by Bryan Mathews, Tudor Collegiate Strategies
it has been almost two decades since I have received any recruitment mailings, but this past Tuesday, the streak was broken. Now, it happened to be from an entertainment research company and not a college coach, but the tactic for getting my attention was perfect.
Our mail has been about a month behind from the holidays, so the initial stack was a little larger than normal, due to the catch up. I saw the front of the envelope, and assumed there was nothing there for me, so I tossed it. Just as I threw it, it flipped over and there was a transparent circle on the back, showing dollar bills. My wife saw my head snap and KNEW I was going back for it. While sarcastically commenting about it being fake and a marketing ploy, I opened the envelope. After holding the bills up to the light, as if I actually know how to do that, and Googling counterfeit characteristics, I read the letter inside. I was indeed given $2 cash to open the envelope. Then, if I completed the survey inside about television and radio and returned within two weeks, I would receive $5 cash more.
Now lets be clear, I am in no way implying to send recruits cash! However, if you have read, watched, listened to any of Dan Tudor’s information over the past many years, you are certainly already making the connections here. Just as the strategies that we use at Tudor Collegiate Strategies are proven through research to work with this generation of prospect, this tactic used by this marketing company proved to earn my response and participation. Even as I write this now, I remember the company name, and even had a conversation with my wife about our television consumption (and possibly getting a new TV!) that pertained to the survey.
This mailing drew my attention (i.e. having the right email subject line), showed some value immediately (i.e. stating one important topic), and gave me a critical, simple action to take in order to move forward in the process. The rest kept developing naturally: Gaining my response, which is what every coach – and every direct mail marketer – is aiming for.
This is what every college coach needs to be doing. However, in their own specific way because every program in unique, and every type of desired response is going to change regularly.
For any of you who don’t already know, that is exactly how we help college recruiters at Tudor Collegiate Strategies. We develop and help implement proven strategies for your program which lead to performing successful acts of recruiting, like my story above – all year around, better recruiting, better results.
Ideally, my $2 will win the Mega Millions jackpot, and your “$2” will win that top recruit! If you use the right attention-getting techniques to get them to respond.
Bryan Mathews is a former college coach and current advisor on the Tudor Collegiate Strategies team, working with Dan Tudor and the staff at TCS to lead coaches we work with in developing consistent recruiting practices through better communication. To find out more about how we work one-on-one with college coaches, click here.