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New NCAA Rules Mean New Potential Pitfalls for College RecruitersMonday, January 23rd, 2012

The dust has settled, and the new NCAA rules for 2012 are in place.

And with new rules come new opportunities:  In Division II, coaches now have more time to contact recruits and a variety of new ways to reach them – text messaging, social networks and even message boards.  In Division III, text messaging is now allowed (however, contact via social media websites like Facebook and Twitter is still prohibited).

But with new opportunities come new challenges for savvy recruiters.  In reading over the new rules, there are a few pitfalls I can see an unprepared college coach stumbling into as they begin to recruit new prospects using these new rules.  (And by the way, even though these new rules mainly affect Division II and Division III college coaches, Division I and NAIA coaches can learn from the potential mistakes we’ve outlined and apply them to their own recruiting strategies):

Division II coaches can now visit a prospect in person on an unlimited basis beginning June 15th prior to the prospect’s Junior year in high school. Here’s the problem:  Our research is showing that coaches who stage multiple visits without sharing new information or giving the prospect a sense that the recruiting process is moving forward risk alienating the prospect.  Current college athletes we interview as a part of our On-Campus Workshops tell us that they grow impatiently very quickly when coaches contact them, but don’t have anything new to say or don’t outline where the process stands.  I see this as a potential risk for coaches who begin regular visits to view a recruit:  The recruit sees a coach, talks to a coach, and nothing new is verbalized by the coach.  If you plan on increasing the frequency of your visits, make sure you are consistently outlining new information and new steps in the process to your prospect and their parents.

Division II coaches now have more time to personally recruit athletes, beginning June 15th prior to an athlete’s Junior year. The same potential pitfall exists here as it did in the previous item.  More face to face time, but not enough new information to keep the prospect engaged and feeling like the process is moving forward.  Additionally, if you are starting the recruiting process before your prospect begins their Junior year as the new rules allows, focus your questions on what they want out of the process and what they want to talk about…not what they want in a college or a coach.  That’s too big of a concept to grasp for most of them, so don’t introduce a conversation about the topic (yet).

Division II coaches can use text messaging and message boards, as well as private messaging through Facebook. This holds one of the biggest potential pitfalls for coaches.  We see college coaches wasting the opportunity to form a deeper relationship with their recruits by simply posting athletic department sports information releases and other bland communication via Facebook.  Don’t do that, Coach.  Facebook – and text messaging – is an extremely personal way of communicating for today’s teenagers.  If you supply them with a steady stream of adult news about your program, don’t be surprised when they tune you out.  Keep it real, honest and personal.  Use YouTube videos made by your team versus professionally edited videos from your sports information office, and write in a personal blog style instead of using “news reporting” language in your messaging.

Division II and Division III coaches have an expanded use of text messaging. What not to do?  Trying to “sell” your school and your program through text messaging.  There is no faster way to be rejected by your prospect than sending anything resembling a sales message via text message to a recruit.  We know this because of the testing and research we’ve done with our list of college coach clients we help as we formulate their recruiting strategy and actual messaging communication, and I can tell you as bluntly as possible that a coach who uses text messaging to overtly sell their program will ruin their chances of connecting with that athlete in a trusted way as the process moves forward.  Save text messaging for discussing the recruiting process, building a friendly relationship, and talking about specific points in the recruiting process as follow-up to other conversations via phone, mail and email.  Remember, texting is very personal and very informal.  Keep it that way and use it to build a relationship with the athlete…not to sell.

The new rules reflect the way we see communication with recruits heading, and I think they will provide coaches with some important new avenues for making strong connections with recruits.  However, there are also some real dangers in not approaching these new liberties correctly.  Make sure you’re one of the coaches that uses the new rules correctly right from the beginning.

We strongly recommend you make plans on attending this Summer’s National Collegiate Recruiting Conference.  It’s designed specifically for motivated college recruiters who want to be the best that they can be in the battle for their top prospects.  Click here for all the information and to reserve your seat at this year’s event!

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Five Phone Call Strategies Working for Smart College RecruitersMonday, January 9th, 2012

In this age of prospects friending you on Facebook, or following you on Twitter, it’s good to know that most of what you’re going to be doing to solidify the relationships you’ve nurtured up to this point will be done over the phone.

The interesting irony of that fact, of course, is that it’s also one of the most difficult parts of the recruiting process for many college recruiters.

It’s a timely topic as we start the new year:  We’re at that point 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.

So, 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.

Since many coaches seem to be facing the challenge of making effective follow-up phone calls, I wanted to give you several 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 regular recruiting communication plan, and what  you may want to consider adding to make it more effective.

