ANALYSIS OF NIKE’S ADVERTISING IMPACT TOWARDS

CUSTOMERS
Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of Value Added Project

POST GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN MANAGEMENT

of
ABBS School of Management

By
Mahesh Babu Mareboina
17PGDM046
P.Suhel Ahammed
17PGDM064
R.Sreenivasulu
17PGDM078

Under the guidance of

Dr.KAMINI DHRUVA
Associate Professor

ABBS School of Management

2017–2019

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 DECLARATION BY THE STUDENT

We hereby declare that “ANALYSIS OF NIKE’S ADVERTISING IMPACT TOWARDS CUSTOMERS” is

the result of the project work carried out by us under the guidance of Dr.KAMINI DHRUVA in partial
fulfillment for the award of Post Graduate Diploma in Management by ABBS School of Management.

We also declare that this project is the outcome of our own efforts and that it has not been submitted to any
other university or Institute for the award of any other degree or Diploma or Certificate.

Place: Bengaluru Name: M.Mahesh Babu, P.Suhel Ahammed&R.Sreenivasulu

Date: 14/02/2019 Register Number: 17PGDM046, 17PGDM064&17PGDM078

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 CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY

Date: 14/02/2019

This is to certify that the dissertation titled “ANALYSIS OF NIKE’S ADVERTISING IMPACT
TOWARDS CUSTOMERS” is an original work of Mr. M.Mahesh Babu,
P.SuhelAhammed&R.Sreenivasulu;bearingregisterNumber:17PGDM046,17PGDM064&17PGDM078 and
is being submitted in partial fulfillment for the award of the Post Graduate Diploma in Management of
ABBS School of Management. The report has not been submitted earlier either to this University /Institution
for the fulfillment of the requirement of a course of study

SIGNATURE OF GUIDE SIGNATURE OF DIRECTOR/PRINCIPAL/HOD

DATE: DATE:

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to our director Dr.Solai Baskaran as well as our
guide Dr. Shivaprasad.G who gave us the golden opportunity to do this wonderful project on the topic
“ANALYSIS AND UNDERSTANDING THE CRITICAL FACTORS RELATING TO THE SICKNESS OF
SMALL SCALE. INDUSTRIES IN TIRUPUR DISTRICT”: A DIAGNOSTIC STUDY, which also helped
us in doing a lot of Research and we came to know about so many new things, we are really thankful to
them.

Secondly we would also like to thank my parents and friends who helped us a lot in finalizing this project
within the limited time frame.

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 INDEX
Content Page No.
1. 1. Introduction
1.1 About Nike 1
1.2 Origins and History 1
1.3 Acquisitions 3
1.4 Advertising and marketing overview 3
1.5 4P's of Nike 4
1.6 SWOT Analysis of Nike 6

2. Review of Literature
2.1 Branding 8
2.2 Digital Branding 8
2.3 Emotional Branding 9

3. Nike’s Strategies followed

3.1 Nike’s Advertising Strategies 10
3.2 Nike’s Emotional Advertising 12
3.3 Emotional social media Strategy 13
3.4 Brand Equity 15
3.4.1 CBBE Model 15
3.4.2 Aaker Brand Equity Model 16

4. Research Methodology
4.1 Objectives of the Study 18
4.2 Research Design 18
4.3 Limitations of the Study 19

5.Data Analysis and Interpretation 19

6. Conclusion 26
7. Bibliography 27
8. Appendices 28

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1. Introduction
1.1 NIKE:

Nike, Inc. Is an American multinational corporation that is engaged in the design, development,
manufacturing, and worldwide marketing and sales of footwear, apparel, equipment, accessories, and
services. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, in the Portland metropolitan area. It is the
world's largest supplier of athletic shoes and apparel and a major manufacturer of sports equipment. Nike
ranked No. 89 in the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue.

