Three years ago, Kelvin Beachum joined the professional networking platform LinkedIn not really knowing how to utilize the social media channel and leverage his NFL career to open doors in the business world. Fast forward to today and the Jacksonville Jaguars offensive lineman is connected with more than 1,000 executives across technology, venture capital and enterprise corporations.
In a week, he is heading to Australia with his wife for vacation, but not before he has five hours worth of business meetings the minute he lands with founders, CEOs and entrepreneurs, like Nick Crocker, Partner at Blackbird Ventures.
Such is the off-the-field life for Beachum, a 27-year-old Southern Methodist graduate. He has taken to the platform to further the conversations around certain areas of interest, which include drones, robotics, aviation and artificial intelligence, along with STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) programs to provide more exposure and access for underfunded and underrepresented communities in places like Dallas, Pittsburgh, Jacksonville and his hometown in Texas, all places he grew up or played in.
His investment in Next Play Capital, a venture capital fund, can in part be credited to relationships he fostered through Linkedin in addition to new relationships with executives at Chevron and NASA. A collaboration with Robotics Trends last April developed out of the social channel, too.
High-profile retired athletes such as NFL Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith and current NBA analyst and eSports team co-owner Shaquille O’Neal are two other examples of athletes building their digital brand via LinkedIn.
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“You can put yourself in a different light and help change the narrative,” Beachum said of how LinkedIn can position athletes, adding that he’s done more business via LinkedIn than all of the platforms combined. “This platform can help you change the narrative. ‘Hey, this is guy is pretty smart, and he’s using the platform in a smart way to connect with the people he needs to connect with for a purpose.'”
“The right stuff is the never give up stuff.”
@NASA @Chevron @ChevronSTEMZone pic.twitter.com/dzAPghzmC4
— Kelvin Beachum (@KelvinBeachumJr) February 5, 2017
Beachum added that when he was playing with the Pittsburgh Steelers as a rookie in 2012, he learned from now-retired NFL quarterback Charlie Batch about the inner workings of how athletes should conduct themselves away from the gridiron. Batch was a representative with the NFL Players Association at the time and according to Beachum took him under his wing about leveraging the game in the right way and making himself visible from a speaking, radio, branding and social standpoint, too.
Even now, Beachum said he looks to Batch’s LinkedIn for guidance and insight about how to better position himself on the platform, ultimately giving him “leverage” when it comes to interacting with industry executives that he wants to do business with, either from a philanthropic or investment standpoint.
“Yes, we have money but do we have leverage? Money and leverage are two different things. When you have a great following and a great presence on LinkedIn, you have leverage, which goes a lot further I feel like,” Beachum said.
“You have to be smart about who you connect with because you just can’t connect with everybody. It’s a way for athletes to leverage their brand the right way with the right people. It’s not fan-based. People are following you because of your intellectual property. That’s what special about it for athletes.”
I’m never leaving here… pic.twitter.com/IHomm19HGz
— Kelvin Beachum (@KelvinBeachumJr) February 5, 2017