Get a Commitment from Your Prospect for the Follow-up
Perhaps the single biggest mistake I watch 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:

“John, I’m going to be sending you and your parents that overview of our program that we’ve been talking about.  You’ll have it by the end of the week, so how about I call back next Wednesday night around 7:30. How does that sound?”  Trust me on this one…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 set future time and date. Creating a deadline is a simple but extremely powerful tactic that gets a prospect’s attention. 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 short, handwritten card tells your prospect (and his or her parents) that you took the time and the effort to do something a little differently than most other coaches. We’ve seen this register in your recruit’s mind and creates a degree of “equity” in you. When we suggest this as a strategy for our coaches who are clients, we notice that it differentiates them immediately and is remembered for a long time afterwards. 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 “Inside the Mind of Your High School Prospect”, 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 phone call, email your prospect to remind him or her of your appointment and something else that you can attach that might interest them like an article about your or your program. In the subject line, enter the words: “You and I talking on March 19th – and something extra for you.” 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 since you last talked.

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 what you see as 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, before our call, I wanted to show this to you…check it out.”

As I referenced earlier, 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.

(By the way, if you want some extra research on why a P.S. works so well, click here)

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?

Here’s the bottom line, Coach: 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 now that we’ve started the new year?  Try some new tactics and use some of these tips to get a better response.

If you need more tips on how to successfully recruit this generation of recruits, you really need to attend our upcoming National Collegiate Recruiting Conference.  It’s a three day, one-of-a-kind recruiting weekend dedicated to making you the dominant recruiter in your conference .  Click here to learn more.

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Why We All Pay Attention to Oregon’s Cool, New Football HelmetsMonday, January 2nd, 2012

“Dang, this is really their face mask?” said an admiring Wisconsin center Peter Konz this past weekend, as his team was preparing to face the Oregon Ducks in the Rose Bowl played yesterday.

“I’m going to have like metallic stains on my jersey. Wow. That’s pretty cool, though.”

Yes, the Oregon Ducks have broken new ground with their metallic, reflective football helmets.  And as you can see, even their opponents were awed by the next evolution in equipment creativity, courtesy of the Ducks.

But it’s not just their opponents.  It’s virtually everyone.  I follow lots of college coaches on Twitter, and it seems everyone was talking about the Oregon helmets.  Coaches, fans, recruits, the media…everyone.

Which would seem to make the case for a coach who contends that “the stuff” – facilities, uniforms, locker rooms, strength and conditioning centers - is what a recruit bases their school choice decision upon, right?

Wrong.

This is where I find most coaches failing to connect the dots.  Many programs in many different sports at the college level introduce new logos, new uniforms and new facilities every year.  Few get the kind of press that Oregon’s seemingly bi-monthly football uniform adaptations get.

Why is that?

In my opinion, and based on our ongoing research with recruits and how they make their final decisions, it’s more about the fact that the constant uniform evolution at Oregon has become the main story, making the individual styles almost secondary.  A mirror-like, reflective metallic helmet?  “That’s Oregon”, said one Wisconsin player this week.  The fact that Oregon does it with regularity?  That’s the main story here.

Here are a few thing all this means for you, no matter what sport or division level you coach:

  1. The story matters. And as Oregon football has proven over the past few years, telling it with regularity pays big dividends.  As you start the new year, what is the big story you’re telling your recruits?
  2. Telling it regularly is important. Oregon has taken uniform changes to a new level with the frequency of their new combinations.  Think about it…the frequency is what makes it unusual and unique.  The fact that football players at Oregon get to expect a new uniform combination on a week by week basis is the story.  As you start the new year, how can you take something good and make it great by talking about it more?
  3. Embrace who you are.  Don’t “invent” your story. Wisconsin changed their uniforms for the game, too.  Compared to what Oregon did, it didn’t make as much news.  But they branched out by working with Adidas on its Rose Bowl uniform, which incorporates figures of the rose petal into its red numbers and lettering.  “Subtle, but classic to what Wisconsin is,” said the uniform designer.  “We’re not as wild as Oregon, but it’s different. It’s nice.”  The Badger players are proud to wear traditional uniforms and helmets.  “These uniforms have been worn for many years by many great players,” he says. “We try to embrace what we have here. Not many other schools can stick to what they’re doing. That’s what makes us: We stick to what we’re doing.”  As you start your new year, what can you do emphasize your traditions and your history…and the fact that you aren’t changing anytime soon?
  4. Be on the edge. Reflective helmets?  That’s edgy.  But then again, that’s Oregon.  The Wisconsin football team did it their own way, emphasizing stability and their long tradition.  Whatever route you choose, go all the way.  Be extraordinary.  That’s another thing that gets a lot of attention for the Ducks: They raise the bar for being creative and breaking new ground.  As you start your new year, make a promise to yourself that you’ll do everything at 100% when it comes to telling your story to your recruits, your team and your fans.
  5. Always look for new ways to tell your story. Make this the year you not only use social media to tell your story, but really understand what your athletes want as you communicate with them.  Letters and emails?  Look for new ways to tell your story and build your foundation with your recruits.

