The Army Brand, Is It Finally Cool?

Sometime ago, I offered some suggestions on building the Army brand. Needless to say, Army’s CMO, Edward Walters has not taken my advice, the Army would do very well to team up with Spike TV for a basic training reality show (you heard it hear first, call me Mr. Walters)! He has, however, established a few new wrinkles in the way the Army brand is perceived.

Anyone my age, or older can remember the old recruiting offices that were found in strip malls. There was a some uniformed sergeant telling you how wonderful the military is. When I entered this office, they told me I would build schools and save the world. At the age of 17, I believed it (and for the most part I still do) and decided to join. The new Army has taken a different approach, it has built a recruiting center in the an actual retail mall!

The old enviroment is gone, now there are civilians and Army personal with khakis and polos telling possible recruits about the military. Gone are the old VHS with outdated video which have been replaced with high-tech, LCD screens with action packed video. Interactive displays offer many different angles of being in the former Army of One (now Army Strong).

According to Edward Walters, this site is not a recruiting center, but an area for people to learn more about the Army. With about $12 million of tax payer money the Army plans to shift more money to experimental marketing, and less on sponsorships. Think about it, the Army is building excitement like The NFL Experience, ESPN Zone, or Guitar Hero. Building potential brand evangelists could pay great dividends in the long run, but will the Army be able to pull it off? The experience does not stop at the store in Philadelphia, but you can also experience being a solider at Six Flags or even on your XBOX. The NFL faced a very similar challenge as it tried to build its product, and building the experience has been the key to it’s overwhelming  success.

The experience isn’t the only thing that the Army is going after. In a new deal with Sears, Roebuck and Co, the Army will begin offering officially licensed Army clothing. While the first brand will be the First Infantry Division (3rd ID should have that spot), it appears to be another great idea. While I am not sure that Sears is the best place to offer this type of clothing (what about Wal-Mart or Target) it is a great move.

Overall, the Army is making great strides to improve its image. While the jury is still out, I believe that building the Army brand with experience will go a long way in not only recruiting new soliders, but building the perception of our troops, and their mission. I will continue to wait on the call about that reality show, it will make great TV!

Does the Army Have A Good Brand?

After watching the US Army’s latest commercial I began to think, “How good is the US Army brand?” This is very hard to put your finger on. For many reasons, the idea of the US Army varies greatly in the minds of people across the world. In a recent debate on BrandChannel most people believe that improving the Army brand is almost impossible. Most people understand Marines as commandos, Navy as seamen, Air Force with pilots, and the Coast Guard protects our Coast, what about the Army? Most people probably think of the Army as the military in the most broad sense. The Army commercial talks about strong vs. Army Strong. This is not a very good brand in my opinion. The key elements of a good brand; value proposition and differentiation are missing. Here are a few tips in making the Army brand better.

Why Army?

The Army strong tagline is nice, I admit it even sounds cool, but does it get anywhere towards what the Army has to offer? The US Army is strong, just like the hundreds of other organizations out there, but strength is not the value of the Army. What does the Army do, that no other organization can? Keep America safe in every realm. Possibly the US Army should consider advertisements that are less “hero” and more realistic and in your face. I know some of the most powerful stuff I have seen have been through email forwards that show the everyday life of troops abroad with a message of peace and freedom. Unfortunately, the Army does not use its advertisements to build its brand.

Okay, we have seen this before

The Army has done very little to differentiate itself from other organizations. There is nothing that separates stands out in one’s mind about the Army. The Navy has boats. The Air Force has planes. The Marines have swords and cool uniforms. What about the Army? There is very little that separates this organization. They must begin to separate themselves. Instead of the cliché brand, what about something a little different. What about more imagery of identifiable Army veterans? How about more movies about Army groups such as the Special Forces or Airborne soldiers? By emphaizing its uniqueness, the Army can help improve its brand.

Solution

If the Pentagon knocked on my door tomorrow to head up a marketing campaign for the military, I would try connect with the people that would be most moved, Generation Y. Unlike the generations of the past, they are not as moved by heroes. To the young heroes are on the movie screen or football field. Army and heroes do not go hand in hand (unfortunately) like it has in times past. Today the Army must focus on tugging on the emotional strings with a more gritty, controversial campaign. It could even go as far to have its soldiers profiled more often in real situations. Consider the popularity of reality TV, why can’t this be duplicated and used by the Army? Reaching out to the youngest generation could start a wave that can reverse most people’s gut feeling about one of the oldest American organizations.

