Senior Vice President of Business Development at Vanguard Sports Group, an agency led by Joby Branion with clients including the Denver Broncos Von Miller,  LA Chargers Kennan Allen and the New England Patriots Marcus Cannon. 

As a sports agent, Kuliga has represented more than a hundred NFL players and was the first woman to negotiate a starting quarterback’s contract when Doug Flutie signed a $33 million deal with the Chargers. As a brand marketing and website licensing agent, Kristen has negotiated music contracts including Aeorsmith, Patti Labelle, Keith Lockhart, and The Cars. 

Kristen also has extensive experience leading marketing and endorsement efforts for many NFL, NBA, and MLB players with brands including NIKE, Reebok, McDonald’s, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Coca-Cola, Dunkin Donuts, Cadillac, Flutie Flakes and more. 

A trailblazer at heart who is unafraid to take risks and lean into new ideas and opportunities, Kristen’s ability to visualize the cohesion of a brand, and revenue potential, make her one of the leading voices in athlete marketing.

Rob Wilson

Robert Wilson is the founder and President of C1 Marketing Group - a boutique branding agency specializing in PR, endorsements, social media, and consulting in sports and entertainment.  For over a decade, Robert has worked with and honed some of the top-celebrity brands generating millions of dollars in revenue and impressions for clients in the NFL, NBA, MLB, YouTube, Olympics, Bundesliga, and Premier League.  
 
Recently, Robert and the team at C1MG have developed an expansive NIL practice that assists collegiate athletes across all sports to monetize their name and likeness.  Using a strategic methodology, Robert and C1MG take a more curated approach to brand that has resulted in a number of "Firsts" for clients.  

Dr. Lynn Lashbrook

Dr. Lynn Lashbrook, the president and founder of SMWW, has over 40 years of combined experience as an educator, coach, athletic administrator, and registered NFL agent. Dr. Lashbrook manages the SMWW Agency representing over 200 Agent Advisors and athletes worldwide. Lynn's involvement with marketing and endorsements with numerous athletes and organizations include EA Sports, Adidas, NIKE, Reebok, Wheaties, McDonald’s, and so many more. Lynn has been a catalyst for increasing profits via Product Endorsement, Speaking Engagements, Personal Appearances, Advertising Campaigns, Commercials, and Radio, Licensing with trading card companies, Interactive Games, Athlete Modeling, Theatrical Roles, Celebrity Placement, and Infomercials.

Certificate & Resume Reference:

Successful graduates of the Sports Management Worldwide courses will be sent an SMWW Certificate of Accomplishment. This represents not only your achievements in the course but also demonstrates your personal commitment to self-improvement and the ability to "self-train" yourself for higher positions within the football industry.

In addition to your certificate, you will be given the stamp of approval by SMWW.

Resume Redesign Service

Acquiring the skills necessary for your dream sports career is only part of the employment story. Even with the required skill set, you still have to market yourself properly to attract the attention of sports industry employers.

At SMWW, we’ll teach you the skills you need to thrive AND help you redesign your resume for optimal impact in the sports industry. We’ll help you craft a resume to include your new skills, credentials, and references and optimize it to reach hiring managers searching online.

We want you to be the next SMWW success story, and we go to great lengths to help you get there!

Course Details

Weekly Interactive Zoom Video Chats: A unique aspect, (and most popular part) of each 8-week course is the opportunity for students to participate in weekly, interactive Zoom video chats with fellow students, Dr. Lashbrook, Kristen Kuliga, SMWW mentors, certified sports agents, pro athletes, and sports business executives. This is a tremendous opportunity to network within pro and college sports industry by getting to know your course mentors and fellow students personally via Zoom. This allows ample opportunity to network, ask questions, and discuss aspects of the course openly with instructors and classmates. If you are unable to attend the chats, these chat sessions are archived and you can listen at your convenience. 

Online Education: This innovative academic course is facilitated through a web-based educational delivery system. You will enjoy the online discussion boards, weekly readings, weekly quizzes, course projects, and interaction amongst fellow sports business-minded students and faculty. The course content is the foundation for a successful career in sports business.

Global Participation: SMWW students participate from over 163 countries. Courses have an international influence and instructors will cater assignments to specific countries or leagues. Countries with economic challenges are eligible for economic discounts.

University Credit Available: For additional fees to Fort Hays State University in Kansas, you may receive graduate or undergraduate university credit for Sports Management Worldwide's courses. Click here for more information.

Sports Career Conferences: Throughout the year, Sports Management Worldwide hosts Sports Career Conferences at a variety of sporting events. These are fabulous networking events that put SMWW alumni in the heart of the action. Opportunities to meet head coaches, gm's, player personnel, scouts, and fellow sports agents are facilitated. Visit SMWW Sports Career Conferences to learn more. SMWW alumni receive discounts.

Advanced Certificates: Want to take your career to the next level? Our Advanced Certificates have been hand-selected by our team of sports industry experts to put you on a path to success. These bundles allow you to take advantage of our biggest discount available, by bundling multiple courses and becoming an expert in that field. Learn more about our Advanced Certificates here.

Military Discount: For those individuals who represent their country in military service, (active, reserve, or retired) we offer a discount. Thank you for serving your country! For more information on the Military Discount please Click Here.

Tax Write Off (For USA Citizens): SMWW course tuition, books, and supplies can be used for education tax credits. Save your receipts and consult with your tax advisor on how this applies to you.

THREE MONTHLY PAYMENTS OF $550

Or a single payment of $1,650

Includes all course textbooks and access to a web-based classroom. Shipping is additional.

PRICE IN  
APPROXIMATELY $1650

If we offer an economic discount in your country, it is included in the estimate above. Exact pricing including the discount is shown before you complete checkout. Payment plan options are provided during checkout.

PAYMENT METHODS:
Prerequisites: Must be 18 or older to participate and have a passion for sports.
CALL TODAY: 1-877-SMWW-NOW
(In the UK: 087 12884799)

SMWW’s Industry Leading Courses Featured In: