Hudl Blog

Don’t Make Eric Wait for Concessions

2013-05-17T14:19:40Z

Eric Clymer has been with Hudl for nearly five years. He started as a QA contractor when he was just a freshman at UNL, then he moved on to QA Intern, then Development Intern, and now he’s a full-time Software Engineer.

He works primarily with the Fan team doing all things highlights, so he thoroughly enjoys the process of creating and sharing them. He really just enjoys sharing any and all links possible. You’d never guess by the answers he provided, though.

It’s 2013 and we still don’t have a font for sarcasm. (Comic Sans?)

You can criticize his linkage all you want, but if you place any value on your own life, never question the man’s Nebraska fandom. His claim to fame is only missing one home football game in the last 18 years:

“I was born in Lincoln, Neb. and spent most of my youth playing a mixture of basketball, baseball and video games. Vacations to Disney World have made me somewhat of an expert. A huge Husker fan, I attended every home football game from 1995 until I was too sick to make a game in ‘98. I vowed to never miss a home game again and I’ve been going strong ever since.

“I always knew I would attend the University of Nebraska. I got the opportunity to enter the Raikes School, which led to my interest in software. I met my wife there and, when I wasn’t trying to convince her to stop studying and hang out with me, I spent my time playing intramurals, coding, interning at Hudl, storming the court after underwhelming Nebrasketball victories, attending Husker football games, and completing my finance degree.

“I got married a week after graduating, moved to Omaha so my wife could attend med school, bought a house, and got the best puppy ever.

“Check out my awesome Hudl athlete page, including many a bold-faced lie about my athletic prowess.”

If you could only eat one candy for the rest of your life, what would you choose?
Does popcorn count as candy? If not, then I choose popcorn-flavored jelly beans.

Got any pet peeves?
If you’re waiting in a concession line, please figure out what you want to buy and get your money out. I don’t want to miss any of the game because you were too busy doing nothing the last five minutes. A minute of preparation while in line will make everybody behind you happier. Also, it bothers me that everyone assumes Brandon Gries is a bigger Nebrasketball fan than I am.

What’s your favorite season at Hudl?
Highlight season. As part of the fan team, we love seeing athletes and coaches create jaw-dropping highlight reels.

Most embarrassing song you rock out to.
You’ve not rocked out until you’ve heard the Vuvuzela Chromatic Orchestra’s rendition of When The Saints Go Marching In.

Favorite movie of all time and your favorite scene.
I much prefer TV shows to movies. Scrubs is up there. I’m not ashamed to admit that the final scene of “My Finale: Part 2” can still make me cry. Pretty much any scene from Arrested Development, especially the chicken dancing. If it has to be a movie, “left side, strong side” from Remember The Titans still gives me chills.

Dream vacation - including what you’d do once you’re there.
To see the Tim Miles-led Nebrasketball team win the Final Four with my Nebrasketbros. If I’m going to dream, I’m going to dream B1G.

The Laser Pointer You’ll Never Lose

2013-05-15T14:29:49Z

Do you have an iPad? Does it have the Hudl app? Do you use that app to review film with coaches and players? If you answered yes to all of the above, we have an update you’ll love: Laser Pointer for iPad.

This isn’t the laser pointer you’re used to. In fact, you’ve had this laser pointer your whole life - you just didn’t know it.

With Laser Pointer for iPad, your finger does the drawing.

We know coaches love using a larger second screen for presenting in team meetings and at clinics. You don’t have to deal with playback controls or the seek bar - just show the audience the video. It’s all they need to see.

With Laser Pointer, you can draw anything on your iPad, and see it reflected on the larger screen. Use it to walk through formations and key plays, point out a missed block or a wide open receiver, or press and hold for a spot shadow to call out individual athletes - whether they did something commendable or punishable, we can’t say for sure.

The Laser Pointer for iPad works best when you connect to the second screen via HDMI. Apple TV works, too.

Ready to give it a shot? Check out the tutorial for steps on getting connected to your second screen.

Hudl in the Offseason

2013-05-13T14:09:05Z

As a high school teacher and football coach, the old adage is “football doesn’t pay the bills”. People who utter these words aren’t aware of the amount of time, effort and shoe leather that goes into running a successful program.

Think of the program as a car: You can do the bare minimum and change the oil twice a year, wash at the end of the winter, etc. Your car runs, but are you getting the most performance out of your machine? Compare that to the person who washes and details their vehicle regularly, keeps the tires properly inflated and rotated, and gets all scheduled maintenance done on time regardless of cost and inconvenience. The later description is often called a “car guy” and, for the purposes of this discussion, the equivalent to a high school football coach.

In football, the games are going to be played regardless, but are you really setting yourself up for success or just participating? The successful high school football coach follows a plan and performs tasks regardless of personal inconvenience, making sure all of the pieces are not only performing properly in the offseason, but also in the classroom.

There are three key things that we do at Westfield High School to keep our components timed and up-to-date. We believe that the football offseason is a time of recovery and a chance to get involved with other sports, so these things are not physically taxing to the athletes, but are designed to keep the players (and coaches) informed and in touch.

Film your offseason meetings and upload to Hudl

This requires little effort but brings maximum benefit. How many times does a player tell you he can’t make a team meeting? Whether the reason is 100% valid and understandable, or it is an off-the-wall excuse, the result is the same. Tell the player to check their Hudl account under ‘MISC’ and they can get all of the info they missed. At Westfield, the link is sent out to our parents, as well. Everyone in the program is hearing the same thing. (Tip: Make sure you publish your video with sound!)

Upload clinic and drill tapes

If you are like us, the beginning of January signals “clinic season”. These meetings run the gambit from very informative to very social. This is the time of year that you can reflect on what you do and see what else is out there. One of the greatest things about the coaching profession is how open our colleagues are to helping one another. Our defensive coordinator is moving to the offense this year and recently reached out to colleges for drill tapes. Within a week, we had a collection of spring cut-ups and realized how great it would be if our O-line coach could see them, so we started uploading the drill tapes to Hudl and placing them in the CLINIC tab for all coaches to view.

Do lunch

At Westfield, we have many multisport athletes. This is even more evident in the spring with our successful lacrosse, baseball and track programs. It’s important to respect the other sports’ seasons, as we expect the same from them in the fall. So how do you stay in touch with the athletes committed to other teams? Once a month, we bring position groups into the football office to have lunch. Our emphasis is on building relationships among coaches and players, not the amount of work put into each meeting. Film is usually involved, but most times it is not to watch ourselves. We watch college tapes or other teams from around the area. We use these films as conversation pieces to help the players grow and strengthen interactions. If you don’t have any films from anyone else, reach out to coaches who are not on your schedule and ask them to share a film or two. (And be ready to reciprocate!)

Folks who don’t understand the year-round commitment and self-sacrifice that good football programs possess miss out on the impact we have on the young men and women around us. Just as the consistently cared for car runs reliably in the worst conditions, using your offseason as a chance to perform needed team maintenance ensures consistency in the program. You can give your players the rest they need after a long season while still using your tools to put the team in position to hit the ground running in August.

Allie Bit My Finger

2013-05-10T17:04:36Z

Allie Harman joined the Hudl team in January 2011 as a member of our Internal Sales team that doesn’t go by ‘Internal Sales’ anymore. (We like to change titles pretty regularly. Don’t worry about it.)

Now, she’s part of the business development team and number one baller in Hudl for Club & Youth. Ask her about our new Basic and Elite packages and you’ll be amazed by how good she is at her job.

