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In the world of competitive sports there’s one thing we’re all taught. I don’t care if you’re a wrestler, a runner, a ball player, whatever you’re game…I’m sure the message was shoved down your throat, just as it was mine.  Preparation is paramount.  Take ownership of your performance. Prepare and deliver.

As athletes, we get it. We know that someone out there is working just as hard as us to dominate, so we push and don’t give up.  The place where most amateur athletes miss it has little to do with their game and everything to do with their career strategy.  Our twitter.com/protegebranding feed gets questions all the time from players who want to break out of the pack, get recognized and play for a quality school and quality team.  Many of them have tried the online recruiting services, shelled out tons of cash (anywhere from 3-5k), and discovered that they were nothing more than a number and were not getting results.  The truth is, you don’t take a back seat to your performance on the field; why would you with your future?

I’ve seen quality players get overlooked and passed by simply because they sat back and trusted an online company, who sends mass emails to coaches that never get opened, to do the preparation for their future as an athlete. Don’t get me wrong, not all companies are out to screw you for money. It’s just frustrating to watch talented people hand over 100% of their athletic career to someone who doesn’t even know them.

Our aim with Protégé is for players like you to understand one thing; no one will care about your future like you will.  Trust me, I’ve learned this first hand.  To succeed you have to be proactive and take control of your career.  At our video blog, Gruler.tv (coming soon), we break down tips, and advice on how you can do just that.  As a player you need to connect with coaches, send them video, follow- up in a way that causes you to stand out from the competition. Let them know that you want to play for them.  No one can get that message across better than you can.

Seriously, that’s why everything we do at Protégé, especially PlayerProfileWebsites.com (Example to the right), is aimed to give you the tools to own your future.  In regards to your future as an athlete, its time to prepare and deliver.

1. Personality- Remember when Randy Johnson was visiting the New York Yankees to potentially sign a deal? He was approached by a member of the paparazzi who was constantly following him, bombarding him questions, and just wouldn’t leave him alone. Randy then got frustrated, pushed the camera out of the way, and said, “Get out of my face!” I had the privilege of meeting Randy Johnson in 2005 while rehabbing my shoulder. He was an amazing guy who gave me a lot of great tips and advice about my career. He was just an overall good guy. If I had never met him that day, I would have always judged him by what other athletes and people say about him. A fan page solves this issue before it ever happens. Randy could have bled his personality through his fan page so his fans get a true sense of his personality.

2. Reaching Your Fan Base- This is great for small businesses. When you have a new product, new service, or just want to share something of value to your fans, you have a great opportunity to use this platform to create click-throughs to your site, (Increase Traffic!!) and potentially generate more leads.

3. Updates in Real Time- Immediately after something happens in an athlete’s world, fans want to hear about it. Being able to connect with fans and followers at the click of a button, in real time, is priceless. It’s become so popular that they are now fining players of the NBA and NFL who make Twitter posts before, during, and immediately after their games. Not sure if league officials have caught on with the wave of Facebook yet though.

4. Make News Media Obsolete- Video. Video. Video. Personal video can easily be updated to fan pages. A quick self-interview, or an interview of a teammate from their iphone, can be placed on a fan page within minutes. Priceless. Small businesses can use these videos to enhance their brand in a creative and non-threatening environment.

5. Promote Non-Profits- Many athletes and businesses are involved with non-profit organizations. One post can significantly increase funds for a non-profit. This is especially true when an athlete or business has a huge following.

6. Promote Websites- Whether it’s your own, or that of a business acquaintance, you have a great platform to promote sites at the click of a button. Newly launched websites can instantly be thrown on the map. (Below is Jamie Varner posting for his fans to visit a friends site)

Hope you enjoyed this article. Please let me know your thoughts!! Be sure to follow us on Twitter @protegebranding and become a fan of ours on Facebook as well.

Till next time,

Chris Gruler

With the holidays coming up this week, we decided to throw the Player Profile Websites on sale. Normally the price of the Websites are 449.00, but we have lowered it to 297.00!! That is less than a baseball glove or bat! This is a great stocking stuffer! Well, only if you can fit your computer into your stocking! Either way, this would be a great gift to give yourself or child for the holidays. A web-based platform that enables one to be proactive with their career and potentially better their chances of getting recruited, to me, is well worth the 297.00 investment.

