Nike: Just Do It

The Growth, the Vision, and the Result.

Author: Thomas Nelson Class: COMA ! "ro#essor: Amanda $eller

Nike: Just Do It

A%stra&t Durin' the () *ears o# e+isten&e, s&holars ha,e ,entured to test the &ommuni&ati,e e##orts -ut #orth %* Nike. .ased on /iterar* "eriodi&als, 0&holarl* Journals, and se,eral 1ni,ersit* studies, it has %een &on&luded that the e##orts attem-ted %* the #irm as well as the role o# the media has &reated a &om%ined insi'ht #or the -er&ei,er. The resear&h &on&ludes that semanti&s that has &reated a -ositi,e ima'e o# the &om-an* has also %een its down#all in rea&hin' out to its &onstituen&ies. This -a-er will also in&lude the role o# the media in Nike2s ima'e as well as its a%ilit* to tarnish its ima'e. A--l*in' mass &ommuni&ation and non,er%al &ommuni&ation, the -a-er &on&ludes that Nike has made se,eral su&&ess#ul &hoi&es su&h as endorsin' some o# the worlds %est athletes su&h as Mi&hael Jordan as well as their ad,ertisin' &am-ai'n o# 3Just Do It4.

Nike: Just Do It

56ou Nike 'u*s, *ou Just do it,4 were the #amous words o# Dan 7eiden that s-arked a -u%li&it* %oom in a &om-an* that initiall* ne,er %elie,ed in ad,ertisin' 8Center9. An e+amination o# the &ommuni&ati,e -ower o# the Nike ad,ertisin' &am-ai'ns o,er the last two de&ades re,eals that the ta&ti&s the* used worked. Controllin' o,er #i#t* -er&ent o# the market in &ountries on almost e,er* &ontinent, this shoe makin' 'iant has in&reased its a%ilit* to a--eal to &ustomers throu'h the means o# &ommuni&ation. Throu'h %randin', non:,er%al &ommuni&ation in ad,ertisin' and mass &ommuni&ation, Nike marketin' &am-ai'ns ha,e trans&ended the %orders to %e&ome a &ultural i&on and ha,e risen to %e&ome one o# the most -rominent &om-anies o# the late twentieth &entur*.

Nike: Just Do It Branding It started out with a wa##le iron. Co:#ounder "hil ;ni'ht used this sim-le

household de,i&e to make the s-on'* shoes that he &onsidered had the -ower to im-ro,e the -er#orman&e o# his athletes when runnin' on the tra&k. In <)=, Nike 'ot its start as .lue Ri%%on 0-orts, when shoes were %ein' sold out o# the %a&k o# "hil ;ni'hts &ar 8"orter =!!>9. Considered a 'rassroot or'ani?ation, ;ni'ht was a%le to sell his shoes at tra&k meets %* &on,in&in' athletes that -er#orman&e would im-ro,e with e@ui-ment. In <)) the #irst outlet store was esta%lished and three *ears later, he @uit his Ao% as a -ro#essor at "ortland 0tate 1ni,ersit* and &ommitted his time &om-letel* to Nike shoes. That *ear Nike made a mere three hundred thousand dollars in -ro#it. In <B(, Nike s-onsored its #irst athlete and in <>! it &ontrolled o,er #i#t* -er&ent o# the 10 market share o# tennis shoes. Ironi&all*, ;ni'ht ne,er %elie,ed in ad,ertisin' and &onsidered it a %etra*al to the athlete, %ut in <>B the* ran their #irst TV ad 8"orter =!!>9.

Early Name Recognition and Endorsements It was not until <>) that Nike had its #irst maAor &ommer&ial %reakthrou'h. Mi&hael Jordan, &onsidered the %est %asket%all -la*er o# his time, was endorsed %* Nike. A whole new line o# Nike a--arel &oined, 3Air Jordan4 ran amon'st retail stores and ri'ht %ehind Jordan2s su&&ess, &ame Nike read* to rea- the %ene#its. The shoes were taken as -er#orman&e enhan&ersC i# *ou used his shoes, *ou would %e a %etter athlete. In <>> the 3Just Do It,4 Cam-ai'n was started, thus

Nike: Just Do It the ad,ertisin' and marketin' a'e o# Nike that sha-ed their ima'e #or the *ears to &ome 8"orter =!!>9. Nike %e&ame a %rand and thus had an ima'e. 7hat is uni@ue a%out the ima'e o# Nike is that it %e&ame a sel#:#ul#illin' -ro-he&*C i# *ou want to %e hiNike is #or *ouC i# *ou are hi-, *ou are -ro%a%l* wearin' Nike. Customers were a%le to -ortra* that %e&ause o# the su&&ess o# the athletes that used Nike, i# the* #ollowed suit, then the* would also %e su&&ess#ul 8Center9. Their -rodu&t

-la&ement -la*ed a ke* role in sha-in' the ima'e the* wanted to -er&ei,e to the -u%li&. Dndorsements as well as -o-ular TV ads dis-la*in' dominant s-orts teams at their #inest usin' Nike2s e@ui-ment made e,ident the ima'e that Nike was tr*in' to &on,e*.