Outside the office walls, Allie is doing something Husker-y. Whether it’s attending a game or just wearing one of her million Nebraska pullovers, the girl bleeds Husker red. And I mean that literally - she cut her finger earlier this week and I saw it. Sorry if you’re squeamish, we’ll get to the good stuff:

“I was born and raised in Nebraska, originally from Omaha. I have one older sister, whom I spent most of my childhood trying to persuade to quit reading books and play games with me. Needless to say I played a lot of board games solo.

“Growing up, my free time was pretty much consumed with select softball, but I also took dance classes. My family loves rollercoasters, so we planned most of our family trips to theme parks around the country. We are also die-hard Husker fans, so every football Saturday we were either at Memorial Stadium or hosting watch parties. My love of sports and excitement eventually landed me a job at Hudl, after finishing a few degrees at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

“I’m pretty easygoing, but there’s one thing I’m absolutely terrified by: spiders. And no, fellow Hudlies, that is not an open invitation to start playing practical jokes on me. It’s not funny and you will be sorry. When I’m not helping club & youth coaches discover the benefits of Hudl, I work for a local nonprofit foundation, Creating Captains.”

Has anyone said you remind them of someone famous?
Yes - Daryl Hannah in Splash. I think it was just because she had blonde, curly hair in that movie. It’s pretty much the only thing people recognize me for. If Santa wore a blonde, curly wig this year, I’m sure someone would ask why I was running around in a red velvet suit.

Do you have OCD? Or just go with the flow?
Hmm, maybe not to the extreme, but I think everyone has a little OCD in them. I’m not a clean freak, but I have some tendencies. Whenever I get on or off a plane, I always step with my right foot first. I lock my front door and always double-check that it’s locked. So I suppose I have a little OCD, yes.

If you could be anyone for one day, who would you be?
Good question. Probably Tom Osborne. Coming from Nebraska and growing up in the household that I did, it’s almost like being God.

Give me two truths and a lie:

I once ran face-first into a sliding glass door (it was really clean).
I have a passion for all things cooking – especially baking.
I’ve met Will Ferrell in person. I was so starstruck I only managed to offer him a slice of cold pizza.

Is there a YouTube video that’s guaranteed to make you laugh?
‘Charlie Bit My Finger’. With their English accents, it never gets old. I actually quoted it earlier this week when I accidentally cut my finger.

Favorite thing about Hudl.
My favorite thing about Hudl is when a coach realizes how much impact Hudl can have on his or her team. There’s nothing more rewarding than helping someone save time and be a better coach at the same time. It’s so exciting to help them solve their problems using Hudl.

Tackling the Other F-Word

2013-05-07T16:07:36Z

Fundraising. It’s never fun, it’s always time-consuming, and it rarely gives you the funds you really need. So we’re pretty happy to announce that your days of selling cookie dough, wrapping paper and magazine subscriptions are over. It’s time to give your team’s supporters something they actually want: Hudl Insider Accounts.

With Hudl Insider Accounts, parents, alumni and fans pay for access to your team’s game film.

That might sound a little scary, but here’s the deal: you choose who receives an invite, how much they pay, and what video they see.

Have game film from 10, 20, 30 years ago? Perfect. You can invite alumni to create Insider Accounts and relive their glory days. Grandma and Grandpa three states over can watch every Friday night match-up as soon as you upload and share. Create a pump-up video before a big road game to get parents and fans excited for the trip.

How Insider Accounts help your team is totally up to you. Just get the names and email addresses of whoever you’d like to invite, set the annual price (minimum $25), and track the status of those invites. Use collected funds to pay for Hudl or cash out at any time and we’ll send you a check.

Getting the money is fun, but we like to think setting it up is just as awesome. Pick your school colors, tell us about your mascot, and upload an image to represent your team through the Insider sign-up process. Once you’re done customizing, we’ll give you a checklist of who you might want to invite. Again, it’s totally up to you, but we like to lend a hand in case you forget anyone.

It’s never too early to get started adding Insiders. Try turning them on now and share some offseason drills to get everyone excited for the fall. Just log in to your Hudl account and head to the Fundraising page.

