Insider tips to level up your team’s branding

Our Youth Ambassadors Ben and Jack from DeGreeS of Freedom are whizzes when it comes to social media, branding and online outreach. So far this season, they’ve organised a media workshop to share their top tips and tricks and have collaborated with international teams to create a short film about the challenge. Check out their advice for your team’s marketing efforts below!

We are DeGreeS of Freedom, a team from Derby, competing for our second season in FIRST Tech Challenge UK. Coming off the back of our amazing success in last year’s season after winning the regional Inspire Award as a first-year team, we are heading into this season with a similar mindset. We want to have fun, enjoy the season and do the very best we can. This season, we are focused on designing and making our own robot components. We’re also putting a lot of work into our outreach, hence our current project – our short film!

Building a brand

Your brand is one of the most important parts of successful team marketing! Your logo, team colours, name and even your motto all play a part in your brand. It’s important to not just come up with these things, but present them well too. 

Above all else, your brand needs to be uniquely yours! Develop a recognisable logo, a catchy and memorable name and pick a colour scheme that represents your team. It should be something that you can incorporate into your team identity. We have used the name DeGreeS of Freedom as it contains the initials of our school; DGS for Derby Grammar School.

Becoming social media champions

Social media is your friend throughout the challenge. We have found that it is not just about posting a new robot iteration, it’s about representing your team through your brand and getting involved with the other teams out there! There is a huge FIRST Tech Challenge community in the US, which is invaluable for not only gaining a following but also for advice and collaboration. 

DeGreeS of Freedom’s robot for the 2023-24 CENTERSTAGE season. Photo by Jack.

Posting regularly and utilising the professional tools on social media is also very beneficial. Use the professional insights tools to learn about your demographic, and keep your followers updated using Instagram stories, giving them summary reels and letting them know what’s coming up – that’s why they follow you!

When we were starting out, we tried every form of social media, posts, stories, etc, but we found that short-form content in the form of reels was the best. It had the best audience retention and the best number of views and likes. Now, with this information we got from using professional tools on social media, we make weekly update reels about the robot build. It’s working great for us!

Strategising for your socials

Another thing to keep in mind is the professionalism of your account. How does your account look to potential sponsors and other teams? Try to have an easy-to-remember username, a catchy and informative bio, and keep your homepage clean, all in line with your brand. As you develop the different parts of your brand, incorporating them into everything will become second nature.

Teams, use the tools available to you such as the large and supportive FIRST Tech Challenge community. Get chatting with other teams online, make content and have fun doing it!

When you have exhausted your content ideas, here are some of our ideas:

• Weekly summary reels
• Introduce your team – spotlight every member of your team and tell your audience a bit about them
• Collaborate with other teams on projects like our short film
• Share your invaluable resources with the world – other teams will appreciate it

But lastly, enjoy the season and enjoy making content with your teammates. After all, FIRST Tech Challenge UK is all about having fun while learning something new, so show this through the content you produce!

Good luck!

You can follow DeGreeS of Freedom on Instagram at @1degreesoffreedom_ftc or their behind-the-scenes account at @degrees_of_freedom_bts to follow their journey this season! DM them to get involved in their short film.