Brand Logo A&&ordin' to /e,in, the u%i@uit* o# Nike2s 0woosh and the 3Just Do It4 attests to the &om-an*2s su&&ess in &reatin' one o# the world2s stron'est %rand identities. The #amous slo'an is 3s*nta&ti&all* im-erati,e,4 *et &onnotes %oth an ease o# e+e&ution and an eas*'oin' relationshi- with the audien&e throu'h the word, 3Just4 8/e,in9. .* anal*?in' the words in the slo'an, we see how it relates to its audien&es and ultimatel* its &ustomers. It seems to %e so down to earth and so humani?ed that e,er*one &an relate to it. Also a&&ordin' to /e,in. *ou are in the loo- i# *ou &an understand this shorthand. 6ou know what IT is in the slo'an 8/e,in =!!(9. D,en thou'h the slo'an was Aust stum%led u-on %* an o## to-i& &omment durin' an ad,ertisin' meetin', it %rou'ht the &om-an* &loser to

Nike: Just Do It the &ustomer as #ar as ima'e is &on&erned. .ernstein theori?es that &lose:knit &ommunities use a shorthand &ode, where indire&tness and im-li&itness are ke*

elements. These ta'lines address su&h a &ommunit* o# amateur and -ro#essional athletes 8.ernstein, <B!9.

Brand to Recover Image In the mid nineties Nike made their #irst sli- and were tried %e#ore the law #or human ri'hts ,iolations in 0outh Dast Asia. A#ter ,iolatin' these laws as late as <<), the #irm #a&ed a new dauntin' &hallen'eC kee-in' their ima'e u- to the e+-e&tations that the* wanted 8ColliAnsa =!!E9. A&&ordin' to .ell, on&e Nike was a&&used o# la%or ,iolations, the -ress di,er'ed #rom -ositi,e ima'es and used the same lin'uisti& de,i&e to &reate ne'ati,e &om-an* ima'esC em-lo*ees, &onsumers, and shareholders saw another ima'e in Nike, and the audien&e had to de&ided whi&h one was the 3real4 ima'e 8.ell ! : <>E9. A&&ordin' to Armstron' and ;otler, the &om-an*:&reated ima'e ma* %e at odds with the media:&reated ima'e, amon' &onsumers. 3.rand D@uit*,4 the ,alue o# the %rand, %ased on the e+tent to whi&h it has hi'h %rand lo*alt*, name awareness, -er&ei,ed @ualit*, stron' %rand asso&iations, and other assets su&h as -atents, trademarks, lo'os, and slo'ans is also at stake 8Armstron' =!!E9. 0in&e &om-an* ima'e and %rand e@uit* were thus modi#ied %* the &om-an* s&rew:u-s, it is e,ident to sa* that measures were taken %* the &om-an* to #i+ it #or the &ause. A&&ordin' to .ell, Nike2s ima'e as a s-irited u-start has %een tarnished %*

Nike: Just Do It its ,er* su&&ess, %e&ause it has %een so su&&ess#ul in %randin' the &om-an* and its -rodu&tsC e,er*one knows who owns the swoosh. There#ore, Nike2s 30woosh4 and 3Just Do It4 slo'an ha,e %een lin'uisti&all* de'raded throu'h the &om-an*2s ne'ati,e a&tions 8.ell9. .asi&all* the same thin's that ha,e sha-ed the -ositi,e ima'e su&h as the endorsed athletes and &om-le+ tele,ision ads ha,e also %een the down#all o# its own ima'e.

