Lessons on Diversity Recruitment Marketing with a Colorado Police Department

I'm sharing an incredible experience I had for the past two years working with a Police Department in Colorado. Marketing is not just about making a sale but making an impact.?

The challenge:?

Recruiting the next generation of police officers is becoming a national problem due to the backlash from traumatic events such as the death of George Floyd and other negative incidents. There are cities across the country lacking the resources to protect their communities. Many officers are retiring, and local police departments are vying for new officers.?

The solution:?

We spearheaded a strategic branding and marketing campaign to help the Police Department hire diverse talent and gain more visibility.

The geo-targeted digital campaign successfully attracted 643 applicants to a new landing page on the City website, generating 26,514 clicks on ad apply buttons and 4,500 clicks on the landing page's apply now buttons. The campaign, which ran on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, included paid Google search and retargeted display ads. Over 16 months, this comprehensive recruitment marketing effort resulted in hiring 30 officers and 11 civilians.?

How did we do it??

Here are my top 5 tips and reflections from this game-changing collaboration:

1. Highlighted Real Stories

Working with an engaged Commander, we set out to tell authentic stories. It wasn't about “now hiring signs;” or “the best pay” it was about the incredible stories of these officers. We interviewed 30 officers and conducted focus groups with the incoming academy asking deep questions to understand why they want to become police officers and what is important in today’s world regarding policing.?

2. Themes & Storytelling

From our time with the officers, we derived four main themes to create our advertising: community, action, diversity and change through the next generation of police. These themes are filtered throughout our advertising and the messaging of our campaign.?

2. Bilingual & Diverse Advertising?

We showed different positions and people in our photos and video, from women bicycle officers to the SWAT team to School Resources Officers and Detectives and Investigators. Our content spoke in more ways than one – English and Spanish. We featured a female Hispanic officer telling her story.?

3. Professional Video, Photo & Branding

We worked hard to bring what these officers do daily to life in a way that resonated and was real. We built a library of videos and photos that will last for years.?

We wrapped all our assets in bright, bold graphics and stayed consistent with that visual identity for 16 months. We rotated many versions of the ads and targeted various audiences. We doubled down on the ones that performed the best.?

4. Process & Experience

Recruitment success isn't just about attracting the right candidates, it’s about making it a seamless and positive experience for those applying. We enhanced the department’s landing page on the city website, made it easy to apply, and provided steps, benefits, and pay scale.?

We ensured the buttons went directly to the jobs they were hiring for, not the entire city job list as it did prior.?

We implemented an open and closing hiring window cadence to create a sense of urgency and structure for applicants.?

5. Measuring Impact Beyond Numbers

A recruitment campaign is an opportunity to create employee pride, build bridges with the community, and celebrate our police officers' service to our communities.

I am grateful for the experience and hope we can help many more struggling police departments nationwide in the near future. ????

Interested in learning more about employment branding? Visit www.shubucreative.com and schedule a consultation to learn more!?

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