CHALLENGE

The Royal Navy needed more recruits than ever. But few people really understand what goes on in the Armed Forces. 

Our challenge was to help the Royal Navy recruit people with a more powerful and broadly appealing recruitment campaign than ever before. 

SOLUTION

We believed our potential audience were stuck living an uncomfortable dichotomy – at home with their parents for longer whilst feeling more connected to the wider world than ever before. 

The Royal Navy was perfectly placed to help with this frustration. With the Royal Navy you could go far: not just geographically, not just financially, but in terms of your fundamental personal development.

Our idea was: Made in the Royal Navy.

The campaign followed the journey of someone just like our audience, who had joined the Royal Navy. TV and print were supported by several different radio ads, allowing us the frequency to deliver regional relevancy, as well as showcasing several roles.

Longer form video content was hosted on YouTube, in digital banners and on the website to allow us to tell deeper stories. ‘Live Chats’ with Royal Navy personnel were hosted on Facebook.

IMPACT

The campaign has connected with our audience so deeply that Royal Navy personal have even started using the line. First Sealord signed off his resignation speech with, “I was born in Walthamstow, but I was made in the Royal Navy.”

We saw recruitment figures exceeded targets by a whopping 300%. Call centres had to double their staff because of increased interest. Levels were about ten times higher than those recorded over the previous three years. 

The proportion of the audience that identified themselves as having the qualities to become Royal Navy also rose from 12% before the campaign to 22%.