The Invisible Brand Nike has 'otten to a -oint in their e+isten&e where it is rare to a&tuall* see the words Nike or e,en hear the words s-oken in an* ad,ertisement 8"orter =!!=9. The Nike 0woosh has %e&ome so -rominent in our &ulture that it is o%,ious how e+-ansi,e and well known the &or-oration is. Non:,er%al &ommuni&ation is in almost e,er* industr* in,ol,in' s-orts as seen %* the swoosh, the #amous lo'o atta&hed to Nike s-orts a--arel and e@ui-ment. The semanti& asso&iation %etween the Greek 'oddess Nike and the &om-an* rein#or&es &onsumers2 %elie# that i# the* %u* Nike -rodu&ts, ,i&tor* will %e theirs 8.ell ! : <>E9. Nike endorses more than three thousand athletes at the -resent time, in&ludin' B= -er&ent o# the -la*ers in the National .asket%all Asso&iation, )! -er&ent in MaAor /ea'ue .ase%all and hal# the -la*ers in the National $oot%all /ea'ue. More than =!! uni,ersities #l* the #la' o# swoosh 8/e,in =!!(9. .ut noti&e, the* are not #l*in' the Nike motto, the* are #l*in' the swoosh. A&&ordin' to the Center #or a--lied resear&h, %* #o&usin' on the aura and ima'e &on,e*ed

Nike: Just Do It %* the #itness &ulture, Nike was a%le to attra&t those who wanted the ima'e

without in&urrin' the -ain 8Center9. 7e &an 'ather #rom this in#ormation that a lot o# the non,er%al &ommuni&ation asso&iated with Nike &omes #rom their endorsements. 3The FJust Do It2 &am-ai'n seemed to &a-ture the &or-orate -hiloso-h* o# 'rit, determination and -assion, %ut also in#used it with somethin' hitherto unknown in Nike adsGhumor. Nike had alwa*s %een known #or its Fdeta&hed, determined, unsentimental2 attitude. FIn a word, HNike isI &ool.23 8Center9. O,er the last twent* *ears the ad,ertisin' &am-ai'n Nike has %een %ased around the motto, Just Do It. Man* others ha,e %een a--lied, some ha,e e,en hel-ed, %ut it is widel* a&&e-ted that their ori'inal is %* #ar the most #amous. The well:known slo'an is 3s*nta&ti&all* im-erati,e,4 *et &onnotes %oth an ease o# e+e&ution and an eas*'oin' relationshi- with the audien&e throu'h the word, 3Just4 8/e,in9. .* anal*?in' the words in the slo'an we see how it relates to its audien&es and ultimatel* its &onsumers.

Mass Communication Efforts Nike has su&&ess#ull* utili?ed mass &ommuni&ation on their &hoi&e to 'o 'lo%al %a&k in the <>!2s. It is rare to #ind a s-orts #un&tion in the 1nited 0tates that doesn2t -romote this %aron o# a &or-oration. .urstin' the %u%%le in the mid ei'hties, ri'ht around the time o# di'ital &ommuni&ation and the maturit* o# the ele&troni& e-o&h, Nike has %een a%le to a--eal to audien&es #ar and wide. Ad,ertisements ha,e %e&ome so -rominent in media, that it is rare to e,en see

Nike: Just Do It the words Nike in the &ommer&ials or %road&asts. It is estimated that <BJ o#

Ameri&an &iti?ens ha,e some &on&e-tion o# the Nike %rand. I# *ou were to s-read the &onsum-tion a&ross the whole -o-ulation o# the 1nited 0tates, e,er* man woman and &hild in the 1nited 0tates would s-ed an a,era'e o# K=! a *ear on the &om-an*Ls -rodu&ts. 8/e,in =!!(9. 7ith the rise o# Nike a'ainst its &om-etition, the &om-an* has %een a standard in ad,ertisin'. 7hile ori'inall*, %ein' a &om-an* %ased around tra&k and #ield, endorsin' athletes in these #ields was @uite &ommon in its earl* *ears 8"orter =!!=9. The idea %ehind this was to show how the su&&ess o# athletes &ould ha,e a lot to do with their e@ui-ment. It wasn2t until the* hit 'old that the &om-an* 'rew e+-onentiall*.

The Power of Endorsements In <>M Mi&hael Jordan was endorsed %* Nike and thus &reated a whole new su% &ate'or* o# shoes and a--arel, Air Jordan. It was in the ne+t de&ade to &ome that Jordan2s su&&ess had a dire&t &orrelation with the su&&ess o# Nike. In their TV ad,ertisements with the %asket%all star, there were se,eral instan&es where at the end o# the ad, the* &on&luded, 3It must %e the shoes4 that makes his su&&ess. Alon' with Jordan2s rise to #ame, Nike was a%le to ta- into the s-ot li'ht. 7here e,er Jordan su&&eeded, Nike was &lose %ehind o##erin' the swoosh and the health* sa*in' o# 3Just do it.4 3The massi,e 'rowth o# Nike In&, durin' the <>!s, indi&ated %* the 9

