Dan Tudor

Letters and emails.

Like it or not, those are usually the first bits of key communication that you will have with new recruits.  They are usually the thing that kicks-off the recruiting process in most coaching offices when a new year starts, and its a big part of the equation we’ll be tackling in a few weeks in California as we present our popular "Building a Winning Recruiting Message" workshop for coaches who register to be a part of it. 

The problem with most letters?  They’re not getting read because they aren’t interesting to the reader – remember, your prospects are teenagers!  That’s a tough market to crack when it comes to capturing their attention and getting them to pay attention to what you’re saying (as you probably already know).  And if you’ve read our special report, "Inside the Mind of Your College Prospect", you know the drastic drop-off in your mail getting opened and read by those prospects, as well as why that happens most of the time.

The secret to getting your letter open, and read?  It all comes down to what’s in the letter. 

No, not the number of bullet-points or stats you’ve crammed in to that 8 1/2 x 11 inch piece of letterhead stationary.  I’m talking about how you talk to them in your letter, and how it’s structured.

I have seven tips I want to share with you that any coach can use to really enhance your recruiting letters and e-mails.  They work great…athletic departments we work with have started to use them over the past few months, and are realizing better results.  See if any of them sound good to use in your recruiting letters:

BE SOMEBODY!  In other words, coach, put your face and voice into the letter.  Make the words connect with your reader.  Take it out of the passive, formal text that normally comprises recruiting letters.  Instead, make the words jump off the page by making it your voice that speaks to the reader.  That "somebody" I want you to be is YOU! 

TALK TO YOUR READER.  Avoid "we" and "I".  Instead, make sure your recruiting letter is packed with "you".  One message that I try to get across to any coach I work with is that they don’t care about you, your program, or what’s important to you.  They only care about themselves, and what makes them happy.  Focus solely on their dreams and goals in your letters.

BE PERSONAL.  Pretend you’re talking to a friend or fellow coach.  What would you say?  What would they say?  What would you say back?  Avoid wording like, "Here at State University, we pride ourselves in…" in favor of something like, "You know what’s really great about playing softball here at State?"  Notice the difference?  Make your letters personal and conversational.

IDENTIFY WITH YOUR PROSPECT.  Let your recruit know that you’ve been there…you understand…you know what they’re going through.  Connect with them at their level, and you’ll stand a greater chance of signing them. 

PUT A FACE ON YOUR COMPETITION.  Whenever you can, in a professional way, point out the short-comings of your competition.  Compare your personal touch with their impersonal touch.  Your commitment to the prospect’s future, compared with your competition who only seems concerned with forcing them to commit early.  Bring your competition to life in a way that draws your prospect back to you.

PROVE EVERY POINT USING PERSONAL EXAMPLES.  Listing all the great stuff about your program is weak and pointless if you can’t relate it back directly to your prospect, and their future.  If you really want to make your point, get a quote from one of your current players that backs up the point you’re making.  Your prospects respect (and listen to) their peers more than they’ll listen to you.

DON’T AFRAID TO GO OVERBOARD ONCE IN A WHILE.  What do I mean by "overboard"?  I mean an outrageously cocky, confident, self-serving statement.  Something like, "Let me just tell you, I think we’re the best program in the West" or "I believe, with all my heart, that our athletes get the best college baseball experience of any program in the state."  Don’t use them too much, but every once in a while is good.  Athletes want to see that you’re confident and passionate about your program.

Try to put these first seven tips into practice right away…you’ll notice a difference!

The SFC Total Recruiting Solution plan can give you customized letters and email messages for you and your staff as a part of a long term recruiting strategy.  Want to hear more about it?  Email Dan Tudor directly at dan@sellingforcoaches.com to get an overview of this unique recruiting tool.

by Mandy Green, Selling for Coaches 

Coaching your team and developing leadership starts with having a vision statement, then developing a plan to achieve it.  That’s the starting point for every business that wants to be successful, and it’s a must for college coaches who want to build a successful program.

A vision statement answers the questions "What will our program look like 5 to 10 years from now?"

A vision is more than a destination.  It is an inspiration, a motivator, and a rallying point for a team.  Results matter, but they are often the by-products of an effectively created and communicated vision. 

How does the vision you have for you team apply to recruiting?

Dan Tudor, the founder of Selling for Coaches, talks a lot about how recruits don’t care about your past or your present, they only care about how they fit into your future.   

Coaches who consistently sign the recruits they want have mastered really good communication and a great selling message on how the program’s future expectations, goals, and aspirations will meet the recruit’s needs and help him or her achieve their goals.  

Communication of a vision is the difficult process of inspiring your recruits to see the future reality which you see, and are committed to make happen for them. Communicating your vision will help recruits focus their energies to see that their real needs might best be met through your program.

So, how do you do it?  Communicating your vision is talking about the future, evoking images and responses in the mind about what it is going to be like for them over the next 4 years while at your college.  Communicate your vision so people can feel it, see it, and feel it. 

