Athlytic

Athlytic is a marketing company positioned around name, image and likeness (NIL) and sports culture, connecting brands with athlete influencers and creators. Its stated service lines are influencer and social campaigns (talent sourcing, creative development, campaign management), experiential work (brand activations, interactive microsites, custom product development), targeted media (paid media strategy, social whitelisting, SMS marketing), and AI-enabled insights covering predictive analytics, ROI analysis and real-time reporting. The company describes its campaigns as blending in-person activations with digital reach aimed at sports and Gen Z audiences, and reports activity across a number of college campuses.

The business began as a marketplace intended to let college athletes monetize their name, image and likeness through endorsement deals. In its earlier form, athletes created profiles and were matched with brands using platform data; either side could request a connection, deal terms were negotiated between the parties, and payments were held in escrow until the athlete completed the agreed deliverables, such as social media posts. Founders framed the model as a way to direct endorsement income to athletes, particularly those from underrepresented and lower-income communities.

Founding story

Athlytic was created by Jared Eummer and Ashton Keys, the latter a Detroit native. The founders spent roughly a year speaking with athletes, coaches, brands and athletic companies to research the market before announcing the company. Eummer, a 2017 graduate of Florida A&M University's School of Journalism and Graphic Communications, had earlier founded Dream Team, a nightlife company, and worked in corporate partnership development for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The company publicized itself during March Madness 2021 with a billboard in Indianapolis carrying the #NotNCAAProperty hashtag.

Business model

Athlytic sits between brands and athlete creators, running campaigns on brands' behalf across influencer content, live activations, paid and direct media, and analytics reporting. In its earlier marketplace form, brands and college athletes matched on the platform, negotiated deal terms directly, and payment was held in escrow until the athlete delivered the agreed content.

Traction

The company's site cites counts of athlete influencers, total audience reach, completed campaigns and colleges activated, though the figures are not rendered as specific numbers. Athlytic reached the top five of the Mountain Dew Real Change Opportunity Fund pitch competition in 2021.

Latest developments

The company currently presents itself as a premium NIL marketing platform spanning influencer and social, experiential, targeted media and AI-enabled insights.