Sports Marketing Summit: ‘They like who I am as a person’ – Olympian Tilly Kearns on using social media to inspire young girls
The Paris 2024 Olympic Games was one of the first Olympics to allow social media users access to behind-the-scenes footage of their favourite athletes.
Platforms like TikTok and Instagram gave competitors the opportunity to publicly share the ups and downs, challenges, and triumphs of their sport.
Tilly Kearns competed in the Olympics, earning a silver medal as part of the Australian Women’s Water Polo team.
She built an impressive following across her social media channels, with over 500,000 TikTok followers and 140,000 Instagram followers.
At Mumbrella’s Sports Marketing Summit last week, Kearns shared how giving her followers a glimpse into the inner world of her sport helped alleviate pressure before appearing on the global stage.
“It was so special to share a variety of things, rather than just, ‘This is me at the gym, this is me at the pool, this is what I eat.’ I think that gets a bit monotonous,” she said.
“When you can share special moments, you start to create a community.”
Kearns highlighted how everyday activities for her, such as a drug test, which may seem unusual to the average person, drove engagement among her followers.
“Once a week, someone rocks up, and you have to go and pee in a cup. Those little things are normal for us but not for everyone else and that interests people,” she said.
She also illustrated how social media can be a powerful platform to inspire young girls to step into the world of sports.
“Young girls think, ‘She’s human just like me. She spends way too many hours on TikTok, just like me.'”
She added: “It builds connection. Then you have a community and go through highs and lows together.”
Kearns believes it’s easy for female athletes to “fall into the trap” of focusing their social media on their physiques, highlighting their fitness and strength.
She said while it’s admirable to showcase the hard work behind it, it’s troubling when this becomes the sole focus of their personal brand.
“It’s easy clicks if you post a photo of you in the gym. It’s what gets you a lot of views straight away. There’s no secret about that,” Kearns said to delegates.
“I don’t want that kind of audience. I think that’s what’s really special about my community, they’re not following me because I’m fit and strong, they’re following me because they like who I am as a person.”
Aligning with brands that share Kearns’ values is paramount, and she emphasised that brands should also choose athletes who genuinely align with them.
“Brands need to reach out to athletes, not just because they have the most followers or are winning the gold medals, but because they want to grow and be on their journey with.”
Keep up to date with the latest in media and marketing
Have your say