Yes, the helmets were cool.  But the story about the helmets is what we’ve all bought.  We expect it now from Oregon.  That’s the story that they’ve created, and most of us listen to it.

And that’s why we all pay attention to Oregon’s new helmets.

The premier recruiting conference in the country will give you and your staff new, creative ideas on how to tell your recruiting story more effectively.  Clients attend for free, but the conference is open to any college coach or athletic director.  For all the information on attending the National Collegiate Recruiting Conference, click here!

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Should You Use Assimilation or Differentiation with Your Next Prospect?Monday, December 19th, 2011

All of us have the need to be included in a group.

Your prospects are no different.

It all goes back to our primary need for two basic psychological drives: Assimilation and differentiation.

Assimilation is our basic longing to be included in a group, while differentiation is the pleasure we derive from being “set apart” as special.  Both are important for coaches to keep in mind as they are recruiting.

So, let me ask you a question:

How are you incorporating those two basic psychological principles in your recruiting strategy?

Most coaches aren’t.  And those that are usually do so by mistake…getting great results, but not quite sure why.

So, I wanted to share some of the reasons incorporating answers to your recruit’s basic psychological need to be included, or set apart, are so effective in getting them to take a serious look at you and your program.

Here are three fairly common recruiting scenarios, and how this strategy can work to help overcome an obstacle you might be facing with a future prospect:

  • Designate their uniqueness by location. This works especially well if you’re dealing with prospects from out of state.  You can try to make them feel special by telling them that they are “one of only x number of players” you’re recruiting from that area, and that you are specifically wanting to take a serious look at them since they are from an area that you’ve targeted.  Sometimes, making them part of a special group you are targeting sets you apart from other programs that are just recruiting them as a regular prospect.
  • Use assimilation as a method to attract wishy-washy prospects to your campus. As you may have noticed, today’s teenage prospect (and their parents) are sometimes hesitant to commit to a campus visit if you and your program aren’t at the very top of your list.  An effective strategy we’ve seen work is to tell your recruit and their family that you need (not want, need) them to visit campus as soon as possible so that you can go over your plan for them, and – assuming it’s an athlete that you’ve decided you want in your program – talk about the offer you’re going to be making them.  Including them in a select group, and giving them a specific reason for needing to come to campus, is turning out to be a compelling draw for many recruits.  Consider it when you find yourself in the scenario I just described.
  • Ask for an early commitment so that your recruit becomes part of an exclusive group. We find that a lot of recruits are wary of committing early, especially to a program that hasn’t done well in the past, need an extra push at the end of the recruiting process.  Again, turning to those two proven psychological needs might provide you with the answer you’re looking for:  Try suggesting that you want them to be one of your recruits that gives you an early commitment so that they can be a part of a select group of your new athletes that you can start preparing early for their upcoming college career.  In other words, use the early commitment to place your prospect in an exclusive group that leads them to make a commitment, or explain why they aren’t ready.

You can expand this concept into other areas of your recruiting, as well.  The main point here is that more coaches need to try to formulate a strategy to find a way to get your recruit into a group that they want to be in.  They have a need to be included, and feel like they belong.

If you can find a way to do that, you’ll find that it’ll make a difference to the recruits you really want.

Want more ideas on how to use the latest research and recruiting strategies to your advantage?  We’ve got lots of great resources for serious college coaches.  Click here to take a look at what we can do for you, Coach!

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Your Recruiting Strategy: Horse Race or Beauty Pageant?Monday, December 12th, 2011

One of our clients called a couple of weeks ago, and she was worried.

A couple of her new recruits hadn’t responded to her first two emails and was wondering if we needed to highlight more of the things her Division I college had to offer their students and athletes.

“I’m worried if we don’t out-shine a couple of our other competitors soon, we won’t be able to get her on campus this Spring”, said the coach.

What I told her is what I want to tell you:

Recruiting isn’t a beauty pageant, it’s a horse race.

