iHeartRadio's Show Your Stripes - Clear Channel Communications, Inc.
By the year 2016, more than a million highly trained servicemen and women will end their military careers and transition back to civilian life but significant numbers report facing a challenge translating the skills they obtained in the military into civilian employment.
In June 2013, Clear Channel Communities, the community engagement division of Clear Channel, launched the largest CSR campaign in its history in an effort to address the issue of unemployment among U.S. veterans. Called iHeartRadio’s Show Your Stripes, Clear Channel utilized its biggest assets – its airwaves and out-of-home properties – to address this critical, and growing, issue.
Over 1.5 million spots and over 15.3 million billboards, valued at approximately $100 million, were placed around the country focusing on connecting businesses with veterans and highlighting the specialized skills that American veterans possess.
All communications direct listeners to showyourstripes.org – a centralized, easy-to-use destination for veterans, businesses and supporters, designed by Clear Channel Media and Entertainment, in partnership with Monster.com and Military.com. The website provides veteran users with access to 70,000 military-friendly jobs, as well as offers businesses the opportunity to post jobs specifically geared toward the skills provided by veterans.
Through this program, Clear Channel has successfully brought together the biggest companies in the world as well as local businesses through a coalition of American businesses identified as being military-friendly and which have already experienced success in hiring veterans. The goal of this alliance is to make military-friendly businesses more visible to veterans seeking jobs, and ultimately increase veteran applications for open positions. There are approximately 2,000 national and local businesses that have signed up to be part of the iHeartRadio Show Your Stripes Alliance, including Coca- Cola, Walmart, Johnson & Johnson, General Motors, General Electric, American Airlines and General Mills.
The initiative engaged artists across all music and entertainment genres, including Elton John, John Legend, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Brad Paisley, Ryan Seacrest, Mario Lopez, Trace Adkins, Krewella and Adam Lambert who recorded a series of PSAs that showcase stories from veterans who have successfully found jobs. Celebrities were also used in digital displays that began on Veteran’s Day across the U.S., including New York’s Times Square, featuring Katy Perry, Bon Jovi, TLC, Ryan Seacrest, The Kardashians and Steve Harvey.
By the end of 2013, 35% of all radio listeners and 60% of all veterans reported being aware of the program and more than 100,000 job applications have been submitted to a wide variety of companies by veterans searching for jobs on the campaign website.