The company was founded on January 25, 1964, as Blue Ribbon Sports, by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight,
and officially became Nike, Inc. on May 30, 1971. The company takes its name from Nike, the Greek
goddess of victory. Nike markets its products under its own brand, as well as Nike Golf, Nike Pro, Nike+,
Air Jordan, Nike Blazers, Air Force 1, Nike Dunk, Air Max, Foamposite, Nike Skateboarding, Nike CR7,
and subsidiaries including Brand Jordan, Hurley International and Converse. Nike also owned Bauer Hockey
(later renamed Nike Bauer) from 1995 to 2008, and previously owned Cole Haan and Umbro. In addition to
manufacturing sportswear and equipment, the company operates retail stores under the Niketown name.
Nike sponsors many high-profile athletes and sports teams around the world, with the highly recognized
trademarks of "Just Do It" and the Swoosh logo.

1.2 Origins and history:

Nike, originally known as Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS), was founded by University of Oregon track athlete
Phil Knight and his coach, Bill Bowerman, on January 25, 1964. The company initially operated as a
distributor for Japanese shoe maker Onitsuka Tiger, making most sales at track meets out of Knight's
automobile.

According to Otis Davis, a student athlete whom Bowerman coached at the University of Oregon, who later
went on to win two gold medals at the 1960 Summer Olympics, Bowerman made the first pair of Nike shoes
for him, contradicting a claim that they were made for Phil Knight. Says Davis, "I told Tom Brokaw that I
was the first. I don't care what all the billionaires say. Bill Bowerman made the first pair of shoes for me.
People don't believe me. In fact, I didn't like the way they felt on my feet. There was no support and they
were too tight. But I saw Bowerman make them from the waffle iron, and they were mine".

In 1964, in its first year in business, BRS sold 1,300 pairs of Japanese running shoes grossing $8,000. By
1965 the fledgling company had acquired a full-time employee, and sales had reached $20,000. In 1966,
BRS opened its first retail store, located at 3107 Pico Boulevard in Santa Monica, California next to a beauty
salon, so its employees no longer needed to sell inventory from the back of their cars. In 1967, due to rapidly

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increasing sales, BRS expanded retail and distribution operations on the East Coast, in Wellesley,
Massachusetts.

By 1971, the relationship between BRS and Onitsuka Tiger was nearing an end. BRS prepared to launch its
own line of footwear, which would bear the Swoosh newly designed by Carolyn Davidson. The Swoosh was
first used by Nike on June 18, 1971, and was registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on
January 22, 1974.

In 1976, the company hired John Brown and Partners, based in Seattle, as its first advertising agency. The
following year, the agency created the first "brand ad" for Nike, called "There is no finish line", in which no
Nike product was shown. By 1980, Nike had attained a 50% market share in the U.S. athletic shoe market,
and the company went public in December of that year.

Together, Nike and Wieden+Kennedy have created many print and television advertisements, and
Wieden+Kennedy remains Nike's primary ad agency. It was agency co-founder Dan Wieden who coined the
now-famous slogan "Just Do It" for a 1988 Nike ad campaign, which was chosen by Advertising Age as one
of the top five ad slogans of the 20th century and enshrined in the Smithsonian Institution. Walt Stack was
featured in Nike's first "Just Do It" advertisement, which debuted on July 1, 1988. Wieden credits the
inspiration for the slogan to "Let's do it", the last words spoken by Gary Gilmore before he was executed.

Throughout the 1980s, Nike expanded its product line to encompass many sports and regions throughout the
world. In 1990, Nike moved into its eight-building World Headquarters campus in Beaverton, Oregon. The
first Nike retail store, dubbed Niketown, opened in downtown Portland in November of that year.

Phil Knight announced in mid-2015 that he would step down as chairman of Nike in 2016.He officially
stepped down from all duties with the company on June 30, 2016.

Things you didn't know:

 Nike is the name of the Greek goddess of victory. The name came to Jeff Johnson, the company's
first employee, in his sleep.
 The Swoosh logo was designed for a fee of $35 by a young design student in Portland, Oregon.
Later, she was given some Nike stock.
 The 'Just Do It' line was conceived by advertising copywriter, Dan Wieden.
 One of Nike's most memorable and offbeat advertisements featured the endorsement of the
 fairytale characters, the Three Little Pigs.

