In the competitive world of college gymnastics, it can be difficult to give yourself an edge. One of the best things that you can do is to be available in more places than anyone else. The next thing that you can do is to have easier to access information such as your recruitment video, GPA, gymnastics accomplishments, and other important details.
Every coach has a different way of finding this information. Some will go to YouTube to search for your name to find your profile, and others will go onto Google and do the same thing. Many will also search across Instagram, Twitter, and even TikTok to find your information. With so many options out there what is the best direction platform to use?
Pros Of Personal Gymnast Website
Personal gymnastics websites are the best way to communicate everything about yourself in one place. A personal website allows you to include as much information as you would like, including photos, videos, biography, meet scores, and other important information. You are not bound by a character restriction in the way that you would be on most social media channels so you are free to customize it to work best for you.
Your personal website is incredibly customizable. This allows you to tweak it to fit your personal style and unique tastes. Rather than sending a recruiter another Instagram account or TikTok profile, you can send a completely custom personal website that will help you stand out from the crowd and showcase everything you have to offer.
Personal gymnast websites are professional. These websites allow you to present yourself as someone who has gone above and beyond. College coaches respect this additional level of effort and are often very impressed by them.
Personal gymnast websites are convenient. This is perhaps one of the greatest pros to having your own personal website. Recruiting coaches are often sorting through hundreds of applicants so imagine how confusing it would be to have to search in 5 different spots for each one to find their information. Now they come across your website and it is all in one convenient place. They bookmark the site and you are on the list.
Your name is now searchable on Google. Having an easy-to-find website is also a great perk. If a coach is looking for your information all they have to do is search it on Google and they can find you in just a matter of seconds. Rather than having to skim through 10 social media profiles with similar names in order to find the correct gymnast. All of this extra effort wastes their time and wears on their patience.
Pros of YouTube Recruiting Videos
YouTube is probably the best place to store and show your recruit videos. It has become a core pillar of any good college recruiting strategy. Here are some of the best advantages of having your own college gymnastics YouTube channel.
Having a YouTube Channel is easy to organize. Other social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok function by just stacking videos and photos on top of each other. This is great to create a timeline, but it lacks efficiency when recruiters are sifting through your videos. Sometimes it can be difficult to find the recruiting video that they are after, and if you post often it can get lost in the chaos. YouTube is easy to organize and it does not often get as cluttered up as other social media platforms
YouTube has become expected. YouTube is so widely used by gymnastics recruiters that it will often be expected to have. They will probably search for your information on YouTube as one of the first ways to find out who you are. So it is much better to be found on YouTube than not at all.
Choosing The Right Platforms For Your Recruiting Efforts
One of the best combinations of social media platforms to have is a website, a youtube channel, and one of the previously mentioned social media channels (Twitter, Instagram, or TikTok). All of the above is great as well but creating 5 channels is much more difficult than 3. Why is this the best way to put yourself out there?
Each platform serves a different purpose, your YouTube channel is a great place to post more serious videos that showcase your talent and various performances at different gymnastics meets. Your other social media channels are where you can add in some more personality and show a little more about who you are in addition to being an athlete. Lastly is your website where all of your information will be collected and stored. This is the one-stop-shop coaches will use to find your information and research your accolades, there is no better way to ensure that they are all seen than to collect them in one place.
Conclusion
We hoped that this helped you get some more clarity on which social media platforms and channels work best for gymnastics college recruiting. This process is a difficult one but with enough work, you will be able to make it into your dream college. We hope that this article helps you in your journey to do so and we wish you the best of luck out there!
Want more assistance finding the right path toward college recruiting? Check out our ultimate guide on how to get recruited for college gymnastics here.
