Case Study: Deutsche Bahn increases youth intent to apply and ad recall with Facebook

Deutsche Bahn - Customer Case Study

Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s leading mobility and logistics company with more than 300,000 employees, aimed to become a top-10 employer and needed to boost its employer brand among younger talent. The challenge was to raise awareness and drive job applications from 14–20-year-olds in a highly competitive recruitment market.

Working with Facebook, Deutsche Bahn ran targeted photo and video ads across Facebook and Instagram—including participation in the Instagram video carousel beta—highlighting career paths and apprenticeships. The four-week campaign delivered strong lifts: an 11‑point increase in ad recall (females 14–20), a 10‑point rise in intent to apply (males 14–20), a 4‑point gain in favourability (ages 13–17), and an overall 4‑point increase in intent to apply.

Deutsche Bahn

Steve Goodwin

Head of HR Marketing & Employer Branding