For more info and to hear from coaches who are already on the Insider Accounts bandwagon, check out hudl.com/insiders.

Was it something we said?

2013-05-06T17:03:43Z

So, April is officially in the books and we’re getting a little antsy here on the support team. This is the second straight month we’ve taken fewer than 3,500 calls and frankly, we’re worried you guys might not like us as much anymore.

We’re sure you’ve just been busy with other activities, but we’re starting to get a little lonely. Here’s the breakdown:

We took even fewer calls in April than we did in March - 3,438 of them to be exact. That’s a whopping 12 fewer than last month and is our lowest monthly call total in two years. Either everyone is becoming Hudl wizards, or coaches are taking some time off to recharge as the school year winds down.
Our average hold time went up to 43 seconds. We don’t like to make excuses, but we had some rookies getting their training on, and that may have affected our numbers.
We saw our email total continue to rise in April as we took 3,999 throughout the month. Maybe coaches just don’t like talking to us anymore… :( We also only answered 522 chats as a result of some new hire training.
We set up 454 remote sessions, which is roughly 20 per day. To put that in perspective, we had several days last football season where we saw 150+ remote sessions come through. You’re making it too easy for us.

Survey stats were slightly down by our standards. Of the 580 surveys we got back:

548 (94.5%) said their experience was awesome.
574 (99%) said they would hire the rep they worked with.

We follow up with every survey that comes in that’s less than perfect, so if we’re not helping resolve your issues, please let us know. We’re always trying to get better and make your experience with Hudl as smooth as possible. HELP US HELP YOU.

It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! It’s Jake.

2013-05-03T17:36:58Z

Jake Mullins is a Quality Assurance Analyst. That means he’s dedicated to making sure Hudl does what it’s supposed to and then some. He’s been with the product team for two years this month and, though he complains about his muggle upbringing, he’s 100% Hudl wizard.

When he’s not at work, Jake’s busy obsessing over superheroes. And when we say obsessing, we mean he’s so consumed by Clark Kent and company, it could be at the disease level.

But that’s totally fine, because he’s basically our product team Superman. Just keep reading to learn more about this man of steel and kid at heart:

“I’m a muggle-born (thanks Mom and Dad) from Tampa Bay where I lived for six years. I grew up in a Greek village on the ocean, which might explain why I love Greek mythology and water so much. We moved to Omaha where I attended Millard North. I played football in high school, but also enjoyed basketball and baseball growing up.

“I’m very blessed to have such an amazing family. I have one younger brother, Luke, who attends the University of Nebraska.

“I graduated from UNL where I majored in business administration with focuses in management, marketing, and finance. During school I served as social chair for Sigma Nu fraternity.”

Got any big plans for the weekend?
I’m going to escape to alternate realities by seeing Iron Man 3 at least once and playing a dangerous amount of video games. I’d love to play golf but mother nature and Nebraska have been fighting and ruining my life lately.

Do you consider yourself a grown-up?
Does wearing super hero t-shirts, playing a dangerous amount of video games, and watching Vampire Diaries and cartoons count as being an adult? If yes, then awesome. If no, then I still say yes.

What flavor of ice cream represents you as a person?
I like ice cream.
Great! Thanks.

If you were elected President of the United States, what would be your first order of business?
Make it a law to have a Chick-Fil-A in every city with a population of more than 100,000. The nation would be a better/fatter place.

It’s a war of ninjas vs. pirates. Who comes out on top?
Ninjas will win in a one-on-one battle. Pirates are focused on finding treasure and asking “Why is the rum always gone?” Ninjas are quick, stealthy masters in martial arts and fighting. Chris Farley clearly represents this in Beverly Hills Ninja. But Chris Farley Ninja vs. Captain Jack Sparrow would be an epic battle.

