The America's Army videogame has been an effective recruiting tool for the military, so why not take it another step? That's what the Army is doing with plans to spend about $2 million sponsorship deal with the Global Gaming League, USA Today reports:
* Starting in June, the Army will sponsor a "national gaming" area as a way to tap into the site's 9.2 million players per month of everything from shooter games to pro baseball. It hopes to find candidates for recruitment among the 17- to 24-year-old males who are 80% of the gamers on the site — young men hard to reach with advertising.*
"The consumer model for traditional media is changing," says Gary Bishop, who oversees Army marketing and advertising. "We're grappling with the challenge of how do we better use new media to tell the Army story. Online is probably the best way."
GGL is a gaming community site that blends game news and play. Founder Ted Owen describes it as "ESPN meets MySpace for gamers. Video gaming is a culture. The Army has been a very forward thinker. They get it."
Not a bad plan -- the Army's going to need all the help it can get in recruiting.
