by Sean Devlin, Front Rush
Think last year was a big year in recruiting technology development? You haven’t seen anything yet!
2010 promises to be one of the biggest and best years in terms of technology that college coaches can use to recruit prospects. Our team of recruiting technology experts at Front Rush wanted to give you a sneak-peek at what to look for later this year, and how to put all of these new tools to work for you and your program:
The New Blackberry Browser
For anyone who owns a Blackberry and has surfed the web, you are fully aware of how poor this experience is. Well, fear not! In the coming months, Blackberry is releasing a powerful new browser and, from what we’ve seen, it will be awesome – maybe better than its iPhone counterpart!
Facebook Email
That’s right…the rumors are that Facebook is building its own fully functional email client system. How will the college recruiting world react? What does this mean for compliance? Will your recruits be leaving their Yahoo, Hotmail, and Gmail accounts to switch to a Facebook email client? We’ll keep you up-to-date with the latest developments as they unfold. Stay tuned…
Apple’s iPad
Apple is releasing their iPad device which essentially looks like a giant iPhone. For coaches who are willing to shell out the $499 (plus quite a bit more if you need cellular connection), this could be a game changer for their recruiting efforts. It has all of the benefits of accessing the web and your recruiting software like an iPhone (but in a much larger format) but none of the negatives of having to carry around a laptop.
Skype for Mobile Devices
If you use Skype for making phone calls (for about three dollars a month, you get unlimited phone calls outgoing and incoming), you will be able to make them over your mobile phone in 2010. Why does this matter? Well if you are paying your own cellular bill, than this will guarantee no overage charges because it will essentially give you unlimited minutes.
"Usability"
This is a little bit different, but the big focus for web companies is finally shifting to usability. Your overall internet experience should improve in 2010 as more companies pay more attention to their customers and the way they use their products.
Front Rush is our recommended technology resource, and a leader in the recruiting database management market. For more insights on technology and recruiting, make plans to come to the 2010 National Collegiate Recruiting Conference in Chicago this July 16-18. Front Rush will be one of the presenters, outlining the most effective ways to incorporate technology into your recruiting plan.
