Shrinking recruit pool and qualifications forcing desperate ad campaign

[Roxana, “US Army Is Facing ‘War for Talent,’ Courting Gen Z With Benefits,” Bloomberg Government, June 1, 2022, https://about.bgov.com/news/us-army-is-facing-war-for-talent-courting-gen-z-with-benefits/, accessed June 22, 2023, GDS-LL]

Social Media Reach

Five 15-second videos headline the new campaign and draw a connection between what young people want and the Army benefits that signal quality of life and well-being. It’s designed to reach nationwide audiences on television, online, and via podcasts, as well as on social media platforms including Reddit, Alphabet Inc.’s Google Discovery, YouTube, Snapchat, Instagram, Meta Platforms Inc.’s Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. GoArmy social channels and GoArmy.com also are promoting the campaign.

“People from the Department of Defense have told us that they are concerned about both the number of people who do not meet the standards for joining the military, and the smaller number of people who even try,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) said in an interview. “That is a problem for our nation.”

Of 34 million people born after 1997, 4 out of 5 can’t qualify to serve in the Army, the service’s data show.

“You can’t lower the standards,” said Inhofe, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee. “If you lower the standards, you are inflicting not just hardship, but danger.”