The New Jersey Army National Guard (NJARNG) approached Propellant Media to support a hyper-local recruitment campaign focused on driving qualified interest from high school students in select areas of New Jersey. With a modest budget of $3,000, NJARNG needed a cost-efficient strategy to increase visibility and generate engagement, specifically among 17–24-year-olds in high-priority schools known for their recruitment potential.

What We Were Tasked With

The goal was clear — deploy a digital campaign that efficiently generated clicks and interest from prospective recruits in the target region. NJARNG tasked Propellant Media with leveraging advanced geofencing technology to reach students at specific high schools while incorporating site retargeting to nurture interest and encourage website visits. The campaign needed to maximize every dollar spent and provide measurable engagement metrics.

What We Implemented

Propellant Media designed a precision-targeted geofencing strategy, identifying and fencing high schools with the greatest potential impact, including Passaic High School, a key location known for student engagement and recruitment interest.

Key actions included:

• Geofencing Execution: Digital fences were placed around multiple high schools, delivering recruitment messages directly to mobile devices of students present within those geographic boundaries.
• Ad Creative: Mobile display ads focused on enlistment benefits such as tuition assistance, paid training, and service to the community — messaging designed to resonate with the high school demographic.
• Site Retargeting: Added a retargeting layer to re-engage any visitors who clicked through but did not convert on the first visit, keeping the NJARNG top-of-mind for students exploring their options.
  
• Optimized Spend: Careful budget management ensured media dollars were concentrated where they would drive the highest engagement, allowing for meaningful  reach within the limited $3,000 budget.

Results & Impact

The campaign successfully delivered 140–150 highly targeted clicks to the NJARNG recruitment website, exceeding expectations given the budget and scope. Performance highlights included:

• Meaningful engagement from students within the targeted geofenced locations, with the majority of clicks coming from the Passaic High School geofence.
• Efficient use of budget, proving Propellant Media’s ability to generate quality traffic even within constrained resources.
• Retargeting efforts helped extend the impact of initial engagements, increasing exposure and reinforcing recruitment messaging.

Results & Impact

This campaign demonstrated Propellant Media’s ability to execute highly focused digital recruitment strategies that align with the National Guard’s local recruitment objectives. Our geofencing and retargeting expertise allowed NJARNG to stretch a small budget and produce measurable engagement — building a model for future recruitment campaigns seeking to combine precision targeting with cost efficiency.

Propellant Media’s approach ensured the right message reached the right audience at the right time, supporting NJARNG’s mission to connect with potential recruits in the communities that matter most.