Police Department Recruitment Case Study
A Police Department partnered with Ascent Digital to increase recruitment of qualified officers through a comprehensive digital video advertising campaign. The strategy was designed to expand awareness, drive traffic to the recruitment portal, and encourage potential candidates to explore career opportunities through YouTube, streaming TV, programmatic Pre-roll, and social media advertising.
Challenge
The challenge was balancing positive brand messaging with meaningful engagement. Recruitment creative needed to present the Police Department in a professional and appealing way while still motivating potential recruits to take action and move toward an application.
Benefits
- Wider Reach Across Platforms
- High-Quality Video Production
- Data-Driven Insights
- Recruitment Funnel Progression
(View Website)
Problem Statement
The Police Department needed to attract a diverse group of qualified applicants at a time when demand for public safety personnel was increasing. The objective was to build awareness, drive recruitment portal traffic, and move potential candidates from initial exposure through consideration and ultimately toward application. The campaign also needed to maintain a positive, professional department image while generating measurable engagement.
A Multi-Platform Video Recruitment Strategy
Ascent Digital combined programmatic Pre-roll, premium streaming TV, YouTube, and Facebook and Instagram video advertising to reach recruits across multiple viewing environments. Social campaigns were structured around brand awareness, consideration, and decision stages, with custom retargeting audiences built from users who watched 75% or more of prior-stage videos, visited the website, or interacted with social content. This created a measurable path through the recruitment journey toward applications.
Streaming TV & Pre-roll Impressions
2.96 million impressions across streaming TV and programmatic Pre-roll campaigns.
132,960 clicks from Facebook and Instagram recruitment advertising.
566 conversions generated through targeted social media campaigns.
How Did We Do?
Building Recruitment Momentum Through Video
YouTube View Rate
Streaming TV & Pre-roll Completion Rate
Social Media Click-Through Rate
The multi-platform video advertising strategy proved highly effective in reaching and engaging potential recruits. YouTube generated 60,837 impressions and 48,359 views, while streaming TV and programmatic Pre-roll produced 2.96 million impressions, 2.13 million completed views, 4,007 clicks, and 489 conversions. Social media added 2.97 million impressions, 132,960 clicks, and 566 conversions. Together, the campaigns increased awareness, drove engagement, and built a strong foundation for continued recruitment success.
Moving Recruits From Awareness to Application
Multi-Platform Video Advertising
Programmatic Pre-roll ads created awareness before other video content, premium streaming TV extended reach across popular services, YouTube drove video views and clicks, and Facebook and Instagram delivered targeted video advertising designed to generate engagement and conversions.
Three-Stage Social Recruitment Funnel
Social media campaigns were separated into brand awareness, consideration, and decision stages. Users who watched at least 75% of awareness videos were retargeted in the consideration stage, and viewers who watched at least 75% of consideration content were moved into the decision stage. Website visitors and social engagers were also incorporated into retargeting audiences.
Professional Creative and Performance Insights
High-quality recruitment videos presented the department in a positive and professional light, while platform-level performance data provided insights that could be used to optimize future campaigns and improve recruitment efficiency.
Programmatic Pre-roll Video Ads
Short, targeted recruitment ads were shown before other video content to build awareness with potential applicants.
Premium Streaming TV Ads
Recruitment videos ran across popular streaming services to expand reach and drive completed video views.
YouTube Advertising
Optimized video content was used to engage viewers, generate views, and encourage traffic to the recruitment experience.
Social Media Advertising
Targeted Facebook and Instagram video ads supported brand awareness, consideration, decision-stage engagement, and conversions.
Three-Stage Recruitment Funnel
Awareness, consideration, and decision campaigns progressively retargeted people based on 75% video views and prior engagement.
Website & Social Retargeting
Website visitors and people who interacted with social content were retargeted to keep qualified prospects moving toward application.