1.3 Acquisitions:

Nike has acquired several apparel and footwear companies over the course of its history, some of which have
since been sold. Its first acquisition was the upscale footwear company Cole Haan in 1988, followed by the
purchase of Bauer Hockey in 1994. In 2002, Nike bought surf apparel company Hurley International from

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founder Bob Hurley. In 2003, Nike paid US$309 million to acquire Converse, makers of the Chuck Taylor
All-Stars line of sneakers. The company acquired Starter in 2004 and Umbro, known as the manufacturers of
the England national football team's kit, in 2008.

In order to refocus on its core business lines, Nike began divesting of some of its subsidiaries in the 2000s. It
sold Starter in 2007 and Bauer Hockey in 2008. The company sold Umbro in 2012 and Cole Haan in 2013.
As of 2017, Nike owns two key subsidiaries: Converse Inc. and Hurley International.

1.4 Advertising and marketing overview:

A big part of every brand’s success is the way they advertise and market themselves to the world. From the
beginning of Nike and their first simple “swoosh” logo they now have become one of the most recognizable
brands out there. But that is not all of course, their products are what stands at the bottom of their success.
Anyways, good products without a strong and great marketing strategy won’t do much.

Nike has been changing their marketing and branding strategy quite a lot for the 40+ years they have been on
the market. At first, their focus was just on quality and well-designed products, because the innovation of
their products was so unique that it already differentiated them from the competitors. But after some
changes, in 1990s the marketing strategy changed to a more customer focused approach (Willigan, 1992).

In an interview with the Nike’s CEO Phil Knight for Harvard Business Review, he mentioned, “We used to
think that everything started in the lab. Now we realize that everything spins off the customer. And while
technology is still important, the consumer has to lead innovation. We have to innovate for a specific reason,
and that reason comes from the market. Otherwise, we’ll end up making museum pieces.” (HBR, 2017).

As many other businesses from more than 10 years ago, Nike’s advertising was entirely based on television
and large print advertising. Their advertisements were a success never the less, be it the taglines “Just do it”
or “Bo Knows”, which became equal to the brand Nike itself. The brand has evolved together with the
digital progress in the world today, and moved from traditional advertising to digital one, with a drop of 40%
in their spending on traditional advertising from 2009 to 2012. With their budget increase of $2.4 billion now
they are spending their money on digital advertising, using all the online techniques possible and also
communicating with their customers online.

1.5 4Ps of Nike:

Nike Inc.’s marketing mix (4Ps) determines the profitability and growth of the athletic footwear, apparel, and
equipment business. A company’s marketing mix refers to the strategies and tactics applied to execute the
marketing plan, with focus on products, place, promotion, and price (the 4Ps). In this business case, Nike has
a marketing mix that involves athletic products. For example, the company specializes in shoes that are
designed to satisfy the needs of professional basketball and football athletes. However, these products are

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marketed to all consumers around the world, for athletic and leisure activities, based on the specifics of
Nike’s corporate mission and vision statements. Established in 1964, the company’s 4Ps evolve according to
the dynamics of the global sporting goods industry. Such evolution is a critical success factor that enables the
business to use its marketing mix to respond to market trends and changes that influence local, regional, and
international market demand for its products.

Through its marketing mix, Nike Inc. strengthens its capabilities to protect its business from the strong force
of competition. The company competes against various firms involved in the footwear, apparel, and athletic
equipment markets.

Nike’s Products :

This element of the marketing mix enumerates the organizational outputs offered to target consumers. These
outputs are known as the product mix. Nike Inc.’s growth comes with changes in its product mix. For
example, the business continues its investment in research and development to produce new products and
enhanced versions of its current products. Originally a distributor of shoes, the company now manufactures
various shoes, apparel, and equipment for different sports. Based on Nike Inc.’s generic strategy and
intensive growth strategies, the business integrates new technologies into its product lines to improve
product effectiveness and customer satisfaction. The following broad categories represent Nike’s product
mix:

1) Shoes
2) Apparel
3) Equipment and accessories

Place/Distribution:

This element of the marketing mix outlines the venues where the company’s products are sold, accessed or
distributed. Nike Inc. sells its sports shoes, apparel, and equipment through a large number of outlets
worldwide. For example, these products are available at major retail stores. The following places/venues
form Nike’s distribution strategy, arranged according to significance:

1) Retail stores

2) Nike Online Store

3) Niketown retail outlets (company-owned)