Check out what others have to say about the Army brand on BrandChannel.

Rewind Wednesday: Mr. VIP is Coming to Town

As the 2008 elections start to rev-up into high gear, I am reminded about my experience with politicians while in Iraq. For the most part, most troops really could care less about these politicians. They come over to Iraq for a day, walk around, shake some hands, and then leave. This gives them experience “on the ground”. Most of my fellow soldiers would get upset over the fact that these VIPs often attracted a unusual large contingent to protect them. Of course, as important pieces of our powerful country, they do need the protection, but the importance of our lives was usually taken for granted. As a solider, however, this is something that you come to expect. We often wondered how much these individuals REALLY cared about our well-being…

Donald Rumsfield was not the only VIP that showed up to Camp Liberty during my deployment. We also had visits from Toby Keith (he was cool for a country singer), Vince Vaughn (he was a jerk), President George Bush, 50 Cent (can you believe the Kevlar helmet hurt his neck? What a wimp), and the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders.

As difficult as things can get over there, it was still nice to know that someone cared…Enjoy (-:

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REWIND!!
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4.10.2005

Mr. VIP is Coming to Town !

Well, I am still here and the war is STILL going on. Today is kind of special, it marks the sixth month of me being deployed. It is safe to say that I am COMPLETELY in the military mode. These six months have fully transfered me from an ordinary joe, to a complete soldier. It seems like all the time that I have been in the National Guard, I never really FELT like a soldier, well now I do. The walk, the talk, the jargon are all part of my daily life now. I try to keep myself grounded (reading or talking to my wife via Yahoo! IM) but it is slowly creeping over me, like a thief in the night…I am becoming a different person. Not different in the sense of bad (or good for that case) but different in the way that I view the world, my family, and myself. One can never know the true beauty of being alive, until everything is taken away, that is how I feel at this time. It is somewhat hard to explain. It is remorse, but not sadness. It is joy, but not happiness. It is everything, but not anything. My life has become…simple. I am not quite sure if that is a good thing, or bad, but it just is. I do know that I have a full appreciation of everything that I have. My wife, kid, family, friends, job, car, and even taking the garbage out will have a new meaning when I return. I have gained more than just appreciation but my vision is clear, I definitely have a lot more meaning to my life…enough about me though.

Here on base everyone is going crazy in anticipation of the “VIP.” While there is speculation about who the VIP is (it is classified information) everyone has narrowed the list to the five most important political people in America. I do have my guess, and everyone has a guess but I guess that we will just have to wait and see. Nonetheless, a visit from this individual has effectively shut down nearly half the base, so I figure that this person is REALLY important. My guess is that it is _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ (if you can figure that out). I guess we will have to wait and see! I know that other VIPs that have come (the Secretary of the Army and the Joint Chiefs of Staff) have not commanded as much attention, so this “highly visible” individual should be interesting. Unfortunately, I was not put on the list to meet this person, but I will get photos!

Veteran’s Day – What’s Wrong With This Picture?

First and foremost, I would like to extend a special thank you to all of our veterans. Serving your country is a huge sacrifice for any person to make. I have experienced it first hand…

As for the photo…

Veterans should be able to speak about whatever they want, whenever they want. Keep in mind these soldiers have SERVED to protect the very same freedom that they fought for. Those veterans that were placed in harm’s way have a particular RIGHT to protest for what they believe in. This would seem to be the American Way of doing things, at least in theory.

The powers that be become very broad in periods of war. Part of me says that censorship is in order to “promote” the war and “rally” the troops. That is understandable any almost any war like situation. Psychological warfare really works and it does exist. These are real concerns…

As long as there is no violence please allow the voice of ALL VETERANS TO BE HEARD!!

How do you celebrate Veteran’s Day (hopefully it is just not the holiday sales!!)

Live From Iraq

Does this look normal to you? This is a photo from a dust storm from a few days ago. Mind you I went took the photo AFTER the worst part of it. I tell you the longer we stay, the WORSE the weather gets. Thank God for Ohio weather! I will NEVER complain again…
Live from Iraq