Enhancing Public Support Through Modern Communication Strategies: A Study on Croatian Military Relations and Recruitment Dynamics

This study highlights the critical importance of aligning Croatian military relations with contemporary public communication trends. It advocates for establishing swift, transparent, and interactive communication strategies to cultivate and enhance public support for military endeavors. The traditional military public relations framework has exhibited rigidity, characterized by sporadic advertising initiatives confined to narrow domains. The initial focus involves conducting a scientific content analysis of social media platforms to identify emergent channels that significantly disseminate information and promote awareness of recruitment strategies. The second objective is to investigate the factors influencing the public perception of Croatian soldiers and the overall branding of the Armed Forces of Croatia. This exploration will scrutinize the methodologies and tools employed for effectively promoting domestic and international military structures by 2025. As Croatia anticipates the introduction of mandatory military service in January 2024, understanding the information platforms favored by younger generations becomes imperative. Future strategies should leverage innovative, competitive, and youth-oriented communication channels to engage the younger working-age demographic, thereby attracting potential recruits to the Armed Forces as a credible institution that offers advantageous working conditions and professional growth opportunities.