When communicating and selling your vision to recruits remember the following:

1. Clearly articulate the vision of your organization.
2. Be enthusiastic toward your vision, and let others see your passion for that vision.
3. Repeatedly share the vision in various ways.

Concentrate on the "what’s-in-it-for-them" and the what’s-in-it-for-you will usually take care of itself.

Developing leadership techniques with your current athletes is essential for long-term success at the college level.  Did you know SFC has a complete program for helping you train your athletes to buy into your vision, and help you recruit future athletes?  Do you need help building real leaders on your team?  Email Mandy Green at mandy@sellingforcoaches.com and ask about our special workshop for coaches who want to develop their current players and program.

by Carrie Bigbie, Selling for Coaches 

There has been a lot of buzz lately about college athletic department budget cuts, or at least the threat of reductions in the near future.  Some schools are losing programs, while others are having to find ways to work around their ever tightening budget. 

At many colleges, recruiting has become one of the major areas that seems to be effected by the worsening economic climate.  Coaches and recruiters are having to search for other ways to reach their top prospects for less.

“It is no longer becoming feasible for some coaches to spend time and money traveling to see kids,” says Brad Downs, co-Founder of Front Rush (pictured here in his college baseball days at the College of New Jersey).  “Coaches are looking to technology to build relationships, expand their reach and communicate more effectively.  And, they’re learning how to do it far more economically than some of their fellow coaches who are reacting more slowly to this changing economic climate.”

Besides saving money on travel expenses, coaches are finding the need to find other creative solutions to recruiting more effectively.  And, they are trying to doing it from the convenience of their office.

“Coaches are having to find ways to recruit smarter,” says Lisa Strasman, NCSA Recruiting Coach Director.  “NCSA’s high tech approach includes our free Recruit-Match™ database, which helps track more than 100,000 of the top high school student athletes in the country.”

The result for coaches who use their system?  Free access to a nationwide network of pre-qualified prospects, filtered to match a coach’s specific needs and guidelines.  Plus, NCSA has a dedicated team of former college coaches and athletes that can work with you (at no charge) to help you put together a great recruiting class.

Although no coach wants to hear that they have to reduce their spending, or no longer can go to scout their recruits as they once did, there are solutions that can help if this is the case.  Even when the budget does get back to normal, coaches might just find these are still good solutions they would like to continue using for their long term recruiting needs.

Phone calls to prospects: That was the hot topic this past weekend for coaches in Atlanta during our successful "Overcoming Objections" recruiters conference, and it’s on the mind of the college staff I am working with today in the Northeast conducting one of our SFC On-Campus Workshops.

Why are recruiting phone calls such a popular topic right now?  Here’s my take…

We’re at that time of year when coaches all over the country are starting to hear about decisions from their prospects (or wishing they were hearing from them, in many cases!).  For the majority of coaches reading this today, the jury is still out in terms of what next year’s recruiting class looks like.

What’s a nervous coach to do?  I know what you want to do.  You want to pick up the phone and make another follow-up call to that prospect who’s taking just a little too long to call you back with a decision.

So, since many coaches seem to be facing the challenge of making effective follow-up phone calls, I wanted to give you six tips for making great follow-up calls to your recruits.  See how many of these proven strategies you are already doing as a part of your recruiting plan, and what others you need to add to make it more effective. 

Get a Commitment from Your Prospect for the Follow-up
Perhaps the single biggest mistake coaches make is not establishing a specific date and time for the follow-up call at the end of their previous visit. Vague commitments from prospects ("call me sometime next week if you want") or recruiters ("I’ll send the paperwork you need and follow-up in a couple of days or so") result in missed calls, voice mail messages and ultimately a longer recruiting cycle. All you need to do is ask for an exact follow-up date and time. Try something like this, Coach:

"I’ll be glad to work up all of the paperwork you need to get back to me and mail it to you. And what I would like to recommend is that we set up Tuesday, the 19th, at say, 8:45 to review it in detail and determine the next steps if any. How does that sound?"

If you’re registered for our upcoming December workshop in California, "Building a Winning Recruiting Message", you’ll learn all about why asking how something "sounds" is vital to moving the process forward.  For right now, just trust me…ask "how does that sound?" instead of something like "what do you think?"

Back to your call…if this is not a good time, recommend another time. If that doesn’t work, get them to establish a time and date. Creating a deadline is a simple but extremely powerful tactic. Use it.

Build "Call Equity" and Be Remembered
After every first call to a prospect, send a thank-you card. Handwrite a message that simply says, "John, thank you for taking the time to speak with me today. I look forward to catching-up with you further on the 16th! Keep up the good work." No more, no less.

In today’s fast paced world, a handwritten card tells your prospect that you took the time and the effort to do something a little different. This registers in your recruit’s mind and creates a degree of "equity" in you. It differentiates you and is remembered. And, it gives your teenage prospect a reason to be there when you make your follow-up call.  If you want the details behind this line of thinking, you should read our special report that goes inside the mind of your college prospect…it’s fascinating, and will tell you all about what your prospects think about handwritten notes and letters.