A Wife Swap Not Involving Wives

2013-05-01T18:31:21Z

Think of it as a life swap, but not really a swap: We want a coach to visit us at the Hudl office and dig in with our product team. On top of that, we want to visit a team at some point in-season to see how Hudl fits into their daily operations.

Note: We’re not saying the coach who visits Hudl has to coach the team we’ll visit later this year - volunteering for one does not automatically qualify you for the other. Just sign up for whatever you’re most comfortable with. (If that means doing both, by all means, please do.)

Highlights for the visiting coach:

Get a head start working with our newest features.
Give honest feedback on product designs and be our go-to for user experience questions.
Get a glimpse at how we make product decisions and plan the development of a given feature.
Free lunch and dinner!
Free lodging for the duration of your visit.
More Hudl swag than you can handle.

We’re looking to host one or two coaches for a three-day period in June. If you’re interested, fill out this form and our product team will be sure to follow up. Keep in mind, we’re asking the selected coaches to cover their own travel expenses.

Tidbits about joining your team this season:

We’re looking for full access to facilities and events over the course of the weekend, including the pressbox, sideline, coaches meetings, pregame and halftime sessions, etc.
We promise to keep everything we see/hear/discuss confidential. We also promise to be quiet as church mice while observing your team in action.
We aren’t hanging out to do your work for you, just to learn and observe your process - even if it means staying up until 2 a.m. and attending a 7 a.m. coaches meeting.
We’ll bring members of our Coach Relations and Development teams who can handle any of your technical troubles in-person. We’ll also be happy to answer general Hudl questions all weekend.
Your coaches and players will be showered with swag.

If you wouldn’t mind four or five Hudlies coming in on a Friday afternoon and leaving Monday evening, let us know. We’ll cover the cost of our whole trip.

If you have any questions about either side of the pseudo-swap, . We’re happy to provide all the details you desire.

The Right Computer for Hudl

2013-04-29T17:14:16Z

Part of my job as a Technical Lead on our Coach Relations team is outfitting our crew with the technology they need to serve you. Between purchasing dozens of computers for new hires and assembling a few of my own, I have quite a bit of experience finding the best machines for Hudl. I’ll briefly explain the specs you’re looking for below, but feel free to skip down to the recommendations at the bottom if that’s all you’re looking for.

When searching for a computer to use with Hudl, your top priority is the processor. Intel’s Core series gives you a number of options that serve a range of needs. From Core i3, to Core i5, and finally Core i7, you’ll get progressively better performance with each jump.

Beyond the processor, your main consideration will be RAM, and to a lesser extent, hard drive size. RAM allows your computer to run more programs at once and more smoothly. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a new laptop that doesn’t have 4 GB or more, which is just fine for use with Hudl and most other programs.

Hard drive space is in the same category - it won’t have much of an effect on your computer’s speed (unless you have a solid state drive) but the larger the hard drive the more video you can store. If you’re willing to splurge, solid state drives will increase the responsiveness of your computer pretty dramatically. It will boot faster and programs open almost instantly, but for the price you get much less storage capacity. Don’t worry - solid state drives only have a small impact on publishing times, so you can save a few bucks if you’re trying to get the most bang for your buck with Hudl.

We purchase most of our computers from Dell, so that’s what I’ll stick to. If you have a preferred vendor or find yourself a slick deal, then do your thing. On to the recommendations!

Core i3 Laptop - Great for Hudl.com usage and uploading in a pinch.

Core i5 Laptop - Same as the i3 system, but faster. Hits a sweet spot in value vs. performance.

Core i7 Quad Laptop - If budget is less of a concern, this is about as good as you can get in a laptop. Can be up to twice as fast as the computers above when it comes to encoding video.

Looking at a desktop computer? The recommendations above regarding processor families, RAM and hard drive size still apply. You’ll get >50% more performance than you would on a laptop spending the same amount of money.

Wondering about Macs? The same recommendations apply, but you shouldn’t have any trouble finding a Mac that won’t handle Hudl with ease.