Retail stores are the most significant places where Nike products are sold because these venues are
strategically located and easily accessible in various markets around the world. These retailers include large
firms like Walmart (see Walmart’s Marketing Mix or 4P), as well as small local and regional stores. This 4P
element also shows that customers can purchase Nike’s sports shoes, apparel, and equipment through the
company’s online store. In addition, the business operates its Niketown retail outlets. These outlets are
company-owned and allow access to business and market information that supports corporate strategic
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management with regard to marketing strategies and tactics for current, new, and emerging products. Based
on this element of the marketing mix, Nike Inc. controls the distribution and sale of its products, especially
through its online store and Niketown retail outlets. However, the company has limited control on the
distribution and sale of its products via other retail outlets.

Nike Inc.’s Promotion:

Nike is famous for its advertising as well as its athletes. They are the twin pillars of Nike promotion. The
company does not hire athletes simply as mobile posters. They are the brand as much as products,
advertising, or the people who work at Nike.

This element of the marketing mix is also known as the marketing communications mix, and involves the
tactics that Nike uses to communicate with its target markets. The company depends on the effective
promotion of its products to maintain a strong brand image, which is one of the strengths determined in the
SWOT analysis of Nike Inc. The company uses promotional tactics to communicate with target customers
about its products, and persuade these consumers to purchase the products. The following are Nike’s
promotional activities, arranged according to significance:

1) Advertising
2) Personal selling
3) Direct marketing
4) Sales promotions
5) Public relations

Advertising is one of the biggest contributors to Nike’s ability to attract customers. The company heavily
relies on advertisements, especially those that involve high-profile celebrity endorsers, such as professional
athletes and sports teams. This element of the company’s marketing mix also includes personal selling
through sales personnel who persuade target consumers to buy the company’s products. For example, sales
personnel at Niketown retail outlets are trained to use such persuasion. The company’s direct marketing
activities involve direct communications with colleges, local sports teams, and other organizations. In the
context of the 4Ps, direct marketing refers to direct contact with organizations for the purpose of promoting
products to the members of such organizations. In addition, Nike occasionally applies discounts and special
offers to attract more customers and generate more sales. These discounts and offers form the company’s
sales promotions tactics. Moreover, in public relations, the company sponsors and provides financial support
to other organizations, such as community-based networks, to promote its athletic shoes, apparel, and
equipment. Based on the tactics included in this element of Nike’s marketing mix, the business depends on
its relations with high-profile endorsers to succeed in promoting its business and products to the international
sporting goods market.

In the UK, Nike has run advertising developed for a variety of intended markets, from London only, right
through to global campaigns. Highlights have included some famously provocative posters, the 'Parklife'
commercial celebrating the world of Sunday League football and the transformation of a Tube station into a

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tennis court for Wimbledon 1997. A year later, after England's traumatic exit from the World Cup, the
company caught the mood of a shell-shocked nation with its 'Condolence' television advertisement.

Pricing Strategies:

This element of the marketing mix identifies the prices that the company applies to maximize profits while
attracting the desired share of the multinational market. Nike’s investments in technology is linked with a
strategy to offer its products at a premium. Still, the company considers current market conditions in setting
its price points and price ranges. Based on these considerations for this 4P variable, the following pricing
strategies are applied in Nike Inc.’s business:

1) Value-based pricing strategy

2) Premium pricing strategy

In using the value-based pricing strategy, Nike Inc. considers consumer perception about the value of its
products. In the context of the marketing mix, this value is used to determine the maximum prices that
consumers are willing to pay for the company’s sports shoes, apparel, and equipment. In relation, the
premium pricing strategy involves high prices, based on a premium branding strategy that establishes Nike
products as higher in quality and value than competing products. The company’s use of advertisements
involving high-profile celebrity endorsers is indicative of such emphasis on premium branding. In 2014, the
business successfully increased its selling prices and generated higher sales and revenues. This trend
continues, as the company enjoys increasing sales revenues while gradually increasing its prices.

1.6 SWOT Analysis of Nike:

The SWOT of Nike discusses the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the leading footwear
brand – Nike.

