As you start to get down to the business of signing your top prospects this year, we want to remind you that coaches like you are not just involved in "recruiting".  You're involved in negotiations. 

Parents, and even your prospect, are getting pretty good at maintaining their poker faces and seeing which school offers the best package.  So what should you as a coach do?  Maintain the power of walking away.

Here's an excerpt from our new book, "What They Didn't Teach You About Recruiting", dealing with the incredible power you have to control the sales and recruiting process from start to finish:

"Walking away.  That's tough for a lot of coaches, and in some instances it isn't recommended.  But if we're talking about an athlete that is abusing his or her relationship with you and your staff - taking too much of your time, demanding too much, parents are making unrealistic requests...you know who I'm talking about, coach - then its your right to walk away, and that's a very powerful negotiating tool.  It’s the same basic concept that many coaches use in offering a scholarship to a prospect, but giving them a deadline for accepting the offer.  Basically, you’re telling them that you will “walk away” if they don’t commit.
 
If your prospect knows that you will move on to another recruit without hesitation, you'll maintain your control of the process and your position as the power player in the negotiating process.  And can I tell you something else?  You'll actually build respect in the process...your prospect could end up liking the fact that you're taking a strong position.  People are drawn to strength, and it will often command more respect than groveling and pleading the athlete to stay interested.

The big key to making these work?  Practice.  Over and over and over again.  Why?  It makes a difference come "game time" when the prospects are real, the objections are tough, and successful negotiations can make the difference between players wanting you to add them to your roster, or you looking in the want ads for a new job."

It's a powerful technique that a few college coaches have mastered.  I've seen it in action, and it works because it gives coaches the ability to maintain control of the process from start to finish.  That's important, because losing control of the recruiting process is one of the biggest reasons coaches wind-up sitting by the phone wondering why the recruit they were positive was going to sign with them hasn't called them in three weeks.

Maintain your power, coach.  You can help do that by maintaining the power of walking away from a prospect.

Posted by Dan Tudor at 10:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Whether its just getting a piece of needed information from a prospect as you begin to recruit them, or pushing hard to get their commitment after months of hard work and effort, being as persuasive as possible can separate you from your competition.  A truly persuasive coach can be a recruiting force that's tough to beat.

What's one secret that can help make any coach more persuasive?  Actually, its not a secret.  It's a word.  A little psychological trick that can make all the difference when you are trying to get someone to do what you want: Just say "because."

Here's a quick story behind the theory: Robert Cialdini, in his book "The Art of Influence", describes an experiment he conducted where a student with a stack of papers approaches a line of other students all waiting to use the copy machine and asks them if they would not mind letting him cut in line.

In one variation of the experiment, the student approaches the people waiting in line and says, "Excuse me, I've got five pages. May I jump in and use the machine?"

In another variation, the student does the same exact thing, except this time he says, "May I jump in and use the machine, because I'm in a rush..."

Seems like such a subtle difference, doesn't it? However, the differences between results were anything but subtle.

* Only 60% of the students waiting in line agreed to let the student cut in front of them in the first variation of the experiment.

* A whopping 94% of the students, however, let the student cut ahead of them in the second variation when they were given a short "because" reason.

What Cialdini's experiment sought to prove, coach, is something psychologists call a "trigger effect." Certain actions, certain gestures, certain words - for whatever reason - have a profound persuasive effect on us. Often, we do not even know we are responding to the trigger. As soon as it registers, we react. Cialdini calls this a "click & whirr" response, and compares it to the way some animals react instinctively to the markings of predators in the wild.

In this particular experiment, though, the trigger being tested was the word "because." Think about it: "Because" is a word we use all the time to justify our actions or reasons to other people. What the Cialdini experiment succeeded in revealing, however, is that the reasons we give are really not as important as the word itself.

Cialdini repeated the second variation of the experiment with the student using different reasons for cutting in line. Some of them were simply ridiculous, such as "Because I need to make copies." In all cases, the people waiting in line responded with the same degree of compliance.

Why? Because of "because."

So, coach, how does this apply to your recruiting efforts?  Simple.  There comes a time with every athlete that you want more information, or want them to see things your way.  The next time that situation arises, make sure you add a "because" to your request.  It works, and could give you exactly the information that you need to win over the recruit.

For more information on persusiveness, effective questioning, and leading your prospect through the recruiting process from start to finish, read our special guide for college recruiters, "Selling for Coaches".

Good luck, Coach!

Posted by Dan Tudor at 09:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

 One of our SFC Premium Members was a little frustrated when I spoke to him last week.

For the second time this month, he had a prospect who was telling him that despite all that their program had to offer, the prospect was going to commit to someone else.  What the coach couldn't figure out was why: His program offered more money, a better facility, and a top notch education.  Logically, it was the perfect fit for the recruit.  An all-around better offer.

Here's the problem: Logic doesn't always work with your recruits.

So how did another coach steal away the prospect?  Simple: He was able to hit on some strong emotion or need that the prospect already possessed.  That coach was somehow able to find something that he knew the prospect needed emotionally, and built his case around that need.  For our coach, using all of the logic in the world won't help.  For this prospect - and many, many others - logic will almost never beat out emotional need.  So smart coaches will want to focus on meeting that need through their recruiting efforts every single time.

