What Does It Mean If A College Coach Follows You On Instagram?
As a prospect who plans on playing their chosen sport in college and is active on social media, or a parent of such a prospect, I am sure you are curious what it means if a college coach follows you on Instagram.
When a coach follows you on Instagram, or a similar social media platform, it means they are interested in learning more about you. Coaches use social media as a tool to learn about you and your character, what other programs you are considering and your interest in their program. Additionally, if a coach follows you on Instagram, especially if you haven’t really talked to them beforehand, they are most likely signifying that they are open to you reaching out to them through Instagram’s direct messaging (DM) feature.
Recruits often interact with college coaches extensively through Instagram and other social media platforms. However, due to the constantly evolving role social media plays in recruiting, it can be hard to understand what exactly it means when a coach follows you. To help, we’ve included more information about how college coaches use social media below.
The Meaning Behind A College Coach Following You On Instagram
Recently, social media has gained a lot of importance in the recruiting process. College coaches can use it to streamline their communication with prospects, and also to interact with numerous prospects simultaneously. Because of this, it is essential that you understand exactly what a college coach is looking for when they follow you on Instagram.
Surveying The Competition: One of the biggest things college coaches use social media for is to learn what other schools you are considering. Most prospects use social media to let their friends and families know what schools they have received offers from. College coaches care about this because they do not want to lose a recruit, especially if it is to a rival school. Posting a thank you for the different offers you have received is one of the easiest ways to drum up interest from other programs.
Evaluating Your Character: This may sound cliché, but, as a recruit, you have to be careful what you post on social media. Coaches know that every recruit has at least one social media account, and they normally will not extend an offer before they have followed you. The recruiting process is incredibly stressful for college coaches, and social media is often the easiest way for them to learn more about you. If a coach sees anything overly inappropriate on your account, they will likely stop recruiting you.
NCAA Limits On Social Media Interaction: While it ultimately falls on the coach to make sure they are following NCAA guidelines, it is beneficial for you to understand what types of interactions are allowed with a coach on social media. Until you commit to their program, coaches are not allowed to interact with you on your public feed. More specifically, they cannot comment on any of your photos. However, they can message you privately and like/share any of your posts.
Easier Communication: Within these limits, coaches rely on social media for easy and informal communication with prospects. Often, when a coach follows you on Instagram, they will send you a DM introducing themselves and their program. If they do not send one, or if you have communicated with the coach through a different platform, be sure to send them a DM introducing yourself and explaining your interest in their specific program.
Coaches and recruits throughout the country rely on social media. By following the tips above, you can put yourself in a great position to interact with, and learn more about, many more coaches and programs than you otherwise would have.
Communicating With A College Coach Through Instagram
Successfully direct messaging a coach on Instagram or other social media platforms can be hard. Part of this comes from how informal of a setting it is. It is important to remember that you still need to act professional and responsible when sending or responding to direct messages from a college coach.
Be Specific: This is something you will want to do whenever communicating with a college coach, regardless of platform. Coaches hear from many recruits each year, making it hard to stand out from the pack. Be specific and forward about why you are interested in the coach’s program. If you give concrete reasons as to why you are interested in that specific program, the coach is much likelier to respond.
Read About The Program And Staff: Coaches will be impressed if it is clear you have done your research on their program. It will save them a lot of time spent explaining things to you, while also showing them that you are serious about their program. It is also important to read about their staff to know who to DM first - programs often have a recruiting coordinator or an assistant coach who has been placed in charge of recruiting.
Don’t Give Up: Just because the couple coaches you DM don’t respond, doesn’t mean you should give up! There are certain periods during the recruiting process where coaches are not allowed to reach out over social media. Additionally, as long as you are respectful and polite, no coach will be put off by you sending them a follow up DM – in fact, they may appreciate it!
As long as you remember to be respectful and make your interest in their program clear, social media can be a powerful tool for gaining traction in the recruiting process and quickly communicating with a large number of college coaches.
How To Properly Use Social Media As A Recruit
Direct messaging coaches is not the only way to gain traction using social media. Through different types of posts and videos, you can greatly up your chances of being noticed by college coaches. We’ve outlined a few different ways of doing this below.
Be In Control Of Your Account: Many social media platforms, including Instagram, have a default setting where your friends can tag or mention you in posts that automatically appear on your timeline. It is risky to allow this, no matter how much you trust your friends. By disabling this setting, or telling your friends not to tag you in anything, you greatly decrease the risk that a coach will see something they don’t like on your profile.
Make Your Account Public: While it goes against traditional advice, it is in your best interest to make your account public. Coaches have seen hundreds of recruits profiles – they do not expect to see a perfect social media account. However, if your account is private (or if you do not quickly accept their follow request), they will assume you have something to hide.
Highlight Your Accomplishments: Coaches want to see that recruits have accomplished significant things, and social media is the easiest way for them to do this. However, it is important that when posting about your accomplishments, to come off as humble. The easiest way to do this is to thank their teammates and coaches for support. Some important achievements to call out are scholarship offers, recaps of camp performances, and athletic awards and accolades.
Coaches will greatly appreciate a prospect whose social media makes it clear that they are humble and respectful. If you brag about your accomplishments or post inappropriate things, coaches around the country will decide you aren’t a good fit for their program.
Things To Keep In Mind
Upload Videos: Coaches love to see videos of you playing your sport! Posting highlight videos to your Instagram, or other social media accounts, is a great way to generate recruiting interest – especially if some coaches already follow you.
Follow/Like Programs You’re Interested In: While college coaches will occasionally follow you first, most of the time the responsibility falls to you. Following the programs around the country you are interested in is an easy way to display your interest in them.
Don’t Just Follow The Head Coach: Often, following current athletes or assistant coaches can help you learn more about the program than following the head coach. In particular, the strength and conditioning coach frequently posts specific workouts or training programs.