Recruiting Videos

[catcherzrule]

My DD is a 2016 and I am starting to look at recruiting videos of other players as examples.

I had a couple of questions...

1) I have heard that "less is more" when it comes to production and bells and whistles (music, etc)...is that true?

2) I have seen some videos that are 2:30 min, and some that are like 6:00+ min...any one have a good target time. I don't want to bore busy coaches.Any other tips from dads or moms who have been through this stage and learned from it, would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

[hit4power]

My two cents

1) Get someone to help you with the editing unless you are proficient yourself. We had someone film it for us, too, although we scripted what was to be shot.
2) Short and sweet - you don't need to show 20 bunts, 50 full swings and 5 minutes of fielding for a coach to decide if s/he is interested in your kid - they are professionals - and can size up a kid pretty quickly. We put an introduction at the front that had one swing and two fielding sequences in it, followed by DD introducing herself. Figured if they weren't interested at that point, they could move on having invested about 30 seconds total.
3) No music
4) Show what you are selling and skip the rest - my kid has average speed - we never showed her running bases.
5) No game footage - often shot from behind or through a fence and tends to focus on results vs. mechanics - doesn't really help the coach.
6) Some minor things - we showed a couple swings off a tee to showcase mechanics - got some positive feedback on that. Be sure and pick up balls that have been hit and didn't go very far - not good when the camera pans to follow a hit and you see 20 balls laying in the shallow outfield. Include your DD's contact info somewhere in the video - I've some that have it displayed in the corner during the whole video, others open or close with it. If you are mailing DVD’s then include all the contact info on the DVD itself with a sticker or burn it on the label.
7) If you upload to Youtube – publish it privately so you have control over who sees it – no one can find it w/o you sending them the link and it will not come up in a search.

[as the world turns]

Topic has been brought up before:
http://www.heybucket.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=32607

[just4fun]

IMO and what seemed to work:
Keep the videos simple
Break into separate videos so the coaches can watch what they are interested in. I did not have a video over 30 sec. keep on a you tube site and keep them public. They are searchable. My DDs could be found by her name and either her hometown or TB team.
Contrary to what other have posted, good game clips are good. We had very positive feedback from coaches on the few we did.
Call coaches, alot. This is the most important thing your DD can do. Let them know when she is playing and to watch for emails for videos.
Go to camps for schools she is interested. Talk to the coaches as much as possible at the camps.

[RetiredDI]

1. Showcase her strengths! But don't limit to only those.
• known for speed? show a stop watch after running home to first then home to home.
• known for power? Show it by showing distance of the ball traveling off the bat.

2. Pitchers showcase your top pitches, most are great at 3 different types. Don't show a pitch that you haven't 'mastered' yet.
• get shots from 3 angles: side of pitcher close up, behind the catcher, then side view in batters box try to include pitcher in this shot as well! The idea is to show the ball's movement, I encourage a radar as well to showcase speed if that's her strength!

3. Catchers need to show their pop times, throw downs to all bases (it looks better when she is actually throwing around a batter in the box), and showcase her framing!!!

7. For hitting show all forms: bunting, going oppo,etc.
• for slappers showcase all your slaps and bunts include a few shots of you running to first as well!
• get shots both side views and behind the batter.

8. to many people include too many shots of one thing, 3 solid shots of each thing is good enough! remember colleges have very little time. keep you video down to 5 min or less!

9. make sure the player realizes colleges will pay very close to attention to her body language, they can tell a lot by the way you walk back to the mound, or back into position. or edit these out!!!

[DonnieS]

9. make sure the player realizes colleges will pay very close to attention to her body language, they can tell a lot by the way you walk back to the mound, or back into position. or edit these out!!!

He's not kidding, I saw a kid get offered a full scholarship and he hadn't seen her do a thing. She walked from the dugout to the plate, - he made his offer to a lot of surprise, saying "I know an athlete when I see one, I can tell by the way she carries herself."

[RetiredDI]

9. make sure the player realizes colleges will pay very close to attention to her body language, they can tell a lot by the way you walk back to the mound, or back into position. or edit these out!!!

He's not kidding, I saw a kid get offered a full scholarship and he hadn't seen her do a thing. She walked from the dugout to the plate, - he made his offer to a lot of surprise, saying "I know an athlete when I see one, I can tell by the way she carries herself."

It's true, I received mine in almost the same fashion. Coaches pay more attention to attitude and the way an athlete carries themselves than most think. Just when you THINK they're not watching.... THEY ARE

[Stubby63]

Very true, I was at a Showcase a few years ago watching a game when two big D1 coach's stopped and was watching girls worm up between innings and overheard one say to the other that one of the girls had shown interest in their program and she was wanting to see if she was as energetic and supportive while sitting the bench as she was when she knew she was there watching her play. They know alot more about you're DD than you know about them.

[NumeroUno]

viewtopic.php?f=12&t=60208