MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. — Since 2008, www.Marines.com has been one of Marine Corps Recruiting Command’s most successful advertising tools in support of recruiters. In fiscal year 2011 alone, the website had more than 7 million visits and produced more than 79,000 qualified leads. MCRC expects the new website they recently launched to do even better.
“With the way technology has changed over the past few years, the standards and capabilities of websites have increased, and the new website will take advantage of these technologies to better reach people interested in the Marine Corps,” said Master Sgt. Greg Gilliam, advertising chief, MCRC.
Content will be key on the new website as the target demographic, 17- to 24-year-olds, has a various appetite for videos and photos. More than 50 new videos were produced and over 500 photos will be featured in addition to videos and photos from the existing website. Some of the new features for the new site will include an optimized lead form, which will have simplified instructions and format for an improved user experience; viewable content from mobile devices; a career tool that shows the variety of opportunities in the Marine Corps; and the ability to register for a www.Marines.com account.
By registering for the account, users will be able to save videos to a queue, see new content that was added since their last visit, save the recruiter information they receive when they submit a lead form and ask questions.
“The new questions and answers feature will allow registered users to get answers from subject matter experts,” Gilliam said. “This will ensure they are getting the information they need about basic recruitment related topics. Our target demographic is accustomed to finding answers to their questions online. By providing this resource, we will ensure that the people are receiving accurate information directly from the source.”
The new site will also be integrated with social media, which has grown in popularity over the past few years. Visitors to the new website will have quick access to MCRC’s social properties and the homepage will feature a social stream that will display a feed from MCRC’s social properties such as Facebook and Twitter posts. All content on the site will be shareable through social media.
“By allowing prospects to share content from the site with their peers, we open another avenue by which the message of the Marine Corps can be spread to the American public,” said Capt. Frederick Evert, lead generation officer, MCRC. “This method of dissemination is free and allows young men and women to act as advocates for the Marine Corps brand.”
Ensuring that the new site reaches the target demographic and provides accurate and viable content is vital to build upon the success of the old website.
“The new site will reach a broad spectrum of audiences in the target demographic,” Evert said. “The site will build upon the success of the old site and provide even more tools for applicants to research the Marine Corps.”