The ability of brands to show ROI is sometimes very tricky, as so many different aspects go into monitoring consumer trends and buying habits. Yes it is a very intricate science and buying habits can be tracked, but the actual last second decision as to whether to choose product A or product B that can be driven by just one ad, or one activation program or even one key spend is still very hard to justify. Unless you are the military in the United States. There are very few brands that spend more on activation in sport outside of the United States Armed Forces, with the goal being both public awareness…hearts and minds…and recruitment. From boxing to college football, NASCAR to the NFL, the call to action and awareness for the military is pervasive and very detailed. Its messaging is clear and its goal is simple. So when it was announced this week the every branch of the military exceeded their recruitment goals for the year for the first time in decades, it should come as no surprise that there was a strong tie to their detailed marketing plan on how to reach that core young audience…advertising and activation around sports. Did the unemployment rate and the economy have something to do with i. Of course. But there is no doubt that the military knows its market, was able to concentrate their messaging to that market, and was able to show a direct ROI on their spend. A success all around. Now what will be the result of this sports branding succes. In all likelihood budgets will be cut, as there is less of a need over a cycle to keep hitting those high numbers of recruits, since the military cycle for a new recruit is more than one year and the churn from year to year with today's active military is lower than in peace time. Now that is obviously not good for properties who welcomed those spending dollars, but it does speak well to the premise that if you know your want to reach a young acticve crowd and spend efficiently, there are few activation platforms better than sports. If you want to know for sure, just ask the men and women in uniform.
Some other good reads…the New York Observer had a good piece on the survival of newspapers in New Jersey.…USA Today had a good profile of Dolphins owner Steve Ross… and si.com's Rich Deitsch had his media power rankings for September…
