Athletic Recruiting in 140 Characters: How to Use Social Media in Recruiting

Social Media is here, it’s changing, and it now goes hand-in-hand with the recruiting process. Whether you’re a college coach, top-tier prospect, or a recruit just getting started with the process, it is critical that you manage social media in recruiting.

This webinar will show you some tips and tricks on how to best utilize your social media for recruiting!

Watch the webinar to learn

NCAA Rules surrounding social media and recruiting
How college coaches are using social media
How to promote & protect your brand on social media
The power of data in the recruiting process: Click here to learn more about the SportsRecruits Insights Program!

Q&A

Do college coaches actually drop recruits based on social media posts?

Yes. We have spoken to various college coaches and found that prospects are absolutely dropped because of their actions on social media. Sometimes these are top prospects that have been on a coach’s recruiting board for months. Other times, the prospect could just be getting on a coach’s radar before they are dropped because of what they posted in social media.

Should I introduce myself to college coaches via social media?

A prospect should not be the one initiating the first contact via social media. Continue reaching out through email in your SportsRecruits messaging system. Let the college coach be the one to move the conversation to a platform more convenient for him/her. Every coach is different; some prefer to use Twitter DM, some prefer Snapchat messaging, and some prefer to stick with email. Start with email, and see where the coach takes it.

If coaches aren’t liking, favoriting, or retweeting my posts are they not interested?

No. Do not use the amount of likes, favorites, retweets, or shares as a metric for how you are doing in the recruiting process. Many college coaches choose not to use social media for these purposes. If your top schools are not favoriting your posts, do not take that as an indication that they are not interested in recruiting you.

Will college coaches be offended if I retweet posts from other schools?

College coaches understand the recruiting process for a teenager. They are well aware that they are not the only school in communication with their prospects. Retweeting or liking a post from a competing school will not cause a coach to stop recruiting you. As long as you maintain proper communication and state your interest directly with a coach, liking the posts from another school should not affect your status.

Want More Recruiting Guidance?

If you need additional resources or want more personal guidance throughout the recruiting process, we would love to chat with you about the SportsRecruits Insights Program and how it is helping families all across the country!