NCAA Basketball: How “Likeness” is the future NIL platform for college athletes

NIL. Whether the NCAA likes it or not, it’s coming.

Sooner rather than later, college athletes and NCAA Basketball players, in particular, will be able to make money off of their name, image and likeness. But while this outcome seems fairly clear, what exactly the post-NIL world will look like remains quite uncertain.

One company, Likeness, is looking to be a trailblazer in this emerging marketplace, branding itself as “an app that helps college athletes find paid sponsorships (once NIL is allowed).”  I interviewed Likeness Co-founder and CEO Craig Troemel to learn more.

“With so much currently changing in college sports and the long-fought battle for student rights over Name, Image and Likeness finally coming to fruition, we see an opportunity and a need to simplify this market and facilitate relationships for the students who will now face lots of lucrative yet complex opportunities…”, Troemel told Busting Brackets. “We want to empower both sides of the marketplace to conduct business in the way that works for them.”

Once NIL kicks in, businesses will be able to pay athletes to endorse their brands and/or products, and Likeness wants to be THE platform for bringing these two parties together.

Troemel envisions the app as “a sleek, streamlined tool that allows athletes to safely connect and transact with local businesses to monetize their name, image, and likeness.”

He foresees the typical transactions involving local businesses paying athletes to post on social media — effectively creating a new class of influencers. The app will allow money to be deposited directly into their bank accounts.

While the largest companies and highest-profile athletes could find value in the platform as well, these opportunities — apparel deals, TV commercials, etc.– will likely be made through more “conventional” channels.

In this sense, Likeness is the platform for the “average” business and the “average” athlete. A local business might not be able to afford a commercial, but paying for a few social media posts? Perhaps. And maybe they can’t afford the university’s star basketball player. But the 6th man? That’ll do.

“We know there will be opportunities for not just the household names and Heisman winners, but for local names to make a splash in their own communities and neighborhoods; and that’s where we come in,” Troemel said. “Our mission is to help both athletes and local businesses take advantage of upcoming changes to name, image, and likeness in the most compliant and convenient way possible.”

In some ways, Likeness has the look of a sleeping giant (or at least a mid-major ;-). Its Twitter profile (@Likeness_Market) has attracted only 125 followers since debuting in March. Its website is still fairly light on details, and the app is not yet available (“will be soon”).

Some of this is by design, however, especially since the NIL marketplace is still so nascent. On the front page of Likeness’s site, there’s a countdown clock — and when it runs out — the “giant” might begin to…well, you know.

The clock — whose deadline is the beginning of the 2021-22 academic school year — is based off the company’s tentative assumption this is when NIL will be broadly instituted. Troemel, along with a six-person team whose backgrounds span software development, sales and finance, plans to be ready for whenever the time comes.

Once the NIL game kicks off, Likeness’s success may depend on how it handles two factors: compliance and competition. Rather than tackling these separately, however, Troemel feels that by excelling at compliance, Likeness can stand out from any competitors.

“In an area as dynamic as this one, there will certainly be challenges,” Troemel said. “Creating a compliant marketplace is crucial, but very tough when the rules are new and nebulous. We must get that right to make sure we gain and keep the trust of college communities across the country.”

“This is one way we will differentiate ourselves from potential competitors…A clear focus on compliance, mixed with a sleek platform that makes finding endorsements convenient. Safety AND simplicity…coupled together to help benefit college athletes and the communities they call home.”

As Likeness grows, the company will be open to different monetization strategies, For now, however, the plan is to have a simple transaction fee to help cover costs.

So when’s all the fun start? As exciting as the countdown clock might be, and despite the fact that several states have already passing NIL laws, the platform’s “launch date” could potentially be postponed. As much as being a first-mover in the NIL space might have its advantages, Likeness doesn’t want to jump the gun.

“Our top priority will be safeguarding the compliant statuses of our to-be college athlete customers; in other words, we will ensure that we do not go live “too early”…we’re keeping up-to-date on the latest news and will adjust operations as needed based on what’s permitted and what’s best for athletes,” Troemel explained.

Despite the cautious approach, Likeness shouldn’t be on the sidelines for too long. And when it does take the field, there will be a lot of money to be made for college athletes — money that is arguably long overdue.

Likeness is encouraging college athletes to visit its website to pre-register for its platform.