• by Paul Gough , March 24, 2003

In contrast to practice during the first Persian Gulf War in 1991, the Armed Forces are continuing and in some cases expanding recruitment advertising.

The two service branches heaviest in the fighting in central and southern Iraq haven't shied away from their recruitment ads, particularly on television and the Internet. The Army debuted a new 30-second spot during the NCAA championships and the Marine Corps began airing 30- and 60-second spots on nationwide TV last Thursday, the first full day of war.

The service branches say that the war in Iraq notwithstanding, they need to recruit hundreds of thousands of young men and women to fill the ranks. They spend hundreds of millions of dollars on recruitment, not only on younger-skewing networks like MTV, Comedy Central and TNN but also in magazines like Men's Health and Glamour and, increasingly, on the Internet. "We have to keep a steady state of forces. The military is still hiring and we need to continue that ... while being mindful of world events," said Army spokesman Paul Boyce. The Army and other armed forces are contending with a military that always needs to replace the hundreds of thousands of soldiers and sailors who retire every year.

In the first Gulf War, the Army pulled its advertising for six months. And while other advertisers have weighed dropping or changing advertising strategy during at least the first few weeks of war, the armed forces are plunging ahead. Boyce notes that the nation has been at war since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and began a new round of advertising between 9/11 and the beginning of the war in Afghanistan less than a month later. That round of TV spots - with the tagline "Every Generation Has Its Heroes" - showed veterans from World War I to the present day.

The new Army spot - titled "Creed" - was created by Leo Burnett USA with planning and buying done by Starcom. It's temporarily replacing the rest of the Army TV spots, although Boyce said they will return. The new spot has no words but focuses on individual real-life soldiers and the unit patches and mottos of several active-duty and reserve units. Boyce said some of the Fort Hood, Texas, units have been deployed to the Persian Gulf since the commercials were filmed months ago but declined to say whether they've been involved in combat in Iraq. In the spot, the 391st Regiment's motto - "We Will Always Win" - is the last thing viewers see.

The Marine Corps and their agency, J. Walter Thompson Atlanta, has taken a different approach to recruiting, with 30- and 60-second spots that show Marines ready to go into battle. Marines are shown in boot camp, getting ready for a beach assault, flying helicopters and fighter jets, driving armored vehicles and drilling in Marines' dress blues. The scenes are cut with the titles, "For Honor," "For Courage," and "For Country." The commercials end with "The Few. The Proud" and the Marine Corps logo.

"We believe this commercial portrays the courage and commitment of Marines, whether at war or at peace, highlighting the pride and honor of today's Marine Corps and individual Marines," said Maj. Andrew Fortunato, director of marketing at Marine Recruiting Command. The Marines advertising includes TV, radio, print, direct marketing and the Internet.

Although in the middle of one of two annual recruitment drives, the war hasn't altered the Navy's "Accelerate Your Life" campaigns. Cmdr. Steve Lowry, a public affairs officer with the Navy Recruiting Command in Tennessee, said the spring campaign has been running for about a month and will run another month and a half. Another campaign begins in the fall.

"Right now we have no plans to change any of our campaign materials. The message works well in peacetime as it does in times of conflict," Lowry said. He said the Navy saw no reason to change the spots.

"We looked at them very carefully and we found there was nothing objectionable or sensitive. It wasn't timely, it doesn't show combat operations. It appeals to the sense of personal growth, responsibility and service," Lowry said. The Navy spends about $85.8 million annually on all recruitment efforts; TV represents about 17% of the overall spending.

The Army spokesman, Boyce, said advertising helps bring awareness but the key to advertising remains the local recruiter.

"In the end, it is very much a personal decision to join the U.S. Armed Forces, one of both commitment and a spirit of selfless service. That level of commitment requires you to sit down and talk to someone about it," Boyce said.