Student-athletes have sidelined themselves in the game for years now. People have considered being a young athlete nothing more than a mere interest in sports and a talent that takes the backseat as life beyond school tumbles down. For ages, schools and organizations have limited athlete monetization to scholarships, sponsorships, or professional contracts that would go to only a select few.. What about parents who spend their savings trying to provide for their young talents? What about the student who remains on the bench while the offers go only to the professionals?
However, NIL rights have brought a turning point to this scenario in athlete earnings. Regardless, the reality is that only a small fraction of athletes receive consistent brand deals, while most students are majorly overlooked despite being dedicated performers.
Welcome to HypeU! Social media platforms have been around for ages, but what has it done? Only given you clout and attention that lasts for only a season or two with popular trends. Thus, if you are an athlete wondering how people are actually making real money, not just the hype, with digital cards, here is how.
What are Digital Trading Cards for Athletes?
Digital trading cards are like a modern alternative to the traditional sports cards. They are created, owned, bought, and sold online instead of on paper. Remember the old paper cards that you could keep in a sleeve or a box? Modern digital trading cards function inside an app or a digital wallet. You can view them anytime on your phone, share them instantly, and never worry about damage or loss.
Your DTC features your photos, your best moments, any milestone, or a limited edition design tied to these moments. Every card has a unique ownership record so that the buyers know it is authentic. Unlike social media, HypeU, as an athlete digital collectibles marketplace that allows you to earn thousands, provides a platform to not only make these cards but also to buy and sell directly with your fans. Your fans can hold them as collectables, and you can make limited edition cards that may resell at a higher price. Overall, it allows young athletes to have direct control over their collectibles. For athletes, these also represent a way to turn moments and support into owned digital assets, while for fans, they offer a fresh way to collect and engage beyond likes and follows.
Turn Your Moment Into A Sellable Asset
On HypeU, you create your own assets and earn from digital trading cards that not only build your legacy but also support your journey to become the top athlete. Our platform is not merely like social media that runs on an algorithm and rapidly evolving trends. We provide a platform where you can showcase your talent, your favorite moments, and sell them to your fans. This gradually builds a community of supporters who not only become a part of your athletic journey but also help you develop yourself financially.
On HypeU, you design your own cards, you decide how many editions of them will exist, and you decide the price. Once minted, your card becomes a blockchain-registered digital asset that fans can buy instantly.
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You Keep What You Earn
Being a top NIL platform, this is what makes HypeU different from any other social media platform or digital marketplace. Once you have successfully made your card on this platform, and it is collected by your fans, you earn 100% of your initial sales, minus a small platform fee. The money is immediately transferred to your in-app wallet without any intermediaries. HypeU believes in direct transactions without involving any agent, brand, or waiting months for a single payout. With our platform, you can monetize on your NIL benefits any time you want. All you have to do is sign up and mint your own limited edition athlete cards.
How This App is Built For Athletes
On a foundation level, HypeU is designed around a simple principle that student-athletes should own what they create and manage how they earn from it. Unlike traditional platforms or NIL deals for college athletes that prioritize agents, brands, or platforms, this puts the athlete at the center of the entire system.
Unlike social media platforms, athletes are not mere content suppliers for other marketplaces. Here, the young athletes are the creators and owners. It is they who create their own DTCs, decide what moments to release, control the pricing, and the edition sizes. Therefore, ownership begins and stays with them. This structure shifts the power dynamic away from sponsors and intermediaries and back to the athlete.
While most NIL opportunities require brand selections, agents, and an audience threshold, HypeU removes these barriers and offers a chance to participate actively.
Easy Step-By-Step Guide on Earning Through HypeU
The NIL process and earning through it continues to be a complex process for many athletes. However, the purpose of HypeU is to provide athletes with a simple way to monetize their Name, Image, and Story via digital assets saved in their profiles.
On this platform, you can not only learn how to monetize your NIL but also create Digital Trading Cards and sell them to your fans. The transactions that are worth thousands happen entirely on the app; therefore, you no longer need any agent, mediator, or brand deals for support. Not only this, but while you continue to grow, your fans grow through you. As they collect your cards and resell them, they also earn and develop financially. Here is a step-by-step guide to understand the process better.
Step 1: Create an Athlete Profile
The first step for every athlete using HypeU is creating their profile. This profile represents you on the platform and links all future DTCs. When supporters view a trading card, they will see who it is because they will do it through your profile.
Step 2: Create a Digital Trading Card
The next step is for the athlete to select a moment, image, or milestone to create a DTC. This could be related to performance, growth, or personal success. All cards are generated through HypeU. This gives you full authority to control what will be released. You can launch limited edition cards as scarcity often means more popularity and the price you sell it for.
Step 3: Create Editions and Set Pricing
Before publishing the card, you need to decide how many editions will be generated and the cost per edition. This helps athletes create scarcity for the card, aligning them with the demand from their fans to purchase it.
Step 4: Share With Fans
Once an athlete’s card is made available to the public, there are many ways for them to deliver their card to their entire community, from family and friends to fans. By using HypeU’s streamlined process, supporters can access the athlete’s card without having to take any further steps or receive any additional links.
Step 5: Track Ongoing Activity
Buying different versions of a card would mean transactions worth thousands or more within the HypeU app, which will show on your account wallet. This allows you to keep up with the ongoing activities and exchanges with the fans. As your cards remain functional as collectibles, you can not only learn how to manage your finances but also build a community where your fans benefit as well.
Read Also: A Coach’s Guide to Team Branding and Athlete Growth With HypeU
Wrapping Up
Simply put, HypeU is a platform where you can not only showcase your talents, your best moments, or a career milestone, but also get to make money out of it. More often, regardless of NIL rules, the process feels super complicated, and deals continue to go to those students with top agents and audiences. While for the most part, student-athletes remain on the bench, even with their skills and talents.
This is what HypeU aims to change. It offers a platform to build DTCs for college athletes so they can fund their own journey on their own terms.