Almost as quickly as she can run a 6,000-meter loop, California cross country freshman Anastasia Snodgrass ran full steam ahead into the realm of name, image and likeness (NIL) opportunities for collegiate student-athletes. Before the San Juan Capistrano native even stepped foot in Berkeley, Snodgrass seized the chance to capitalize off of her newfound status as a Division 1 NCAA student-athlete at Cal.

"The moment I graduated high school, I began reaching out to companies whose products I use to tell them I was very interested in working with them," Snodgrass said.

Though Snodgrass has never experienced a world in which she could not reap the benefits of her NIL, this idea is still fairly new since the NCAA set forth new rules that allow student-athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness fame on July 1, 2021. These new guidelines paved the way for collegiate student-athletes to make money for their participation in activities such as commercial endorsements, special appearances, social media posting, hosting instructional camps and classes, among other things.

"Over the last two years, there have been hundreds of Cal student-athletes who have participated in NIL activities," Associate Athletics Director of Compliance & Student Services Justin DiTolla said. "At Cal, our goal has been to provide a set of resources for our student-athletes to build their brands and take advantage of NIL opportunities."

Cal Athletics launched the GOLDEN Program as one such resource for student-athletes, and partnered with the Haas School of Business and Berkeley Law to offer educational sessions, brand building workshops, NIL clinics, and a course entirely devoted to building personal brand.

"These resources have assisted our student-athletes in developing their brands so they can take full advantage of their NIL during their time at Cal and beyond," DiTolla said.

While the opportunities seem endless for student-athletes to represent a myriad of clothing, food technology brands and more, Snodgrass prides herself on the careful consideration she takes when agreeing to partner with a company. She exclusively collaborates with companies whose products she is a genuine customer of and possesses values with which she aligns. Snodgrass feels that this is the most authentic way to benefit from her NIL influence. One such partner of hers is the popular swimwear brand Jolyn, which Snodgrass has been a consumer of for years.

"Jolyn has a special place in my heart because I grew up as a swimmer and started wearing the brand from a young age," Snodgrass said. "I really wanted to reach out to them but saw that they did not have a single cross country athlete or an athlete from a school that wasn't in a beach town on their ambassador team. I was definitely going to be out of the ordinary, and I didn't know how they were going to like the idea of a cross country athlete."

Although she is an athlete in a sport that typically garners less attention from the media, Snodgrass was determined to advocate for herself and the value that her NIL holds. In fact, her strategy is to use her sport to her advantage.

"It can definitely be intimidating to see who you're going up against coming from a smaller sport, but I sell that as what makes me more unique than some other athletes," Snodgrass said. "I can be the first cross country athlete that a company has. Maybe they are looking for something new. It's about not limiting yourself and being willing to put yourself out there."

Snodgrass has also learned how to overcome the barriers that come with being a young college student pursuing NIL deals.

"Companies really like to work with juniors and seniors just because they're often more reliable and much more well-rounded than freshmen," she said. "As a freshman, I don't have a huge following base and I felt like I didn't have much on my resume, but saying that I go to Cal and was a student-athlete here is something I really felt like I had going for me and I think gave me so much leverage."

In addition to curating her personal brand identity, Snodgrass wants to use her NIL to uplift other student-athletes, particularly fellow female collegiate athletes. She is currently an ambassador with Voice in Sport, which is a community of women who provide resources and support for navigating life as a female athlete.

"I had been on the platform as a customer, joining their mentorship sessions, reading articles and listening to their podcasts," Snodgrass said. "I ended up reaching out and asking for an internship as a social media and marketing creator because I love sports and I love female empowerment within sports."

Snodgrass has chosen to collaborate primarily with female-based companies that help uplift women in sports because it feels most authentic to her personal brand.

"I feel like there's not enough resources for women in sports," she said. "I just want to make sure that everyone has the resources to help them succeed and if I can help in any shape or form, that's what I want to do. [NIL] is about more than just money. [The money] is definitely well-deserved and I do think that we should be paid for our contributions, but also it's a way to build connections and learn more about yourself and your values."

Snodgrass's experience with NIL branding and marketing is already priming her for life after college as well. Although she is just one semester into her degree, the media studies major has big goals to work in public relations, community engagement or in a creative space within business after she graduates from Cal. Her current work with NIL partnerships is giving her invaluable industry experience to bolster her future resume.

"Right now I'm learning how to grow a company and sell it," she said. "That's what I'm hoping to gain out of this [experience]. By working with these companies, I'm able to see their values and the message that they want to portray to their customers, and learn how to grow that and market it to other people."