Today we’d like to introduce you to Ty Marion.
Hi Ty, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Thank you guys for having me. It all started back in 2014 when I got a GoPro for my 11th birthday. I used the GoPro to film videos of me and my 8 best friends, so one day we could relive our favorite memories from growing up. I would create videos of us playing basketball against each other or skiing down our hilly neighborhood street when it snowed. When I wasn’t hanging out with my best friends, I was playing football. Born into a sports family, I knew nothing other than football growing up, and this is where my love for the game came from.
Fast forward to 2019, the summer going into my sophomore year of high school, I realized my dreams of playing quarterback in the NFL would not come true. That’s when I decided to combine my passion for creating content with my love of football. I realized I had everything to gain and nothing to lose, so with no portfolio to speak of, I started to reach out to every player on my favorite football team at the University of Miami. I sent nearly 100 DMs on Instagram and only received one reply, from DeeJay Dallas.
DeeJay was the star running back of the Miami football team that year so I mentioned the idea of doing weekly highlight videos for him, recapping his best plays from each game. This was something that no college football player had done at the time. The series of videos was catching not only the attention of DeeJay’s 30,000 Instagram followers (at the time), but other players as well. I would put “@tymarionn” at the end of each video. As the season progressed, I started getting messages from some of his teammates such as KJ Osborn (current Minnesota Vikings star wide receiver), and I began doing work for him as well. This is when I knew I needed to create a brand that was bigger than me. I decided to create TradeMark, using my first and last name initials, and started branding all of my work as @trademarkcreations.
After the season, DeeJay and KJ declared for the 2020 NFL draft, and I was lucky enough to now have clients in the NFL. As a 15-year-old who looked up to these athletes and had one day wanted to be them, it felt surreal. I continued to work with them as their dreams of playing in the NFL came true.
The next off-season, during the spring of 2021, DeeJay’s agency flew me out to Arizona to create content for their social media accounts – Elite Athlete Management – which represented stars such as Odell Beckham Jr. (Baltimore Ravens), Christian Kirk (Jacksonville Jaguars), and Kyler Gordon (Chicago Bears). At first, my parents were hesitant to allow me to fly across the country alone. I was 16 years old, staying with the athletes and agents for a week (while also attending on-line school due to Covid), but they trusted the vision I had and let me go. It was the best decision. I was able to create relationships with many of the players at the training facility in Scottsdale, Arizona including Saquon Barkley, star running back of the New York Giants. I continued to build my network and create long-lasting relationships with many players and agents I met in Scottsdale.
In the summer of 2022, before I headed off to the University of Miami, I worked with Saquon on an off-season training project. We started to build a relationship and since then I have worked with him on projects including youth camps, off-season workouts, and personal golf trips. This is when I realized all the hard work and consistency from the previous years was starting to pay off.
Fast forward to today, the start of 2024, I am a sophomore at the University of Miami. I’ve grown TradeMark into a team of 10 of the most talented individuals in the industry. We’re currently working with over 30 NFL players and 10 sports agencies assisting them in building their brand with marketing and media. Looking back from what started as sending a DM, to now, working with some of my favorite figures and athletes, I am thankful for the opportunities each day brings.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Not at all. When I was in high school and just trying to figure out life, I had to figure out how to balance commuting to school 45 minutes away, pushing myself academically, playing quarterback for my high school team –and then coming home to finish my schoolwork, work on creating videos I was so passionate about, and building the TradeMark brand. It was an incredibly stressful time.
The biggest setback came in January 2020, after I received a letter from the University of Miami compliance office notifying me that I would have to take down all of my Miami content since it violated NCAA guidelines for college athletes. This was before Name-Image-Likeness (NIL) became legal. I was distraught. Even though I was not profiting from these videos at the time, after receiving that letter I did not want to hurt my chances of getting into my dream School – the University of Miami. I had no other option than to stop working with UM football players. However, I used this as an opportunity to expand my network. I started working with other star college football players from schools like University of Georgia and University of Michigan.
As the TradeMark brand continued to grow, I started to receive daily requests from incredible athletes and agents, I couldn’t turn down these opportunities. I was a 16-year-old kid working with multi-million-dollar agencies and had professional athletes relying on me to deliver them the content they needed to market themselves. It had to be great and on-time. I’m lucky to have learned early on how to balance my work with school, while prioritizing my mental health and friendships with my family and friends.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
TradeMark is a media and marketing agency that works with athletes, agencies, brands and influencers to build their brands in today’s world of social media. Founded in 2019 – we have grown into a firm with 10 individual content creators, marketing managers, account managers, and writers.
What separates TradeMark from others is not only the precision we take in our work, but the collaborative communication we have with our clients. Over the past 5 years, we have proven our consistency in creating tailored campaigns for our clients. Our continued trust from our client roster of top athletes such as Saquon Barkley, Garrett Wilson, and DeeJay Dallas. Also, top agencies such as Klutch Sports Group and Wasserman Group, shows the trust they have in our team to bring their vision to life.
What makes you happy?
What makes me happy is seeing our clients reactions to the final products. With the talented team we have; everyone is always impressed and so appreciative what we do for them. I enjoy communicating with our clients, and value the relationships and experiences outside of work that have developed as a result of partnering together. I am excited for what is to come!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.
trademarksm.com - Instagram: https://
www.instagram.com/ trademarkcreations/ - Linkedin: www.
linkedin.com/in/ty-marion