Nike: Just Do It 10 ines&a-a%le -resen&e o# its em%lems, its -ermeation o# di,erse s-a&es, and its #is&al su&&ess, &annot %e se-arated #rom its most #amous and -er,asi,e em%odiment, Mi&hael Jordan4 8Andrews, =!! 9

Gender also -la*s a hu'e role in the ad,ertisin' &am-ai'ns o# Nike. Ds-e&iall* in the last de&ade, the #irm has made a %i' -ush to o-en u- their market and to a--eal to #emale athletes, sometimes a&tuall* &han'in' the -er&e-tion o# athletes that are #emale. Nike2s ideal o# e+&ellen&e #or serious #emale athletes and athleti&s in &om%ination with themes o# eman&i-ation within the most re&ent ad,ertisin' e##orts dire&ted to women. 3Nike, throu'h its asso&iation o# knowled'e, -ower, and truth, has and &ontinues to -u%li&i?e and authori?e a -arti&ular notion o# who or what &ounts as a #emale athlete4 8Nelstein =!!(9. This is not the #irst time where the* ha,e mani-ulated the market in order to 'ain more o# the market share #or shoes. The Nike 7e%site is a 'ood e+am-le o# mani-ulation in whi&h the &or-orate s-eaker turns a -otentiall* ne'ati,e rea&tion #rom its audien&e into a -ositi,e ima'e o# the &om-an* 8/e,in =!!(9. The &om-an* also has a 'reat insi'ht on how man* other &om-anies use role models to sell their -rodu&ts and a--eal to their market. Nike e+e&uti,es #i'ure that i# Tomm* Nil#i'er and Ral-h /auren, neither o# whom e,er did an*thin' dramati& on a %asket%all &ourt, &an sell %illions o# dollars worth o# &lothin', the worldLs %est:known athlete &an do the same, or mu&h %etter 8/e,in =!!(9. Conclusion

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Nike: Just Do It 11 In &on&lusion, Nike has had @uite an interestin' Aourne* thus #ar and %* no means in an* -osition to dro- out o# the industr*. The* are &onstantl* inno,atin' not onl* their -rodu&ts %ut also their marketin' &am-ai'ns to &reate more demand. A&&ordin' to Ro,ell, desire is &onstru&ted throu'h -oliti&al and &ultural &onditions, %ut it also in,ested with the -ower to authori?e and normali?e those &onditions. There#ore, desire must %e an o%Ae&t o# anal*sis within &riti&al readin's o# Nike 8Ro,ell !=:=!!(9.

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Nike: Just Do It 12

Re#eren&e Cited:

Andrews, Da,id 8=!! 9. Mi&hael Jordan In&. 0tate 1ni,ersit* o# New 6ork "ress Armstron', G., O ;otler, ". 8=!!!9. Marketin': An introdu&tion. New Jerse*: New Jerse*. .ell, A. 8Januar* <>E9. /an'ua'e st*le as audien&e desi'n. Language in Society, 8 (9, EM: =!E. .ernstein, .. 8 <B!9. 0o&ial &lass, lan'ua'e and so&iali?ation. In ".". Gi'lioli 8Dd.9. /an'ua'e and so&ial &onte+t 8--. MB:B>9. /ondon: "en'uin. Center $or A--lied Resear&h 8n.d.9 Nikes Just Do It Advertising Campaign. Retrie,ed on !P=P!>. $rom, www.&#ar.&omPDo&umentsPnike&m-.-d# ColliAnsa, D. /., Qo&h%, /., M&donalda, C. 0., 8=!!E9 7hen worlds &ollide: im-li&ations o# ;ask* ,. Nike #or &or-orate re-utation mana'ement. u!"ic #e"ations #evie$, %(!9. E :E B.

Nelstein, M. T. 8=!!(9. That2s who I want to %e: the -oliti&s and "rodu&tion o# Desire within Nike and women. Journa" o& Sport and Socia" Issues. %=B9. =B):=<=

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Nike: Just Do It 13 /e,in, /. A., O .eherns, 0. J. 8=!!(9 $rom 0woosh to 0woon. 'usiness Communication (uarter"y. )). M=:)M "orter, J., Narris, M., 6eun', G., 8=!!=9 Nike )rigins. Retrie,ed on !P=P!>, #rom, www.&s.u&la.eduPR'a,inP-u%PIntl.usM'mtNike.-d# Ro,ell, Darren. 5JordanLs ! 'reatest &ommer&ials e,er5, es-n.&om, $e%ruar* B, =!!(, Retrie,ed on O&t =>th =!!>.

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