Information Operations versus civilian marketing and advertising a comparative analysis to improve IO planning and strategy

• Main Author: Chilton, Dan J.
• Other Authors: Iatrou, Steve, Pfeiffer, Karl
• Published: Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School 2012
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10945/4261

The Global War on Terror is a conflict that cannot be confronted through traditional warfare alone. The U.S. Must re-focus its efforts on Information Operations to achieve GWOT objectives. In an environment where rapidly advancing technology is drastically improving the individual's ability to conduct IO against the U.S. and given the political and moral restrictions placed on U.S. military action, having the most powerful and technologically advanced capabilities in the world no longer guarantees success. The U.S. needs to develop highly effective Information Operations to win the support of the local populace before, during, and after major fighting in order to ensure a lasting victory. Current Information Operations strategies and tactics may be much more suited to achieve this through the use of civilian marketing and advertising fundamentals to organize, plan, and execute IO strategy. The objective of this work is to analyze and develop the concept of utilizing civilian advertising and marketing fundamentals for Information Operations planning and execution. This analysis focuses on the integration of traditional Information Operations planning, tactics, and strategies, with those known to be successful in American civilian marketing and advertising in order to create a more intuitive, efficient, and effective IO process.