Here’s what I mean:

A beauty pageant is all about picking who looks the best, and who presents themselves the most convincingly to the judges.  Now I’ll admit, there are some recruits who fall into this category…they’ll pick a program using the most basic criteria:  How new your facility is, how big of a conference you play in, or strictly based upon something that they want for themselves.

The beauty pageant prospect is the toughest to land because they are making choices based on assumptions and stories that they’ve already defined for themselves:  The decision that they “deserve” to play in the best facility…what your conference will say to their friends and teammates back home…or some other off-the-wall criteria that they usually don’t reveal until they’ve already made their decision.

In short, if you’re recruiting a prospect like you’re judging a beauty pageant – which many coaches choose to do – then you’ll going to experience a tough road when it comes to recruiting great athletes for your program:  Your results will be random, and while you will experience some incredible highs when your prospect decides your program is the most “beautiful” in their eyes, there will also be far more soul-crushing defeats when they decide they don’t like the way you look.

If you’re interested in another way to approach recruiting, you should think about recruiting as a horse race.

Why a “horse race”?  Because the more I observe recruiting at different levels, the coaches that take a horse racing approach usually have more consistent, more reliable results.

Here’s why successful recruiting resembles a horse race:

  • Everyone starts evenly right out of the gate.
  • There are always two or three horses that jump out into the lead right away, and take a position along the rail.  If you’re one of those top three, great.  If you aren’t, don’t panic.  Find your spot and settle in for the race (remember, it just started a few seconds ago!)
  • This is where things get interesting: Before they field makes the first turn, horses start dropping out.  Usually that’s because those “horses” don’t hear back from their recruits right away.  They haven’t filled-out their questionaire, or returned the first email.  Due to that lack of interest, they drop out of the race for that prospect.  My recommendation to you is to not be one of those drop-outs!
  • The longer you stay up with the leaders, the more you’ll be viewed as a serious consideration by your recruit.  As you enter the halfway point in your recruiting efforts, stay consistent and understand that there’s still a long way to go in the mind of your recruit.
  • What gets it done “down the stretch”?   Outlining the differences between your program and the others still in the race.  The more radical and unique the differences, the better your chances of jumping out into the lead.
  • Want to make sure you win at the finish line?  Stay connected and talk with your prospect regularly.  It is extremely important, Coach.  The worst thing we see a coach do is step back and leave the prospect alone to make their final decision.  Guide them down the stretch…that’s what they want.

Beauty pageants are random, and produce subjective results that rarely make anyone but the winner happy.

Horse races are about preparation, strategy and strength down the stretch.

My main point: You can choose the strategy that fits you best, but what I see working most consistently with programs around the country is a strategy based on a long term approach that doesn’t necessitate immediate interest from high profile prospects, but instead relies upon a consistent, compelling and creative message that forces them to take serious look at you and your program.

Looking for an in-depth discussion on recruiting strategy and techniques with fellow coaches and nationally recognized recruiting experts?  Join us at the upcoming National Collegiate Recruiting Conference.  It’s an amazing three day retreat that earns raves reviews from coaches around the country.  Join us!  Click here for all the details!

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What Are Prospects Seeing When They Look at YOUR Program?Tuesday, November 29th, 2011

To answer that question, you really need to think of yourself as a box of Fruit Loops.  Specifically, the packaging that the cereal comes in.

Ever thought about how you “package” your program?

As a serious college recruiter, you should.

The reason is simple:  We all want to know what’s inside the package…we all want to know just who the heck that other person, or that new product, is.

Everything else in this world that you buy as a consumer is packaged very carefully, after a lot of research and study and focus-grouping.  Advertisers tweak the font size, change pictures on the cover, worry about what to say on the sides and back of a package.  From a DVD to a box of cereal, the packaging is everything.

Why?

• Because much of the time, what you decide to buy depends upon how it is packaged.
• Because much of the time, whether you buy it again depends upon how it was packaged.
• Because much of the time, whether you talk about it with others depends upon how it was packaged.

But as a college coach, you often ask your prospects to suspend their desire to see great “packaging” as you recruit them to your program.  Not deliberatively, but by default.

You see, psychological studies of how we decide to buy show that most American teens – having grown up in a culture of branding and over-marketing – need to assign a “story” to whatever the decide to have an emotional connection with.

For example, when deciding what music to listen to, the number one factor in their mind is answering the all-important question, “What does it stand for?”  Is it what a tough guy would listen to?  Does the singers fashion style match their own?  Does the singer’s world-view, politics or religion line-up with what they believe in?  In this example, it’s not just about the music: It’s about what the music stands for, and how it’s packaged.

