How to make athlete social media a little easier

I'll bet at some point you've been told you need to start a social media account for your athletic endeavors.

And it makes sense. You know coaches and recruiters look at Instagram, TikTok, and others for athletes like you.

You're also told that when you post to tag the team, school, or coach whose attention you're trying to capture.

Or you're suppose to DM that coach to let them know you're interested in playing for their squad.

And I'll bet you've discovered a truth about social media ... it's hard.

Let's talk about how to make running your own athlete social media account easier.

It's a real challenge to post all the time. It takes discipline, inspiration, creativity, a willingness to put yourself out there, all while you're trying to compete and stay on top of school work.

Today, let's look at how to make running a social media account as a teen athlete a little easier.

Problem: Running out of steam real fast

One of the problems comes from running out of steam. Fast.

I see it all the time - and so do coaches and recruiters. A teen athlete will start a TikTok or Instagram account for their athletic endeavors, post once or maybe three times, if they post at all.

And then ... nothing.

Few things can make a person (such as a coach at the next level) pass on checking out a social media account like a lack of, well, photos and video.

Have a bank of images and videos at the ready for whenever you post.

The solution is to have a bank of images and video you can tap into at any given time, especially during the season.

For example, I have a folder on my iPhone Photos app with no less than 1,000 images from past athlete portrait sessions. Any time I go to post, I go into that folder to grab an image, and I'm never run out of possibilities.

Do you need 1,000 images and videos? No. Heck no. But you probably need at least a few dozen at the ready for whenever you go to post to your athlete account.

Problem: When to post

We have a tendency in social media to overthink, well, everything.

This is especially true when it comes to when to post and how often. Should you do it every day? Are there certain times of day that are better?

Once you have a bank of images and videos, this issue becomes easier to solve.

First, you don't have to post every day. Period. And there is no universal understanding among social media marketers about the best time to post. Opinions are wide ranging on that.

Find a social media posting cadence that works best for you.

All you have you have to do is decide what's right for you. Is it every Tuesday and Thursday? Is it after every game? Is it always at 3:30 p.m.?

Decide what works best for you. Posting on social media should be a positive part of your experience, not an added anxiety. You have enough to worry about.

The great thing is - once you have a bank of images and video to use, you are always ready to post or schedule posts.

That beats spontaneously thinking you need to post something, then you can't find an image of yourself you like, before deciding "nah, I'm not going to put something up."

Problem: Not knowing what to put in the caption

We could probably spend the rest of the year figuring out what to put into social media captions.

But rather than fall into the trap of overthinking it, let's just get a few dependable topics together.

Here are a few:

1. Introduce yourself. Do this every few weeks as you gain followers. Let your audience know who you are, what position you play, where you're from, a few interesting facts about yourself.

2. Share your stats. These could be from your current season or a comparison to previous seasons to show how you've grown. Or this could be something you post after every game.

3. Talk about what you love. What do you love about the position you play or the event you participate in? What do you love about being part of a team? Is there a teammate you're friends with? Talk about what you appreciate about them.

4. Tell a story. We all have stories. We all have lived them. Talk about yours. Is there a moment when you had to face adversity like overcoming an injury or disappointment? What did you do or learn from the experience? How can this help others? Or talk about the story of how you got started playing?

5. Share your routines. What's your pregame ritual? As a soccer goalkeeper, I used to touch the crossbar, the posts, and the ground so the soccer gods would be kind to me should a shot get passed me. Or do you have a morning routine to emphasize your health and wellness? Maybe talk about what you do post-game.

We all know social media is just part of the plan when it comes to making it to the next level. Performance on the field, the court, or in the pool is paramount.

Social media for a teen athlete can be a powerful tool in your journey to the next level.

But you can also have confidence when you're at a skills camp or a tournament and you meet that coach or recruiter from the next level, when they go to look at your Instagram or TikTok, you're social game is solid.

They're going to come away having a real sense of who you and what you're all about.

They're going to come away impressed.

Dave Pidgeon is the owner of and chief image maker at Creative Sports Photography, the premier athlete portrait service in Central and Southeastern Pennsylvania. To reach Dave, email him at dave@creativesportsphotography.com.