Jason has all of his teeth now

2013-04-26T17:45:14Z

Jason West joined Hudl coach support in June 2012 and it didn’t take long for people to like him. Really, the main reason he’s this week’s Hudlie is because he’s zero percent diva and assured us he can be himself even in the spotlight.

He’s the resident pro on all things baseball, so if you sign up for one of those training sessions, you’re guaranteed to learn a thing or two.

When it comes to Jason, just know his excited voice is eerily similar to his calm voice. Not to say that’s a bad thing; just a heads-up to read this entire thing in monotone for the full effect.

“I was born and raised in Arvada, Colo., which is just a ‘burb of Denver. I have an older sister named Jess who tried to keep me in line as a kid. There was a lot of baseball growing up in the West household, which somehow led me to Doane College in Crete, Neb. After that, I sold furniture for a while before finding Hudl.

“I didn’t hate selling furniture. I just really love my job now.”

If you were on a deserted island with two other people, who would they be? What would they bring with them?
Jerry Seinfeld could just bring some jokes. The other would be MacGyver, because he is a professional at everything. He would bring duct tape and a paper clip. The combination of those two would keep me entertained and safe. The only reason I say duct tape and a paper clip is because that’s all MacGyver needs to fix any situation.

If you could pick a name other than ‘Jason’, what would it be?
I would go with Easton. Easton West. I bet no one in the world has that name and it sounds like a brand of compass.

If you could afford to give someone ANY gift, what would it be and to whom would you give it?
I just watched the 30 for 30 on Bo Jackson - “You don’t know Bo”. I think I would give him his original hip. I would love to see what he could do with a full career in two sports.

If you could magically develop some skill, what would it be? What would you do with it?
Without a doubt, I would fly. I might fly around above people and drop water balloons on them.

What’s something most people probably don’t know about you?
I lived most of my childhood without my two front teeth. It was weird, but I thought I pulled it off pretty well. Once they grew in, one ended up getting knocked out by a baseball in high school… maybe those teeth just weren’t meant to be.

What’s the most trouble you got in growing up?
I stole a pack of gum from the grocery store when I was five. That didn’t work so well, considering my dad is a police officer. We had a nice little talk and went back to the store to return it. I never made that mistake again.

Playing for Keeps(akes)

2013-04-24T15:23:03Z

If you have a Hudl account, there’s a very good chance you have a highlight reel. If you don’t, just know that it’s never been easier to tag your best plays and create a Premium Highlight perfect for sharing.

Come on, you’re pretty awesome. Why not showcase those skills and spread the love all over social media? While you’re at it, you should order hard copies, too.

The Internet might not be around forever (that’s a giant ‘might’, I know) and it never hurts to have a backup of your greatness. Especially when your kids and grandkids will want nothing more than to join you in reliving the glory days.

After you mark highlights in the iOS app or your Hudl.com library, create a Premium Highlight reel complete with your own music and spot shadows. Make as many reels as you’d like (maybe one for each season?) and order a DVD or downloadable copy right from your My Highlights page.

DVDs are only $25, or you can receive a $9 download right to your email in a fraction of the time.

While having hard copies is a bonus, the best part of ordering a highlight is that a portion of your purchase goes back to the team. As long as Coach has Fundraising turned on, every DVD and download order acts as a donation. Raising money to pay for a Hudl subscription, new helmets, or a bus to team camp only takes a couple of clicks.

Questions? Feel free to or Tweet us!

You Should Poke Tom

2013-04-19T13:35:44Z

Coach Support Specialist Tom Grant joined the Hudl team in January 2013 and has been crushing it in his first few months. He hit the ground running and we haven’t really been able to contain him since he was released from New Hire Training.

Whether he’s handling remote sessions or fielding calls, the dude makes a mission of helping coaches win.

When he’s not busy at the office, he’s watching or listening to any game in progress. He has a favorite team for almost every sport and plenty of favorite athletes whom he’d love to talk about whenever you get a minute. Until then, he’ll fill you in on life and stuff:

“I grew up in Omaha, Neb. and graduated from the University of Nebraska in 2012. I’ve always been a huge fan of sports and am most loyal to the St. Louis Blues, Green Bay Packers and Manchester City.

“I played baseball at Creighton Prep, where I proudly began the tradition of forming an orchestra in the dugout much like that musical called ‘Stomp’. To this day, that is one of my prouder moments in life, if not the proudest.

“Beyond that, I’m also proud to say I once worked at a dog grooming and boutique store called Pucci’s, where I learned a lot, like how to handle a dog owner who thinks their animal is an actual human being with opposable thumbs.”

Who’s your hero?
Samuel L. Jackson because he mastered the concept of taking a terrible script and making it worthy of Academy Award status. (e.g. Snakes on a Plane)

Are you into online shopping? Or shopping in general?
I’ve never been a big fan of online shopping until recently. I kind of went crazy and bought three different pairs of shoes. I got a pair of golf shoes even though I only played three times last summer, and some workout shoes even though I haven’t worked out in about two years. But they look really cool.

Do you like yourself?
Yes, I do.

Are you a healthy eater? What are your opinions on fast food?
No, I am not. I love Taco Bell and Dairy Queen so I’m a huge supporter of fast food in general. And please, save me the horse meat comments. If what I’m tasting in a Taco Bell taco is horse meat, then count me all in on horse meat.

What is the point of poking someone on Facebook?
To annoy them. There is no other answer to this question.

What’s been the most intriguing thing about Hudl? What baffles you about this place?
The most intriguing part of Hudl is without a doubt the laid-back atmosphere that everyone creates while keeping the work pace up. It’s been an absolutely great experience and I consider myself very lucky to be a part of the team. The only thing that baffles me is the people who chose to take a stand-up desk instead of a nice, comfy, sit-down spot. That makes zero sense to me. Especially because they spend half the day sitting down anyway, just higher up in the air.

We’re Up To So Many Things

2013-04-17T15:01:50Z

If you thought things around here slowed down after football season, you’re mistaken. Once winter hits, clinic season begins.

In the past few months, we’ve sent Hudlies to nearly 200 clinics across the United States - and up in Canada - to talk to coaches about Hudl.

If you didn’t get a chance to chat with us or learn some new Hudl tricks, don’t worry - the second annual Hudl Up Tour is back in action with a marathon trek to 37 cities across the U. S.

When we’re not on the road, Hudlies are finding time to help out in Lincoln’s community. In the past couple months, we’ve helped out with Kids Against Hunger and a local ‘Soups and Hoops’ event. Giving back to the community is really important to us and we jump at the chance to get together and do some good.

If you know us at all, you know we’ll always find the time to get together and have some fun. Over the winter, the entire company attended a Nebraska basketball game, had a “friendly” night of bowling, and most recently caught a Nebraska baseball game against the Ohio State Buckeyes.

And while we’re on the topic of good times, we should mention the entire company traveling to Vega$ earlier this month for our annual retreat. Along with planning for our next quarter, we made sure to have some fun - you could find us soaking up some sun by the pool, rocking at the ACM Awards concert, skydiving over the desert (limited to the office daredevils), and partaking in plenty of other Vega$ shenanigans.

Now that we’re back in the office, we’re looking forward to getting back to work and seeing new faces around the office in the coming months. We’ve added quite a few newbies to the bunch since the end of football season, so get excited to learn all about the newest additions to the Hudl team!

Toby Schroder Knows Design

2013-04-12T16:25:49Z

Toby Schroder is a product designer with a year or ten of experience. At one point, he ran his own design firm just across the street from where he’s working now. You know, in the Haymarket. In Lincoln. Across from 8th and P Streets.