However, like I said a moment ago, I see college coaches all over the country not paying attention to their “packaging” and what the “brand” of their program says to the prospect they are desperate to come and play for them.  And then, they get frustrated when the prospect doesn’t seem to be interested and isn’t “connecting” with what they’re saying during the recruiting process.

While your message and “story” are going to be different than your competitions, and every situation is completely unique when it comes to developing a good brand strategy for your individual program at your college, there are a few key ingredients to putting together a winning brand that defines who you are, and why a prospect should be interested in taking a serious look at you.  I’ll tell you about them by asking you some questions I’d like you to answer in your mind as you read them:

• How does your prospect define you? In the end, it actually doesn’t matter much what you think of your program.  If it’s not being received in a positive way by your prospect, they won’t connect with you.  And if they don’t connect, they won’t come.  That’s why when I am asked to come and conduct our on-campus workshop at a college campus, one of the priorities for me is to do research with groups of student-athletes on how they define the school, and why they connected with the coach’s message.  It’s the first question that needs to be answered to build out the rest of your message and define what the program’ “package” looks like in the mind of your prospect.

• Does your story match their expectations? Generic brands on supermarket shelves are huge money-makers for the store.  Their profit margin is much higher than other name brand products.  However, it’s hard for the store to sell those brands.  Even though they put them at eye level and give you discounts compared to the other name brands, we resist buying them despite the fact that many of them are manufactured by the same people who produce the name brand items.  Why is this?  Because the packaging often misses our expectations.  Not enough color, not the familiar iconic image on the front (where’s my Toucan Sam?!?) or just plain unfamiliarity with how it looks.  Inside, it’s a great product (or at least as good as the name brand).  Outside, it doesn’t meet our expectations.  So, Coach…does your story and your “packaging” connect with what today’s student-athletes are looking for in a coach and a program?

• Do your testimonials tell the story? Do you have athlete testimonials and stories on file?  On your website?  Are your prospects reading them?  If the answer to any of these questions is “no”, you are missing out on an incredible marketing opportunity for your program.  On the front of almost every DVD you buy, there’s some critical acclaim quoted by a movie reviewer right at the top for you to see.  Look on the back cover of almost every book, and you’ll find praises for the work from other authors or experts in that particular field.  Why is so much prominent space reserved for testimonials?  Because they work.  We trust a third-party verifier’s glowing words of praise more than we’d trust the author saying it themselves.  For those of you that have read our two advanced recruiting workbooks for college coaches, you know how to construct believable, recruiting-enhancing arguments on behalf of your program as told by your past and current athletes.

• Do you know what they’re saying behind your back? I remember an experience nearly two years ago when I was unexpectedly “upgraded” to a brand new Toyota Camry at the car rental counter.  At the time, I jokingly asked what I did to deserve that, and she replied that a lot of people didn’t want to drive their Toyotas because of the braking and acceleration problems that forced the recall of thousands of cars around the country (I’m guessing she gave me the once-over and figured I was expendable as she assigned my waiting-to-be-recalled Toyota)  For my organization, even though we hold our client list in strict confidence and make a point not to publish testimonials, our biggest source of new clients for our Total Recruiting Solution program are other coaches.  They are “talking behind my back”, but in a positive way.  In Toyota’s case, the public was “talking behind their back” in a very bad way a few years ago, and it dramatically affected their business.  But either way, they’re talking.  What are they saying about your packaging and your brand behind your back?

Your program’s packaging is so important because it precedes everything else in the recruiting process in your prospect’s eyes.  Your first impression when they give you that first look is crucial.

Pay attention to your packaging.  Your prospect is.

Perfecting your brand image in the mind of recruits is just one of the session topics we’ll be exploring in greater detail at the upcoming National Collegiate Recruiting Conference.  Register now to take advantage of our early registration discount and save big on the cost to attend.  And, if you can’t be there, order our conference DVD and notes and see every presentation at this year’s conference.  Click here to reserve your copy.

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How Old School Recruiters Can Still Win ProspectsMonday, November 21st, 2011

For all of the college coaches that are Tweeting, using Facebook to promote their team, using tools like Front Rush to communicate with recruits or NCSA Athletic Recruiting to find new prospects that have verified information and streaming video, there are lots of others who are keeping it “old school”.

They’ll recruit their kids with hand written letters and personal phone calls, thank you very much.

With all the advances in technology, there are coaches who aren’t going to use it in their daily recruiting efforts.

