Nearly three dozen agencies attended the U.S. Army's "industry day" for marketing and advertising firms on Dec. 3 in San Antonio as the Army mulls a review of its nine-figure recruitment advertising and PR account.
On the PR side, firms attending included FleishmanHillard, Bell Pottinger, Ogilvy PR and Bradford PR, according to a roster of attendees, while ad heavyweights like JWT, Hill Holiday, McCann and Arnold were represented.
McCann and an Interpublic slate that includes Weber Shandwick are the incumbents after winning the business in 2005 and defending it in 2011.
The Army last month asked firms to submit credentials and interest ahead of a likely RFP for the work, which bills around $200M per year.
The industry day event, which was optional for firms, took place at the For Sam Houston Golf Club and was meant for firms to display subcontracting services and meet with contracting personnel about the review process.
The Army showed a slide presentation (available here) outlining its marketing strategy and recruitment statistics for the past decade. Factors that make for a difficult recruiting environment include global conflicts that are unpopular with influencers like parents, coaches and teachers, low unemployment rates and a strong job market, and heavy competition from colleges, universities and other branches of the military.
The Army wants to pitch itself as the "first choice for those considering a military career" and will lean on its marketing strategy to develop leads and tools to improve efficiency.
The Florida Department of Transportation wants to hear from firms interested in providing public outreach for its various construction projects.
Redmond, a city of 77K people located less than 20 miles from downtown Seattle, wants a roster of firms to develop crisis communication plans, and be ready to answer the call in the event that an emergency hits.
The Iowa Economic Development Authority is looking for a firm to handle its $5M annual strategic marketing and communications budget.
Colorado is accepting the qualifications of PR firms, ad agencies and marketing services companies that are interested in working for The Centennial State.
Maryland’s State Highway Administration has driven out an RFP for marketing communications, media support and public outreach. 
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