I’m gonna level with you.
I give a lot of advice to budding coaching entrepreneurs. And yes, all the content at the ConnectedCoach Academy is worth your time and can make a real difference to your business and lifestyle.
But there is one thing that time and time again stands above the rest when it comes to helping coaches transform their business overnight.
It’s one of the most important elements to include in every coaching session, and yet it is incredibly underutilized.
I’d argue it’s the most valuable few minutes of your session time for every single person involved.
It’s Video Recaps.
If you’ve been following along, you should already be familiar with the idea of a Video Recap.
In today’s post I’m gonna tackle the topic from a few new angles.
By the end of this post, I want you to fully understand the WHAT, WHY, and HOW of video recaps.
And remember, none of this matters if you don’t put this into play - take ACTION to reap the benefits I mention throughout this post.
Let’s get to it.
Types of Recaps
I’ll keep this section brief, since we already covered it at length in our highly popular blog: SEE IT IN ACTION - Video Examples for How to Level Up Your Live Coaching Sessions.
In fact, if you haven’t read that post in a while (or ever), I HIGHLY recommend reading it now. I’d consider it something of a prerequisite for getting the most out of what I’m gonna say here.
To recap that post (pun intended!), there are 2 types of Recaps you’ll want to implement into your coaching sessions asap:
First, Mid-Session Video and/or Image Analysis of Technical Movements.
I recommend dedicating a couple minutes during live session to go over any vital technical aspects and fine motor skills you’re working on together (regardless of the sport you coach).
Again, from within your athlete/client’s CoachNow Space, take a quick video of the technical move and keep the camera rolling while you ask questions about how it felt and what they learned.
Keep these videos no longer than 1-2 minutes long - any longer and it becomes less likely that they will review it down the line.
Organizationally, I recommend creating a new post in your shared Space during the session, and then posting each of the videos as comments to that post.
That keeps everything in one spot, allows for richer context, and avoids cluttering up the Space.
Second, Post-Session Coach and Athlete Video Recaps
In the athlete recap, record a video of your athlete/client within their CoachNow Space asking them “what are your biggest takeaways from today's session?” Once recorded, simply hit post in their Space and voila!
In the coach recap, highlight any mistakes you corrected and the advice you gave for how to fix them. Give a simple, yet thorough explanation of what’s expected of them moving forward to achieve their goals.
Again, for more details on every point made in this section, including video examples, and a list of key benefits of each, check out this post: SEE IT IN ACTION - Video Examples for How to Level Up Your Live Coaching Sessions.
More Benefits of Recaps
If your athletes don’t retain the information taught in a session, that session is a waste of time. Full stop.
But recaps not only help with retention, they also have some very valuable downstream benefits.
First, any athlete motivated to improve will want to reflect back on previous sessions to remember key takeaways.
No more two steps forward, one step back. Reviewing sessions Recaps is gold for every athlete.
Second, I’ve found that parents of junior athletes LOVE these recaps.
As a result, the kids love that it keeps their parents off their back. It reduces the need for their parents to ask you and the athlete a bunch of questions after a session.
It’s all in their Space, ready to be reviewed by whoever might be interested (if they’re in your Space, that is).
Third, These videos are far more engaging and dynamic than simple text – they convey emotions.
It feels GOOD to learn something new or improve your technique during a live session. Capturing an athlete’s successes, helping them internalize the why behind it all, and posting it in their Space will remind them of that “aha moment”.
This is especially useful to avoid those frustrating moments when practicing alone. We all have those days where we get stuck – allowing them to see their past excitement in video recaps will give them more power to look back, see what they were doing correctly, hear it in their own words, and feel those positive feelings again.
Lastly, I’ll quickly repeat something you’ve heard from me a thousand times: Retention = Retention.
If your athletes retain the information, they’re gonna practice more effectively, get better faster, and be much more likely to stick with your coaching for the long haul.
And, if you ask me, retaining clients in the long run is one of the most important marks of a healthy business.
Recaps in Groups or Camp Settings
Lots of the examples I’ve provided here and in previous posts have been focused on the value of recaps in a one-on-one relationship.
But this also works super well for camps, clinics, group coaching, or other one-to-many scenarios you may find yourself in.
Obviously, you’re not gonna be able to video each and every team member with an individual recap. That would take up the entire live session!
But what you CAN do is a short 2-3 minute video yourself highlighting a few drills, techniques, or strategies that you covered during team practice.
And, while you’re being filmed, try calling on various team members to chime in and help summarize what was learned on the field, course, or court.
Additionally, you can ask athletes to demo some of the techniques or moves that were focused on during the session. Try picking the ones who had the best form or breakthroughs that day, and while they demo the move, comment on what you’re seeing and what your athletes should be noticing when they review the footage.
This added pressure of potentially being “put on the spot” will increase attention, improve memory retention, and add a collaborative spirit to the recap.
Then, of course, simply post this recap video into their CoachNow Group. I’d recommend creating a dedicated channel for these recaps within the group, and adding a quick summary before posting.
There are lots of ways to implement the video recap into a team or camp dynamic.
The most important thing is to give a succinct and meaningful summary of what was covered and what they should practice while you are apart.
Summary
The majority of coaches these days are hyper focused on video analysis. And in that focus comes the neglect of this very, very simple action that captures much more than any analysis could.
I’ve talked about recaps in the past, but I think it’s SO important to remind you all of their power.
There is a significant ROI to be had on this kind of engagement.
Athletes love it, parents love it, and coaches love it. It really is a rare case of a win-win-win on all accounts and it’s SO easy to implement in your training.
Seriously. Coaches approach me CONSTANTLY, talking about how much of a difference implementing recaps into their training has made for their athletes (and their business)
Again, whether you coach individuals, teams, academies, camps, etc. these recaps are a potent way to keep your athletes engaged, increase retention, and create a record of their training journey over time. And, it doesn’t take any additional time beyond your live sessions!
It gives you a great opportunity to tie a bow on your sessions and ensure your athletes are focused on the key takeaways to review later on.
Action Item
This week, I want you to try implementing recaps at the end of each of your live sessions.
Start small and don’t overthink it. Simply hit that big orange button in your athlete’s Space, summarize some key learnings, answer any questions your athlete may have, then post it.
There’s no harm in giving it a try. Trust me, Recaps are coaching gold!
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