And you know what?  That’s fine.  You can still sign great recruits using some of those “old school” methods that have been around for years and years.  However, to use them effectively with this generation of teenage prospect, you’ll need to do a little fine-tuning in your approach and use of these common recruiting techniques.

Here are six things you need to know about these tried-and-true recruiting techniques as you eye your next recruit:

Use the phone to make the first contact. Did you know that our in-depth study of how prospects make their college decision showed that a phone call from the coach was their preferred first contact?  Chalk one up for the old-schoolers out there!  Phone calls work when they are used correctly, and this one has some big-time benefits:  It tells recruits that you’re serious about them right from the start, the phone call can be very short and to the point (saving you from those awkward “what-the-heck-do-I-talk-about-now” moments) and you can set up the next step in the process.

Speaking of phone calls, keep them short. Coach, you don’t need to spend 30 minutes or an hour on the phone.  This is a “get-to-the-point” generation of kids.  If you find yourself doing all (or most) of the talking, keep your phone call to 10 minutes or less.  Our research shows that it’s just as effective as a long phone call (more so, in many cases) and you won’t overstay your welcome with your prospect.  The one exception to the short phone call rule?  If your prospect is asking questions and doing the talking.  If that’s the case, stay on the phone as long as possible…and, you should realize that you have just been given a HUGE “buying signal” from your prospect.

The home visit still works. With travel budgets decreasing throughout the NCAA, home visits are going to become less and less frequent.  If you can swing it, making a home visit becomes an even bigger weapon in effective recruiting.  The keys to a good home visit?  I’ll briefly name three since that’s something that we normally talk about in depth if we get to work with a coach and their college one-one-one:  1) Try to do only 20% of the talking by asking great questions, 2) take as much time as possible to find out about the non-sports side of the family and interacting with siblings who might be present for the meeting, and 3) if you’re going to do a presentation about your school or your program, don’t bore them with ultra-detailed information that you end up reading to them.  Make it less presentation, more conversation.  Oh, one more thing:  If you want them, ASK THEM TO COMMIT AT THE END OF THE MEETING!  Don’t leave the home of a prospect you really want without making it clear that you’d take a “yes” from them right then and there.  Not enough coaches do that, and the result is that they walk away from a golden opportunity to secure a recruit.  Don’t be that coach!

You’d better spend time getting to know their coach. More and more, today’s prospect looks to their high school and/or club coach for guidance on recruiting.  At an extreme, many will let their coach select the “right” school at the end of the recruiting process (I’ve seen it happen a LOT in the past two years).  If you’ve got an old school recruiting attitude, it’s an absolute must to include your prospect’s coaches in the process.  In the good old days, a relationship with a recruit’s coach was a no-brainer.  It was a natural part of the cycle.  Today, I see coaches not paying as much attention to what their prospect’s coaches think of them and their program.  I think that any smart coach should (and if you want to know how, come to our national recruiting conference this June).

Hand-written letters win every time. What’s more old school than a blank piece of letterhead and an ink pen?  Not much.  But this old recruiting standard carries even more weight these days.  Why?  Because recruits know that the time you take to write them is meaningful.  They know how busy you are, and the fact that you’ve taken time out of your day to correspond with them means a lot.  They will always read hand-written mail, and will assign value to the fact that you took the time to write them.

Be seen in person. Being visible at games, tournaments and practices counts in the eyes of your prospect.  When we conduct one of our On-Campus Workshops, and talk with our athlete focus groups at a school, we find that most athletes are able to remember times when the coach they signed with came to their gym or their stadium to watch them compete.  Again, they know that takes time…and that’s the one big thing that this generation of athlete respects.

Old school recruiting strategies definitely still have a place in modern day recruiting.

Don’t get me wrong, I think technology tools that are available to college coaches today are incredible additions to their recruiting arsenals.  However, I’m also a realist: I know that there are coaches out there that aren’t comfortable using technology, and don’t want to use it in their everyday recruiting.

If I just described you, my message is simple:

You can still be an effective “old school” college recruiter if you follow these proven principles.

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Asking for the Commitment Without Really Asking for the CommitmentMonday, November 14th, 2011

So there I was, sitting in one of those annonying small little offices on the floor of a car dealership.

An impromtu weekend test drive at the request of my wife had now turned into a three hour odyssey into the depths of everything that is mind-numbing about the typical car buying experience.  But in the middle of it all, a little nugget of recruiting gold:  A great way to ask for a commitment, without actually asking for the commitment.

