by Charlie Adams, SFC Workshop Leader

To grow as a recruiter, it's helpful to become a reporter.

In the offseason of your sport, or in the summer, call the admissions department at your college, or whatever campus office that conducts campus tours. Try to find out what tour guide has been there the longest, went to the school, and is passionate about it. Then go on an hour tour with them. You'd be amazed how many little nuggets you can pick up that you can share with recruits and their parents.

As you go on the tour, be a reporter when you come across various professors and deans. Ask them what are the longterm benefits of a degree from their department. Parents are especially interested in long term benefits. When you can tell them that a graduate with such-and-such degree can make such-and-such then the parent justifies the cost of sending their kid there.

As you take the tour, listen for all the things that you can use to help sell the experience of going to that college. As a coach, you may have been so focused on your team, studying game film, and working hard that you never really got around to understanding the various campus traditions. A good campus tour guide can fill you in. You may need to get someone from the main office that doesn't lead that many tours anymore, but has a wealth of knowledge. Those kind of people actually like getting back out to give an occasional tour.

Take notes on your tour, like a reporter would. When you get back to the office develop a list of all the nuggets and share them as a staff. Post them where you can reference them. You want to have a stockpile of info you can use to help sell the EXPERIENCE of going to your college. More than ever people are looking for an experience. Find out what the unique things are all over your campus. You never know when you may be on the phone with a recruit and she says something out of left field like, "You know, I've always wanted to go ice skating." And you can draw on the nugget you learned that when a green flag is put on the campus lake, it's clear for ice skating.

I was in television news and sports for 23 years. Before leading a Selling for Coaches workshop recently, I went on a 30 minute campus tour to get a feel for the campus. I asked the guide over 45 questions. I came away excited about all the cool things about that campus. I took a bunch of notes along the way and was somewhat of a campus expert in that short time.

The problem that I find many times is how little the coaches on campus have taken the time to go on a campus tour.  They don't know what happens, what is being told to their athletes, or what is highlighted by the tour guides at their own college. 

Speaking of campus tours, also try to be aware of who is guiding your recruits around campus. Different coaches have different philosophies on this, but I have heard of some coaches letting recruits go with whatever guide the office decides upon. There have been cases where that guide is not a sports fan. The guide inevitably turns to the recruit and says, "Those are our athletic facilities, but we're not into sports that much at this college."

Ugh! Can you imagine how the recruit feels?

You probably think you know your campus well, but you'd be surprised of what you'd pick up on a campus tour - the same one you eagerly send your prospects on when they come on campus.

Be sure to do this at least once a year and always make sure new coaches go on tours. Make sure they take a notebook - and a reporter's mentality to ask lots of questions - when you go on the campus tour at your own school.

You are going to be amazed at what you uncover that will help you in your everyday recruiting at your school!