Wait, I can hear the objections already: "Isn't that a lot like manipulating a prospect, Dan?"  No.  Think about it, coach.  You're not tricking him into doing something he doesn't want to do.  Instead, when you recruit correctly, you're fulfilling a need he already has.  You're building on a mental picture that he already has, and helping him figure out how to make himself happy...how to meet his goals...and, quite literally, how to make his dream of playing college sports come true.  It solves a problem that is worrying him...mainly, the problem of figuring out where would be the best place to continue his athletic career.

But wait!  Before you start recruiting solely on emotion, here's the twist: If you do it, you'll fail almost as much as you would have if you keep using logic as your primary sales tool.  Why?  Because people rarely make their final decisions based solely on emotion.  Doing so makes them feel guilty.

Here's an example of what I'm talking about: You go out to be a new iPod.  You buy it because you see your athletes listen to them, and it looks cool.  Hey, if it looks cool on them it'll look cool on you, right?  Plus, you can listen to all of your own songs when you want, where you want.  All of your athletes are going to admire you, ask you about your new toy, and you'll feel good about yourself.  Nothing wrong with that at all, coach.  But that's an emotional reason to buy.

What happens when one of your fellow coaches asks you about it?  You talk to them about staying up on the latest technology.  How it lets you download great informational shows.  Plus, it lets you relate better to your student-athletes.  And, of course, you were able to get it on sale...it was too good of a deal to pass up.  Those are the logical reasons you buy.

It works the same way with your prospect.  You need to connect with that emotional need to convince your prospect to "buy" what you're selling.  But, at the same time, you need to give them the logical reasons to commit to your program.  That way, when someone asks them why they chose you, they can say "I chose that program because..."  There has to be a "because".  Remember, making an emotionally based decision will probably make them feel guilty.  So, they need some good, solid logical reasons to back-up that decision that they just made.

Its a delicate mix, coach.  But there has to be that mix to successfully recruit an athlete.  Too often, coaches use either logic or emotion.  Not enough use both.  Make sure you're one of the savvy recruiters who successfully mixes both important aspects of connecting with a prospect. 

Posted by Dan Tudor at 09:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

• Ask questions that put the athlete first.
• Don't talk about "limits" or "rules".  Find out what the athlete would want from you if there were not boundaries, and then back in to what makes sense for you and what complies with NCAA rules.
• Connect with the athlete first, negotiate second.  Don't rush getting to the negotiating part of your relationship.  Build a foundation first, then go from there.  If you need help in making better connections with your athlete and his or her family, get our book, "Selling for Coaches".  It has an entire chapter on "connecting with athletes", and what that really means.

Posted by Dan Tudor at 10:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Coach, when you want an athlete to sign - and he or she wants to sign with you - it might seem like nothing can stand in your way.  It's a done deal, right?  Not necessarily, as you probably know.  Maybe its pride, maybe its their parents...sometimes, your recruit might feel like they're "not getting what they deserve" and you have to sit down and iron out an agreement.

Is it something coaches want to do, or like to do?  Definitely not.  But there are times when you'll be forced to roll up your sleeves and iron out differences that you have with a prospect, and doing it correctly will lay out the relationship you'll have with them for years to come.

So, how can you do that but still maintain your upper hand in the negotiation process?  Here are four key negotiating tips that you can use next time you're locked in battle with a recruit...

Continue reading "Four Key Negotiation Techniques For Recruiters" »

Posted by Dan Tudor at 11:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Are you finding that the athletes you're recruiting are dragging their feet when it comes to making a decision, or even when it comes to leveling with you as to where they are in the decision-making process?  You're not alone.

But here's a technique you might want to try to get your prospect to come clean with you, or even make that final commitment to your program.  It's a sales technique called "Theoretical Identity Assumption".  Here's the basics of how it works...

Continue reading "Putting the Prospect In Your Shoes" »

Posted by Dan Tudor at 09:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

You hear about politicians "going negative" all the time.  They attack, berate, put-down and general disparage their opponents in every way you can imagine. That's politics.

But coaches "going negative"?  What could be the possible benefit of that?

Plenty, if it's done correctly when you're handling a prospect's objections, or trying to get them to commit to your program.  Here's what I mean... 

Continue reading ""Going Negative" With Your Prospect" »

Posted by Dan Tudor at 08:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Last week's article was really popular with all of you.  In fact, it was #3 all time in terms or the number of coaches who read the article.

And a lot of you - 93 in all - requested the bonus video tips I offered at the end of last week's tip.  I'll do the same this week, so if you missed out, get in on it this week.

Because of the response to the "Manipulative vs. Collaborative Negotiating" topic from last week, I'm expanding on that subject this week.  So, here are ten ways to be a better collaborative negotiator...

Continue reading "10 Ways To Be a Better Collaborative Negotiator" »

Posted by Dan Tudor at 09:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

There's two ways I've seen college coaches approach recruiting athletes.  One works.  One works well.

Your two choices when it comes to recruiting an athlete is to recruit and negotiate "manipulatively" or "collaboratively".

There are big differences between the two... 

Continue reading "Two Ways to Recruit Athletes: Manipulate or Collaborate" »

Posted by Dan Tudor at 08:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)