Towards the end my battle of wits with the parade of dealership personnel that take their turn at trying to get you to overpay for whatever vehicle you happen to be interested in, the dealership general manager walked in.  Impeccably dressed, and disarmingly reassuring, he uttered a phrase that was absolutely brilliant:  “If I call the finance company and they meet your price, can I tell them you’ll do the deal”?

Without thinking, my immediate response was, “Yes, I’d be ready to do it.”

Without thinking, I had just agreed that I would move forward if they could meet the price that I had insisted upon.  In other words, I had given them the “soft commitment” they were looking for, and now they could move forward with the final close.

(This is where you come in, Coach)

“Soft Commitments” are a staple in nearly every type of sale.  It’s also called a “trial close” and it’s an effective way to guage the interest of your prospect without seeming pushy or pressuring them into a decision.  At the car dealership, he simply asked me a question that would reveal my state of mind.  As a recruiter, you can use the same low-pressure strategy to get your prospect to give you a hint regarding where they stand in their decision making process.

What are some ideas that might be appropriate for you to use as a college coach?  They center around asking your prospect intelligent questions that help reveal what they are thinking:

  • Ask questions that use a third person as the reason you need an answer. At the car dealership, it was a conversation that was about to happen with the finance company.  You can use your head coach, your athletic director…someone who holds a degree of power in the decision making process.  Try to make it a person on campus that your prospect hasn’t had the opportunity to meet yet.
  • Ask questions that use a time of year as the reason for urgency. You can use an application deadline, a national signing day, or some other point in the timeline as the reason you need to get an update on where they stand in the process.
  • Ask a question with a “because” in it. It’s a powerful word…powerful “because” it gives your prospect an added reason to give you an answer.  For example, “I’m wondering if you’ll be ready to commit by the end of the week because we got an unexpected call from a really good prospect, and she wants to visit campus next weekend if we still have a roster spot available.”  In our work with other coaches around the country, we find that “because” is a powerful motivator for today’s generation of recruits.

That’s a fairly short list of potential uses of this strategy, and it would be easy to adapt it to your specific situation.  The point is, the strategy is used successfully in professional selling situations around the world.  Your needs are no different than those in the business world:  You want some insight into what your prospect is thinking as they get deeper into the decision making process.

If that describes you, this proven strategy might just get your next prospect to open up.

Do you get the feeling that your recruiting should be doing better at this point in the year?  Our team of experts can help.  We work with large and small programs around the country, and are helping them produce some of their best recruiting classes ever.  Our systematic, research-based approach works.  Want more information?  Email Dan Tudor directly at dan@dantudor.com and ask for a complete overview on our Total Recruiting Solution program.

 

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What Coaches Can Learn From the Amazing Life of Steve JobsMonday, October 24th, 2011

Steve Jobs’ death brought an end to the amazing life of a man destined to go down as one of the most incredible innovators of our time.

He is also someone who developed principles that every college coach should try to learn from, and put to use in their program.

Here is a list of Steve Jobs’ rules for success.  Are you following them in your coaching career?

1. Do what you love.   Jobs once said, “People with passion can change the world for the better.” Asked about the advice he would offer would-be entrepreneurs, he said, “I’d get a job as a busboy or something until I figured out what I was really passionate about.” That’s how much it meant to him. Passion is everything.

2. Put a dent in the universe.  Jobs believed in the power of vision. He once asked then-Pepsi President, John Sculley, “Do you want to spend your life selling sugar water or do you want to change the world?” Don’t lose sight of the big vision.

3. Make connections.  Jobs once said creativity is connecting things. He meant that people with a broad set of life experiences can often see things that others miss. He took calligraphy classes that didn’t have any practical use in his life — until he built the Macintosh.  Jobs traveled to India and Asia. He studied design and hospitality. Don’t live in a bubble. Connect ideas from different fields.

4.  Say no to 1,000 things.  Jobs was as proud of what Apple chose not to do as he was of what Apple did. When he returned in Apple in 1997, he took a company with 350 products and reduced them to 10 products in a two-year period. Why? So he could put the “A-Team” on each product. What are you saying “no” to?

5. Create insanely different experiences.  Jobs also sought innovation in the customer-service experience. When he first came up with the concept for the Apple Stores, he said they would be different because instead of just moving boxes, the stores would enrich lives. Everything about the experience you have when you walk into an Apple store is intended to enrich your life and to create an emotional connection between you and the Apple brand. What are you doing to enrich the lives of your customers?

6. Master the message.  You can have the greatest idea in the world, but if you can’t communicate your ideas, it doesn’t matter. Jobs was the world’s greatest corporate storyteller. Instead of simply delivering a presentation like most people do, he informed, he educated, he inspired and he entertained, all in one presentation.

