Earlier this month, on the ITL website, we posted a list of 30 agencies that seem to be doing the most business in the NIL space. Predictably, it’s created quite a stir with some of the agencies listed there (as well as some of the ones that weren’t). I think this calls for a disclaimer and maybe a clarification about the post.

Granted, we should have known it had the potential to explode, no matter what. That’s what social media is for, right? Making a big splash? Still, we tried to couch things by saying we were/are “seeking opinions from people in the industry” and that it was “based on initial feedback” only. We also closed the post by asking “where are we wrong?” and “where are we right?” Bottom line, the idea was to start a dialogue, not create a proclamation.

We’ve gotten a lot of feedback and rightfully so. Some firms have claimed that though they don’t do the raw numbers, their clientele has more star power. Or, they get more money for their clients. These claims have merit. Is the best metric raw numbers, or biggest clients, or dollars earned in deals? It’s probably a combination of all three, but given how undefined this industry is right now, it’s hard to find any objective truth. Then there’s the total number of agencies we listed. Is 30 a good number? Should it really be 25? Should it be 50? I don’t know. Again, 30 seemed like a good starting point.

Maybe we let this “out of the lab” too quickly. The thing is, you have to start somewhere, right? If we’re really going to find answers, we have to risk bruising some egos, even if that’s not intended. Fresh off our symposium, and maybe a little flush with its success, we wanted to keep pushing the conversation. We ran our list past several GMs and several top NIL agents, but it was in no way exhaustive or scientific. Honestly, I don’t know how much vetting would be enough, but I’m pretty sure it hadn’t been vetted sufficiently when we posted it. Again, it was a starting point, not a finished product.

With all that said, you still might see some NIL agencies touting their presence on the list. I guess I can’t stop them. But I think our post needed more perspective, so here it is. We stand behind our posts, but we also think you deserve the full picture.

We have a whole lot more to say about agencies, their roles, and the positives and negatives they bring to the NIL space in today’s Friday Wrap, which comes out at 7:30 p.m. EST. It’s free. If you’re not already registered for it, do that here.