MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. -- The Marines Corps' recently revamped recruiting website, Marines.com, was recognized by Favorite Website Awards Dot Com, winning Site of the Year honors. The award, given by industry professionals, is considered one of the top website awards in the United Kingdom and highlights the best use of the Macromedia Flash application on Internet websites. Sixteen international judges selected Marines.com from 12 finalists, among over 9,900 entries. In recognizing Marines.com, FWA judges cited the speed and ease of use that make the site so interactive.
"Marines.com's great layout and excellent design is backed up by the smooth 3-D, Sound FX and animations, making it a well rounded and complete experience," said Nevil Slade, Theory7, United Kingdom.
"Marines.com manages to be both informative and impressive. The striking use of Flash gives a sense of glamour and wonderment to the Marines profession," said Gin Roberscheuten, MediaMonks BV, the Netherlands. "I am hard pressed to name a better promotional website and would be very surprised if there wasn't a distinct rise in on-site applications."
Marines.com is the website maintained by Marine Corps Recruiting Command to inform young men and women about opportunities available to them in the Corps. The site was developed through a collaboration between Marine Corps Recruiting Command, Kurt Noble Inc., and J. Walter Thompson.
"The Marine Corps wanted a site that reflected its energy and Kurt Noble Inc. and J. Walter Thompson certainly delivered. We thank them for their expertise, dedication and hard work," said Capt. Robert Geiger, Lead Generation Officer, Marine Corps Recruiting Command. "Also we thank FWA for recognizing the accomplishment of a very challenging mission given by the Marine Corps to our web developers."
The site benefits from the use of animation, sound and video, and testimonials by real Marines. The website's target market is the young men and women who are eligible for enlistment, however the Marine Corps is also reaching out to their parents and advisors. The enhanced website, which debuted in November 2002, now provides information tailored to the parents' questions and concerns.
"We updated the site to make it more user friendly and give it a modern look," said Geiger.
The Corps' original information sites, Marines.com and MarineOfficer.com, were launched in February of 2000. The original goal of the sites was lead generation through a guided process in order to drive a prospect to a face-to-face meeting with a Marine recruiter. The new site provides parents and teachers more information and still encourages interaction with a Marine Recruiter. The website is one of many tools MCRC provides to recruiters to enhance their mission making capabilities.
"During Fiscal Year 2002, Marines.com generated 88,183 qualified leads. That accounted for more than 20% of all contacts from individuals expressing interest in becoming Marines last year," said Geiger.
Last year Marines.com directly lead to the recruitment of 2,253 men and women to serve in the Marine Corps. The result is that the website currently serves as the second highest lead-generating source for the Marines Corps.