Anyway, he gets things done and we love him for it, but when he’s not busy making Hudl look awesome, he’s spending time with his wife and kids. You should ask to see pictures of his kids. Really. Most of the time people just shove them in your face and you’re all like, “Seriously, your child looks like every other one I’ve seen.” But the Schroders know how to do Halloween. That’s all I’ll say.

“I was born and raised in Lincoln, Neb. I graduated from Lincoln High in 1996. Wrestling became my sport of choice in sixth grade and that along with the typical house parties and general tomfoolery consumed my free time. Over the years, I competed in every year’s state tournament and a handful of national tournaments and got to represent Nebraska on the Junior National Team.

“After high school I bounced in and out of school for design and computer science while working in the IT/networking field. I eventually found myself at a mid-sized software firm in Denver and realized the end of the career path I was on wasn’t somewhere I wanted to end up. I moved back to my hometown, started my own design firm and finished my design degree at Doane College. I ran my own business for about five years.

“In 2011 I decided to split off and go back out on my own. I freelanced for a year until I decided to check out Hudl at the first UX meetup and the rest is pretty obvious. I now live in south Lincoln with my lovely wife and two strapping lads: Jack, who’s nearly two and Cole who’s six - and two beagles: Bailey and Rufus. These days I split my time between spending time with my family and trying like crazy to become one of the best product designers in the country.”

Any guilty pleasures? Don’t hold out on me.
An evening with nobody. Just peace and quiet.

Your house is on fire, what three things do you grab before leaving? (Loved ones and gadgets exempt)
Okay, but you have to preface it with the fact that I would grab my wife, kids and beagles first.

The cribbage board and card deck left to me by my father
My wedding ring
The ring my mother gave me for college graduation, crafted from a tie tack my father used to wear.

If you could become fluent in any language, what would you choose? Why?
German. I took three years of Chinese in high school and it was rad, but I’ve traced my family tree back to Germany and would love to go there someday to find distant relatives.

If you could become a crime-fighting duo with any celebrity, who would you choose? In ‘good cop, bad cop’ which would you be?
Nathan Fillion. I’m always the good guy.

Favorite thing about Hudl. Just in general.
Everyone says the people they work with - and that’s true and awesome - but I feel the need to say something different: the challenge. I came to Hudl to be challenged and grow as a designer, and it’s proved a great choice.

Anything else you’re just dying to share with the world?
Andy and I started cranking Levi’s stand-up desk higher by a half turn each day in the hopes he would begin to think he’s getting shorter.

March in Support: Anything but Madness

2013-04-09T15:58:12Z

Even though March traditionally corresponds with madness in the world of sports, it was pretty calm for our Support team. In fact, in terms of calls, it was our slowest month in almost two years! It was also the first month we’ve had more emails than phone calls since… well… ever.

We appreciate all of you spreading the love in so many different ways. Here are the stats for you:

We took only 3,450 calls in March. That’s the least we’ve taken in a month since June 2011. On average, that’s about 165 calls per business day. It would’ve taken four Marches to match the number of calls that we took in August of last year. Luckily, that gave us time to get the Hudl Up Tour fully planned, among other things.
Since the number of calls was so low, our average hold time was only 35 seconds. We haven’t been that low since last summer.
March brought us 3,644 emails and 919 chats. As mentioned before, it’s the first time we’ve ever had a month with more emails than phone calls. We love to hear your voices while solving your problems, but we suppose emails will work, too.
We set up just 542 remotes last month. Good to know we were all on the same pages, watching basketball almost all day, every day.

Our surveys were pretty good during March, as well. Of the 741 responses we received:

717 (96.8%) said their experience was awesome.
737 (99.5%) said they would hire the support rep they worked with.

We’ve got a few months left before the craziness of football starts up again, so let us know what we can do to make sure you’re all set when camp rolls around. And no, we still don’t have any players that can block/run/pass/catch/kick for you. Except for maybe this guy.