Tbh I'm surprised any recruitment strategy works in peacetime at all
Lying to teenagers always works. That and Jingoism
The Air Force got me by mentioning that college was practically free (became 100% free a couple years into my service) and that my job training counted toward a degree in my field. Also, I would get food and housing allowances on top of my paycheck, so I could afford to live anywhere they stationed me without spending my own paycheck on bills and food. Plus, free travel around the world on the govt's dime.
I also was given the option to retire and collect a pension for life after only 20 years served, which I took advantage of. At 38 years old, I retired and now I don't need to work anymore. Granted, my wife and I both earned 100% disability from our military service, which pays out more than my pithy 20-yr pension and allows us to be fully retired. But still, the military took pretty good care of me while I was in.
I'll admit though, I signed up one month before 9/11 happened, and as soon as the planes hit the World Trade Center, my first thought was, "Fuck... I just signed up to die in some foreign war." Thankfully, I survived that conflict; although my disability rating might suggest otherwise...
Oh recruitment in peacetime usually goes up. The big problem the last couple years wasn't the strategy or some wave of sudden weakness in our youth. It was a new digital medical system that meant you couldn't lie at the intake station anymore. Turns out quite a few people got to intake, took a look at the questions and just decided they'd never had a doctor appointment in their life. For the Army's part, as long as they could duck walk and didn't have an oxygen tank following them around they didn't care. So the big problem was just the introduction of the standards that were supposed to have been there already.
The recent uptick in recruiting was due to the Army introducing a fast waiver system for minor things that needed a months long waiver process before. People understandably didn't want to wait months for a thankless job that arguably pays less than minimum wage.
Usually in peacetime the siren call of free college and free technical training fills the recruiting line. If you slot into the right specialty you're looking at six figures when you get out. And the Army gives you a lot of control over where you end up job wise. They'll let you write the technical training into your contract as long as it's in the same job field.
I'm too much of a bitch.
