A recruiting video is like an elevator pitch in the world of athletics. You only have a small window of time, so how can you make an impression? For coaches, it is one thing to view a player's statistics on paper but another to see it in action. Using a professional video to showcase yourself can attract the attention you need to accelerate your athletic career. As college recruits, you're looking to make a business deal by getting an offer, so quality is key. How can you go about this?

First, a great resource for your highlight video is Hudl. A software company established in 2006, Hudl gives you the tools you need to study, prepare, edit, and share footage of athletes in the game or at practice. Not only this, they give you the option to send material directly to them. In doing so, you need only 24 hours or less to receive edited content and/or statistics. Aiding 150,000 teams and roughly 5.5 million users from a multitude of sports, Hudl has the capability and know-how to create a quality product people will want to watch again and again.

If you choose to make a recruiting video on your own, make sure you cover all of your bases. Include a title page for your personal information with your name, age, height, school, position, jersey number, etc. This can help viewers to get a better sense of whom they are about to see. Generally, the video should be 3-5 minutes in length including 10-15 second clips of you demonstrating your athletic ability. Also, do not forget to include your contact information. If coaches like what they viewed, they will need your information to initiate a conversation.

Social media is all the rage these days; use it to your advantage. This is the best way to market your recruiting video once it is created. If you choose to use Hudl, they also can feature your video on their site. Posting your video to YouTube is another great way to get started. Once you have done either of these, you can copy and paste the link into any profile and account you own. Using platforms like Twitter and Facebook are especially useful because other users can share what you post. When one share leads to another, you never know how large of an audience your video can reach. Many athletes include links to their recruiting videos in the bio and information sections of their profiles as well so it becomes one of the first items you see on their page.

Recruiting videos are a great way to make a statement without saying a word. Sometimes coaches are not always accessible to you and vice versa, but the Internet is available to everyone. Coaches and their staff can search for athletes and view their social media content, so when they do, make sure you are prepared to deliver.

* Originally published on February 9, 2018, by Simmone Collins