The Navy was the forgotten child of the Singapore Armed Forces. For years, people cheered fighter pilots displaying their gravity-defying bravado or the army showcasing their impeccable discipline. How could we galvanise a new generation and motivate Gen Z to join the most overlooked arm of the Singapore Armed Forces?
Too often, armed forces around the world – and in Singapore – speak to individuals’ desire for personal growth or emphasise their importance in keeping the world safe. Through a series of focus groups, we learned that Gen Z is more pragmatic and even more altruistic. And that they truly understand the value of hard work in order to achieve the life they want for themselves. So we decided on a few things.
We spoke to a small group of people who would also be the right group of people for the Navy to speak to, not a broader population. We showed the reality of the Navy, the sweat, the tears, the months away from home, not the adrenaline-pumping movie-style scenes. We wanted to subvert the expectation that physical strength is a core competency, instead focusing on mental tenacity and resilience.
We subverted the common Singaporean misconception that it must be crazy to join the Navy, turning it into a positive, telling Gen Z that it must be crazy not to consider a career in the Navy.
Results:
