Soft drink firms, clothing manufacturers and television networks are not the only organizations that use teenage syndicated research. One major subscriber is a government agency, the U.S. Army. This kind of research aids in developing media campaigns that in turn assist the Army in recruiting approximately 200,000 males and females every year between the ages of 17-21.

Lieutenant Colonel Ron Morsch, deputy director of operations for the advertising and sales promotion directorate at the U.S. Army Recruiting Command, Fort Sheridan, Ill., says the Recruiting Command uses Teenage Research Unlimited (TRU) syndicated studies to "augment a lot of other in-house research we use.

"We want to validate internal Army research and make comparisons to other research data we have. It helps us reinforce the things we know or suspect about our population."

LTC Morsch says the internal data tell the Army where their recruits are coming from, what motivates them to join the Army and why they join but doesn't give them specifics about the general youth population. According to LTC Morsch, "What TRU gives us and what we want to know is: What media habits do they have? What are their needs and wants? What are their desires for the future? Are they going to college or do they seek employment after high school?"

The answers to these kinds of questions are crucial because they provide the Army with a direction in developing advertising messages.

Dual market concept

LTC Morsch says the Army's mar-keting strategy is based on a "dual market concept."

"When people leave high school they generally go in one of two directions: They're either employment-oriented or college-oriented. TRU data help us orient our advertising messages and media placement to take advantage of these tendencies."

TRU data may categorize some teens, for example, as "passive introverts" or "socially-driven," both college-bound types based on TRU descriptions for these teen groups. "Versatile participant" teens are considered employment-bound and "sports participants" could be either.

For the Army, knowing these different personality types "tell us the kind of appeals and media we should use depending on who we're trying to reach," explains LTC Morsch. "There are things about these different groups which tell us how to target market as well as how to structure our personal 'sales calls.'"

Target marketing

Target marketing means not only reaching the desired audience but getting the right message out at the right time using the right medium.

The Army's advertising messages are developed and tested, says LTC Morsch, by getting the opinions of high school and recently graduated students. For seniors and recent graduates, the Army's advertising message is college-oriented and stresses excitement, adventure, a way of earning money to go to college and "enlist now and reserve a job for next year." For students who have graduated and didn't choose college because of financial reasons or who want vocational training, the Army's advertising message also stresses excitement and adventure but also high-tech, a place where one can get skills training.

Advertising media

The kind of message then determines when and what type of advertising media will be used. The former message which emphasizes making money for college would be used in television and print ads when school starts in September and run through June. Between January-May, high school seniors normally find out if they will be able to afford college the next year. If they can't, they will look for another alternative, says LTC Morsch. The main thrust of the advertising message in television and print ads will be the latter, working in an exciting environment while getting training and making money which can be used for college.

During the summer months, very little television but a lot of radio advertising is done. At this time, the advertising message has a heavy influence on skills training.

Knowing what teen groups to target, how to reach them and when to do it are key ingredients in attracting potential Army recruits. TRU is an important tool for helping the Army do this.

According to LTC Morsch, "TRU data is just another way of looking into this elusive market to get the most efficient use of our media dollar."