The University Officers’ Training Corps (UOTC) is more than just a university club – it includes all of the adventure, training and development that comes with being in the British Army. However, not many students have heard of it, so it needed to amplify its presence across social media. When students were aware of it, their interest was high. After successful campaigns in 2022 and 2023, UOTC and Tonic wanted to build on this to increase applications from women, and lower the cost-per-result to make the recruitment budget work harder.

For 2024, the decision was taken to launch the campaign earlier so students would be familiar with UOTC before arriving on campus. It diversified its social media mix including Snapchat and YouTube, prioritising engagement with women. Optimised targeting meant cost efficiencies could be made. Previous campaigns showed that adventure-themed content performed best on Instagram, while on Snapchat imagery of far-flung locations did well, so these learnings were taken forward. The campaign would reach students over the summer, before they knew for sure which university they would attend. User-generated videos showed existing experiences focusing on adventure and friendship, which resonated with students who might not have previously considered joining UOTC.

Once students began university, the messaging shifted, inviting them to interact directly through targeted promotions, campus events and open evenings. Creative was selected based on platform-specific performance and regional variations, ensuring it would resonate well with target audiences. Showing officers in civilian clothes made them more relatable, which boosted engagement and created a welcoming image on campus. Safety guidelines preventing Army employees from posting their own advocacy content were navigated by encouraging them to amplify existing posts. Organic social media reach increased by more than 2100%, driving 9,600 clicks to the UOTC site and a significant reduction in costs. There were many more impressions and clicks from women, achieving the objective of reaching out to female recruits.