Below is a tutorial video walking you through the functionalities of the Player Profile Websites. Enjoy!

At the very least, it is imperative you purchase your son/daughter’s domain property. It is a great starting point even if you are not ready to make the Player Profile Website jump. Domain investors are constantly searching high school top prospect lists and buying up their names in bulk, banking on the fact of selling them at a serious profit in the near future. This is especially true once an amateur athlete makes it in the professional rankings. Click on the image below to reserve your domain property. It costs roughly 11.00/year.

As usual, please email or contact me if you have any questions regarding domains or the Player Profile Websites.

Till next time,

Chris Gruler

Interview with Jamie Varner from ProtegeBranding.com on Vimeo.

Hey everyone. Check out our latest client’s site @ JamieVarner.com. ProtegeBranding is very excited to introduce Jamie Varner, the WEC Lightweight Champion, and his new online platform. Jamie will be updating his blog daily to keep his fight fans in close connection with him while he trains for his upcoming title defense with Ben Henderson. If you are a fight fan, you will love Jamie’s site and the direction he and Protege are taking it. Soon there will be a Fight Forum to discuss all types of fights, rumors and training programs. There will also be a “Technique of the Week” video section to lend insight from the Champ’s repertoire. Please be patient over the next month as these changes are implemented to his site.

ProtegeBranding.com is extremely lucky to have Jamie as a client. He understands the value of the Internet and keeps close contact with his fans. Our goal is to educate professional athletes like Jamie to be proactive with online branding.

Follow Jamie and ProtegeBranding on Twitter: @jamievarner @protegebranding

I want to thank everyone who came out to the symposium this past weekend. I appreciate the opportunity to speak and share my story. It was a great event with a wealth of information shared, especially from Chris Sinacori @ PitchInside.com. I will be sending out an email to the attendees with additional information about the Player Profile Web sites. They received a great response and I want to make sure all questions are answered, as it was quite hectic towards the end. Thanks again to everyone and I look forward to doing it for the sophomores next weekend.

Below is a video tutorial on how the Player Profile Web sites function. Please leave a comment or question below if you have any questions. Thanks and enjoy!

P.S. Sorry for saying um so many times. I’m terrible at that.

You are a business. You are a person operating your business. You are your business. Which ever way you slice it there is always a need to develop leads online and the process can be endless and overwhelming. While there is a ton of great information out there (I personally like EarnersBlog.com and ProBlogger.net), it is important to decide which direction you wish to take to produce leads.

The obvious choice is to take the social network and social media route, but an often untapped and successful arena is generic domains. Generic domains can be essential for your business to get the competitive edge, especially with regard to local search.

Example:  You are a Chiropractor in Scottsdale, AZ and have a domain name for your business such as CheapScottsdaleChiropractorForYou.com.  Rather than taking a gamble that keywords alone will bring you to the top, why not own the definitive searchable name for your market?? ScottsdaleChiropractor.com is available for only $1500.00. Could you find a better name to dominate your niche market?  This is a steal when you think about the leads that this name can produce.  Five new clients and larger submissions to the insurance provider can pay for it.

So now you have the domain name….

What’s next? There are two important ways to establish leads.

1. Create a Lead Generation Page similar to ours. Customize and brand it for your company. Take it a step further and implement a video of your offerings, along with content, directly targeting localized search (usually three to five words) for your keywords and let it work its magic. You will have to update the content regularly to stay optimized, but nonetheless you can have a substantial Web presence with a solid domain name and an affordable yet effective lead generation site.

2. Forward the domain to your business site. The issue here is the search engines. Rumor has it you need to make sure you 301 permanently forward for the search engines (please don’t quote me, I’m not an SEO guy). This, plus setting up an email account such as Dr.Palmer@scottsdalechirpractor.com, will definitely add some validity.

I have made numerous calls to sell generic domains to relevant business owners and more times then not, I get hung up on. The sooner business owners see the value in domains and lead generation online, the easier it will be to create substantial and relevant leads without placing ridiculous print ads and Adword campaigns to no avail.

Please leave your comments and let me know your thoughts.

Regards,

Chris Gruler @ChrisRGruler.com