by Dan Christensen, Tudor Collegiate Strategies
I think it is fair to say that most coaches want to get as many serious recruits on campus as they can. They feel if they can bring the prospect to campus and show them around, their chances are much higher of landing that recruit. The data does support that.
So, the frustration that needs to be resolved is how to get more top recruits to actually come and visit campus. Here are two ways to increase the number of visits you get each year:
1) Talk about your plan for that recruit.
If you have a recruit that is on the fence or just delaying a campus visit, you need to give them a reason to come.
Paint a clear picture of why you like them but also what your vision is for how they would fit on your team and what role they would have in your program. And let them know, you see it but they also need to get a feel for that vision. The way to do that is to visit campus.
Now you’ve shown them how serious you are about them and given them a sneak peak of what it would look like for them to be on your team. They’ll be more likely to want to see it for themselves now.
2) DO NOT ask them to visit too early.
Coming to visit campus is not one of the first steps in the process in the mind of a recruit. When you try to get them to visit too early, it seems like you are doing things out of order.
If you can instead build a foundation in your relationship and get them to take some smaller steps at first, you’ll find much more success in asking for the campus visit later on.
Be patient, Coach. It might help you stand out too if other programs are trying to rush the recruit and you instead take time to get to know them and build trust!