If you don’t think a card will get there in time, send an email with the same note. Just be aware that an email does not have nearly the same impact as a handwritten note.

Email a Reminder and an Agenda
The day before your follow-up call, email your prospect to remind him or her of your appointment. In the subject line, enter the words: "Telephone appointment for March 19th and article of interest." Note that the subject line acts as a reminder but it is vague enough that the prospect will probably open it. There is a hint that maybe the date and time has changed.

Your email should confirm the date and time of the appointment and then briefly list your agenda:

"John, the call should only take about 10 or 15 minutes. We’ll review what we talked about last time and I’ll answer any questions. And then we’ll determine the next steps, if any."

Notice how the words echo those used when the follow-up was initially set. In particular, notice the trigger phrase ". . .the next steps, if any." The "if any" helps reduce some of the stress or concern your prospects or their parents might have. Often they skip the follow-up call because they are worried that they’ll be pressured to make a commitment. This is natural. If prospects sense an easy, informal, "no pressure" type of phone call, they are more likely to show up and be on time for that call.

Add Value in a P.S.
Notice the reference to an article in your email’s subject line. At the end of your email, add a P.S. that says, "John, in the meantime, here’s an article I thought you might enjoy regarding. . ."

The article may be about your your team, a big win, an interesting story about a recruiting issue of interest, or something completely non-sports related that might show a little bit of your fun side. This creates tremendous value even if your recruit does not open it. Why? Because you took the time to do something extra. This helps you be remembered and gives the prospect yet another reason to take your follow-up call.

Of course, this means you have to do some homework, Coach. Keep an eye out on the web for articles of interest and value relative to your sport or the topic of recruiting. You might even keep a file of these articles because they can be used over and over again with future recruits.

Call On Time
Don’t start your relationship on the wrong foot. Call on time. Never, ever be late with your follow-up call. Not even by a minute. The promptness and respect you show on a follow-up call reflects on you, your program and your college.

By the way, you know who notices late calls the most?  The parents.  And you don’t want to get your relationship with them off on the wrong foot, do you?

Avoid Opening Statement Blunders
So many coaches stumble and fall by using these routine follow-up opening statements:

"I was calling to follow-up on the paperwork…"
"I am just calling to see if you had any questions…"
"I just wanted to make sure you got my email…"
"I was just calling to see if you had had a chance to think about things…" 
   
These opening statements are not only poor, they are commonplace and do nothing to differentiate you. You are perceived as yet another run of the mill coach looking for a "sale". You need a little more pizzazz, don’t you think?  Think of ways to differentiate yourself and give your prospect a real reason to sit up and pay attention to your follow-up call.

Here’s the key to follow-up calls: Have something original to say, and know when to say it.  It’s a bit of an art form, to be honest, and the best way to become an expert at it is to practice, practice, practice.

New information gets attention and keeps your prospects engaged.  Old information, or no information at all, results in a non-productive phone call every single time. 

Got prospects to follow-up with before the holidays come around?  Try some new tactics and use some of these tips to get a better response.

Want help developing your plan and getting our team of experts creating creative messages for you to use in your recruiting?  Click here.

by Carrie Bigbie, Selling for Coaches 

Picture this coach: You are wanting to go to a high school game to check out a potential recruit but logistically you cannot be there because of scouting your next opponent.  You and the other coaches need a way to see this athlete play so you can decide if he would be a good fit for your team.

Even if college coaches can’t make it to see their prospects play in person, there is now new technology that allows them to see it all through video – video that uses technology to analyze the mechanics of each prospect’s movement.  College coaches who are scouting an athlete can give high school and junior college coaches a dedicated Dartfish TV channel so they can upload video of the team and or players to review over the Internet.  It is a completely secure site so coaches would decide who has access to it to review the video.

“College coaches could use this type of technology to watch a video and break down a recruit’s pitching or hitting mechanics and make that part of their decision criteria,” says Chuck Wilmot, Regional Sales Director, Dartfish USA.

If the college baseball program is looking to recruit pitchers, the Inside Edge Palm Scout can be helpful in capturing and gathering statistical information about their pitching.  All of the information is stored in the Inside Edge device and can be downloaded using Dartfish and can then be sent with the video over their Dartfish TV channel.

“This solution provides coaches the ability to make player assessments based on game video review where they can collaborate with other coaching staff over the Internet with no logistics issues,” says Wilmot.  “Spreadsheets and word documents can be attached to the player’s video having all the recruiting data in one place where the coaching staff can review this data online.”

Imagine the ability to remove logistic hurdles, being able to upload a video so the coaching staff can review it, and having statistical information right there while watching the video.  College baseball coaches can get a free online demonstration by emailing Chuck Wilmot at chuck.wilmot@dartfish.com or calling him directly at 817.329.9285. 

Not a baseball coach?  No problem…Dartfish TV can help transform the recruiting evaluation process for any college coach.  Click here to get a free demo.