7. Sell dreams, not products.  Jobs captured our imagination because he really understood his customer. He knew that tablets would not capture our imaginations if they were too complicated. The result? One button on the front of an iPad. It’s so simple, a 2-year-old can use it. Your customers don’t care about your product (Coaches…translate “your recruits don’t care about your program at first”). They care about themselves, their hopes, their ambitions. Jobs taught us that if you help your customers reach their dreams, you’ll win them over.

Special thanks to Coach Karen Corey, Head Volleyball Coach at Bowdoin College, for sharing that with us.

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The Importance of “Passion” vs. “Pressure” in RecruitingMonday, October 10th, 2011

There’s a big, big difference.

And quite honestly, most college coaches get it wrong.

When you’re trying to close a recruit, and get them to commit to your program, one of the worst things to do is to give them the feeling that they are being “pressured”.  Pressure might lead to an initial commitment, but in the long run that athlete is going to be a strong candidate for transferring or talking negatively about the way he or she was recruited.

In my opinion, after interviewing hundreds of current college prospects on how they made their decision in committing to a program, pressuring an athlete is bad.

Passion, on the other hand, is good.  Very, very good.

If you demonstrate passion to your prospect, it’s very likely you’ll achieve the same effects as you would hope to achieve by pressuring them: Excitement about your program, a strong reason for committing to you and your college, and a faster commitment.

Very few college recruiters, unfortunately, don’t do the passion part very well.

To give you an idea of what I’m talking about, and to show you what a big difference there is between the two, let me give you a few contrasting examples of “passion” versus “pressure” when recruiting your athlete:

Passion is when you tell your recruit why you like him, and what value you see him having in your program.  Pressure is when you matter-of-factly tell your recruit who else you’re recruiting at his position, and what he’s going to lose if he doesn’t make a fast decision.

Passion is when you tell them that you’ve decided you want her to play for you, and they officially ask her if she’s ready to commit because you are really excited about her future in your program.  Pressure is when you give her a 48-hour deadline after her campus visit to make her decision, or else you’ll yank the offer and give it to the next girl on your list.

Passion is when you smile and sit forward in your chair when you’re talking to your prospect.  Pressure is when you lean back, look at your cell phone every two minutes, and seem like you’re ready to walk your prospect over to admissions so they can start their exciting two hour PowerPoint presentation with the assistant to the assistant Director of Financial Aid so you can get back to work.

Passion is an impromptu visit to the office of a coach of another sport on your campus to introduce you to your recruit on campus so that they see the opportunity is with an athletic department family, and not just their sport.  Pressure is sitting with your prospect cooped-up in your office talking only about your sport.

Passion is taking a blank sheet of paper, sitting next to your recruit, and explaining to her what you see as the plan for her after she commits, and what the next twelve months look like for her when she joins your program.  Pressure is you talking about how she’ll have to pay her dues and wait her turn if she decides she wants to play for you.  (Note: Yes, that might be an honest assessment of their chances in your program.  But most recruits want to hear about what they need to do to beat out that Senior returning starter…because most of them think they can, and they’d like to see that you’re on board with that dream, too).

Passion is getting him spend time with the Freshmen and Sophomores on your team and letting them sell him on coming there.  Pressure is putting them with a 23-year old redshirt Senior who they have nothing in common with, and sending the two of them off to lunch together for two hours (true story example there…one of the more awkward observation sessions we did for one of our clients when we were on campus).

Passion is involving her parents in all aspects of the recruiting message, which is what most kids want according to our research.  Pressure is what she feels back at home when you don’t do that, and she wants to go to your program but doesn’t feel like she can because mom and dad never really got to know you as well as your conference rival that she’s going to settle on.

Passion is consistently keeping in touch with her, showing him that you are in it for the long haul and don’t take them for granted.  Pressure is what they feel when they try to figure out why you haven’t talked to them lately (they assume you might not be as interested in them as you once were, and begin to look for coaches who they think will be more interested).

That’s a short list, but an important list.

The big question now is: What are you going to do with this information, and how will it change the way you recruit this current class of prospects?

(No pressure).

 

There is still time to team up with Tudor Collegiate Strategies and let us map out a successful recruiting message and strategy for this year’s class.  We’ll bring a research-based methodology to your program, and help you create the best message possible for your prospects.  It’s working wonders for college coaches around the country, and we can do the same for your program.  Email Dan Tudor directly at dan@dantudor for a complete overview of what we do, and how we do it.

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