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With so many people active on social media these days, the information obtained simply by listening to the conversations can be invaluable. Many organizations are finding innovative ways to use this data, such as the Army and Air National Guard divisions of the U.S. military.

According to InsuranceNewsNet, the National Guard used social media monitoring to bolster its recruiting efforts.

"We were able to combine traditional recruiting tactics with social media communications by developing a 'social listening' program," said Mike Schaffer, who served as social media director for iostudio, the company that helped craft the Guard's presence within the social media space. "When anyone asked on Twitter about joining the military, for example, we made sure the National Guard was the first branch to respond."

Image: In this ad, LG is announcing a special promotion wherein soldiers are invited to a shopping mall where LG representatives will do their laundry for them, so as to, quote "Take the load off of mom".This ad is invoking the role of mothers as supporters in order to align their product with the war effort.

Ad by Yarkoni, 2010

Recently I received a petition, created by a group of 40 mothers, stating very clearly, “We do not wish to hand our boys to the IOF” (Israeli Occupation Forces), and calling for social responsibility and the end of Israel’s occupation of Palestine. This document is uplifting1.

FOR a South African unused to it, it’s startling to see the number of gung-ho military recruitment advertisements flighted on British television. Targeted at youths who have grown up playing Call of Duty on their gaming consoles, the adverts make military life look like a scene from a video game.

There’s much fun to be had and skills to acquire. It’s like the Boy Scouts, but you get to play with real tanks, shoot real guns, blow stuff up, build bridges over rivers in far-flung locations. Kwaai, ek sê.

Join the Royal Marines and you could stalk and capture baddies with the sharp skills they’ll teach you.

The advert for the reserves must get a special mention. That particular message can be summed up thus: you might be a stationery salesman in a digital age, so why not ditch the daily drudgery for camouflage on the weekends and be more than a pencil pusher?

The government walks a tightrope between inculcating military discipline and physical fitness in the country's youth, while also safeguarding against a militarised society from where extremist groups can draw on disgruntled youngsters with military training.

While the defence ministry expands the National Cadet Corps (NCC) from 1,500,000 students countrywide to 1,850,000, Defence Minister Arun Jaitley told Parliament on Friday that the government does not favour compulsory military training.