Frequently Asked Questions

What are we looking for in a Prep Network Scout?

We’re looking for people that show up. Do you like to be there to see the action live? Are you in the gym? Are you at the playing field? We’re looking for contributors who are comfortable on the sidelines with a keen eye for talent that goes beyond the box score. Who is performing better than expected, and why? What does he or she do well? If you’ve got a knack for that sort of exposition, then we’ve got a platform for you. We’re looking for people committed to putting the time in to add value and provide visibility to all players in a given sport. 

What is Prep Network’s mission?

Our mission is to cover as many prospects as possible, regardless of their collegiate projection. We don’t avoid covering the best players, but we want to spend as much time on prospects who project to the D2, D3, NAIA, and JUCO levels. We make an impact at this level because there’s a void in coverage for players beyond the top tier. Additionally, college coaches at the lower levels have far fewer resources with which to recruit. While high-major prospects receive coverage from a litany of national outlets, our coverage can open doors for small college prospects that would not be there otherwise.

Prep Network is hands-down the most comprehensive authority for high school basketball, volleyball, football, soccer, and lacrosse news and information in the country. This has been achieved by covering all players at all levels.

How do scouts publish content?

During our onboarding process, we’ll train you to post to the site with a short training video. We run on WordPress and our scouts, many of whom don’t have any experience with the web, find it very intuitive and easy to use. Oftentimes, we’ll ask a scout to submit a ready-to-publish article via email before setting him or her up with access on the site.

Is there a minimum or maximum in which scouts are expected to write?

We ask scouts to commit to a minimum of 1 article per week. Depending on the state, sport, time of year, and team of scouts in a market, that number may increase or decrease. Editor-in-Chief Jared Nelson, Senior Editor Anthony Garcia, as well as Dev Johnson, Jared Martinson, and Pete Zurn will be able to provide more feedback on our expectations for articles once you are onboarded.

That being said, we strive for the high-quality coverage of as many players as possible. If you can consistently produce high-quality content, we will encourage you to write more.

Are there story assignments? How do scouts decide what to write?

We don’t assign stories as a traditional newspaper would. Rather, we encourage scouts within a market to communicate with one another to ensure comprehensive coverage of the players in that area. Our editorial team functions as a sounding board for writers, helping them generate ideas and providing resources to keep the content fresh. We’ll aggregate content from around the network, compiling and sharing the best with the group on a weekly basis. Our content team is available around the clock to be of assistance with content ideas and posting tips.

All of our content is oriented toward our mission of providing value and visibility to as many players as possible. We do that through player lists and analysis, rather than individual-player pieces. That’s what it’s all about for us – 8-10 players in an article with a few sentences of analysis on each.

How do I know if an article is ready to be published?

For your first several stories, a member of the content team will read over your articles and send direct feedback. Going forward, though, think of Grammarly as your very own digital editor. Grammarly will identify any spelling and grammatical issues at the click of a button. It’s an absolute no-brainer before you post. 

What about video?

We have plenty of scouts around the country who dabble in video. Videos are a great value-add for articles whether you’re putting together highlight films or asking a prospect questions on camera. We normally don’t have them serve as stand-alone articles, however. They’re great additions to articles, as we always encourage scouts to add their notes and analysis in writing.

Do Prep Network writers get media passes?

We’ll be able to make you a media pass for games and tournaments, a lot of scouts use that throughout the year. We’re happy to put something together once you’ve got 3-5 articles under your belt.

Can I get some gear?

After you’ve been writing for a few months, we’ll send you a coupon to the Prep Network store. You can snag a polo, quarter-zip, and/or a backpack. We want to make sure you’re looking good and repping the brand! Being seen is huge. We just hold off on this to make sure that our writers are sticking around before we give them a coupon. The same goes for business cards!

What’s Prep Network’s business model?

All of our content sites are paywalled, with upwards of 95% of our articles and rankings requiring a subscription to view. Our subscription revenue goes toward paying our scouts for their coverage. In addition to our content, Prep Network also operates team events and individual player showcases throughout the country.

How does compensation work?

We pay our scouts on a per-article basis at industry-competitive rates for the type of content we produce. Rates do vary somewhat depending upon the experience and expertise of the scout. You can expect a typical article to take roughly 45 minutes to complete and, after some tenure, it’s common for us to increase a writer’s per-article rate.

During the onboarding process, you will fill out a direct deposit form and W-9 form so we can enter you into our payroll system. We run payroll once a month at the beginning of the month, and direct deposits are sent on the 10th of each month. I.E. if you publish 10 articles in the month of July, those articles will be paid out on August 10th.

At the end of the month, you’ll be sent a payroll notification in order to confirm that the payment amount is accurate. You’ll need to confirm this by the 3rd of the month to avoid delays in payroll.

What is the financial upside? How can I make more money?

We do have a handful of other ways that contributors can generate income. We pay our senior scouts for updating the rankings and offer bonuses for covering Prep Network tournaments and showcases.

It’s very common for us to pay contributors more over time, as long as the one’s performance is leading to subscriber growth. As we generate more revenue from a contributor’s work, we aim to give that back to the him or her in bigger paychecks. It’s common for us to reward contributors with bonus pay so that they receive a monthly bonus commensurate with subscription growth in his or her market.

It’s very uncommon for this to be a full-time job for contributors. We do strive to make it a meritocracy, though. If a person is publishing quality work consistently and the site is growing as a result, that person will make more money than his or her less productive counterparts. 

How and when are prospect rankings updated?

Our How We Rank page is a free resource available to our audience, but it’s also the standard we hold ourselves to. Check that out for a detailed breakdown of our prospect rankings philosophy.

In terms of getting the job done from a technical standpoint, we have a custom-built platform on the backend of the site called the Rankings Editor. If you are responsible for managing rankings updates for existing sites, you will be trained to use the Rankings Editor.

If you’re interested in helping manage rankings updates for existing websites, email Rankings@PrepNetwork.com.

Does Prep Network cover travel?

Our hyper-local state coverage doesn’t require a ton of travel for our scouts.  Ideally, you won’t be driving and flying all over the region to see players. Instead, you’ll become the expert in your specific area. Then, when teams travel during the spring/summer, our scouts are able to see players from other states and throughout the region, publishing content nationally.

As 1099 contractors, you are eligible to write off mileage on your taxes which is something we STRONGLY recommend you take advantage of. There are a number of good mileage tracking apps out there, but one of the most popular is MileIQ  (Apple Version) (Android Version). Or just search “mileage tracker” in the app store if you want to try out something different.

If an app isn’t your style you can track your miles via spreadsheet here. Once you click the link click “File → Download a Copy” to have your own copy.

I know someone that would be a great addition to the team, what next?

With a mission statement to “cover as many prospects as possible, at all projected levels“ we are always looking for quality scouts who know the game, can write, and fit our culture. If you know of someone in your market or somewhere else across the country let Jared know at jared@prepnetwork.com. We get contacted regularly by people interested in joining our team, but there is nothing better than connecting with someone through a current scout that we know and trust.