The U.S. Army is social. The armed service has shifted a big portion of its marketing budget away from traditional broad-reaching media to an “Army Strong” social media site, ArmyStrongStories.com, that turns servicemen and women into bloggers. Bruce Jasurda, CMO of the Army, discussed the program at the New York Conference Board gathering this week.
He explained that the effort comprises over a thousand Army stories written by Army bloggers talking about their lives. “We have been around 235 years — one year longer than the country. So we are always asked: ‘Why advertise? You have 100% awareness.’ It’s true. We’ve been in all the big wars,” he joked, saying the idea actually came because people ask very basic questions that show that while awareness is universal, understanding is not.
“People ask, ‘Can I be married and be in the Army?’ ‘If I get hurt, will you take care of me?’ Less than 1% of the U.S. has ever served in any branch of the military, so young people thinking about serving have no one to go to. The onus is on us to tell authentic stories. We have all these perceptual issues we have to overcome.”
Jasurda said it was initially a hard sell at the Pentagon to move media over to social platforms, and not simply because of the reduction of broad-reach efforts. “We presented this idea and how it would mean lots of money out of traditional broad reach. One guy said he was nervous when I presented it” because of what soldiers might say, particularly those in Iraq and Afghanistan. “I said, ‘We ask people to come join our Army: we put them on a bus, give them a haircut and an M16. I think it’s okay to put them online.’ For us, it’s been key that there is authenticity, that we are being totally honest.
Continues at: MediaPost Publications U.S. Army Puts Marketing Guns Into Social Media 11/12/2010.
Related articles
- Uncover Your Army Strong Story at BlogWorld & New Media Expo 2010 (prweb.com)
- The U.S. Army Blogs & Shows Up To Tell Their Story: #BWE10 (downtheavenue.com)