Strengths:

 Nike is the world’s no. 1 shoemaker. It designs and sells shoes for a variety of sports including
baseball, golf, cheerleading, volleyball, tennis and football.
 Nike uses a “Make to Stock” customer order which provides a fast service to customers from
available stock.
 Nike operates Nike Town shoe and sportswear stores, Nike factory outlets and Nike Women shops.
Nike sells its products throughout US and in more than 180 countries.
 Nike is strong at research and development, as is evidenced by its evolving and innovative product
range. They then manufacture wherever they can produce high quality product at the lowest possible
price.
 Nike is strong at promotion, it has its own strategies in promotion.
 Nike is a global brand. It is the number one sports brand in the World. Its famous ‘Swoosh’ is
instantly recognizable, and Phil Knight (Founder and CEO) even has it tattooed on his ankle.

Weaknesses:

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  The income of the business is still heavily dependent upon its share of the footwear market. This may
leave it vulnerable if for any reason its market share erodes.
 The retail sector is very price sensitive. However, most of its income is derived from selling into
retailers. Retailers tend to offer a very similar experience to the consumer. So margins tend to get
squeezed as retailers try to pass some of the low price competition pressure onto Nike.

Opportunities:

 Product development offers Nike many opportunities. The brand is fiercely defended by its owners
whom truly believe that Nike is not a fashion brand however consumers that wear Nike product do
not always buy it to participate in sport. In youth culture especially, Nike is a fashion brand. This
creates its own opportunities
 There is also the opportunity to develop products such as sport wear, sunglasses and jewellery. Such
high value items do tend to have associated with them, high profit
 The business could also be developed internationally, building upon its strong global brand
recognition. There are also global marketing events that can be utilised to support the brand such as
the World Cup (soccer) and The Olympics.

Threats:

o Nike is exposed to the international nature of trade. It buys and sells in different currencies and so
costs and margins are not stable over long periods of time. Such an exposure could mean that Nike
may be manufacturing and/or selling at a loss. This is an issue that faces all global brands.
o The market for sports shoes and garments is very competitive. Competitors are developing
alternative brands to take away Nike’s market share.

2. Literature Review
2.1 Branding
The term “branding” has a long history which started to evolve around the 1800s, even though at that time
the meaning of it wasn’t as known today. It was defined then as a name, slogan, sign, symbol or design, or a
combination of those, in order to identify company’s products and services and distinguish them from others.
The way Keller defines it today is basically “endowing products and services with the power of a brand”
(Kotler & Keller, 2015). Branding is the process of creating a unique proposition for the customers, so they
could differentiate the products from the company’s competitors’. When a person thinks about a company’s
name, the second thought coming after is the perception they have about it, supported by the feeling they get
when hearing it. That is the definition of the “brand”, and usually it never stays the same but evolves
throughout time. Big factors for that are the changing trends, consumer behaviour, competitors, product
differentiation and others.

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The core of branding is the brand itself, which consists of many different parts. All of these different little
parts combined together identify the brand as unique and memorable. These are for example brand names,
logos, characters, slogans, packages and others which form the brand’s equity. The strategy behind them is to
create a brand which is: memorable, meaningful, aesthetically appealing, adaptable and transferable between
product categories over time (Hoeffler, Keller, 2002).

Brands are something that stays in the mind of consumers and reflects their perceptions (Keller, 2013). For a
product or service to be branded well it is necessary to be given a name first, and explanation what is it and
why should people care. The main idea is to make a label and give a meaning for the brand. After all, what
matters the most to a customer is the difference between products or brands in the same category. That’s
where the branding can be most useful, defining those differences, in the form of benefits or attributes and
helping the customer to see those and make their decision.

2.2 Digital branding

With the rise of technology and the increase in the number of electronic devices everybody got their hands
on, the way companies communicate their brand has significantly changed. Digital branding changes the
way company reaches its customers, while making it easier to communicate with them and give them better
idea what the brand itself stands for, which will then help them afterwards in their decision making process.

In the paper by David C. Edelman (Edelman, 2010), it is said that even if the way branding is done has
changed, consumers still want a clear brand promise and offerings that they value. The only thing that has
changed is the way how companies interact with them. But that is due to the fact the consumer’s attention is
in different, depending on where they started spending their time. There are still four main stages of
consumer journey: consider; evaluate; buy; enjoy, advocate, bond.

Digital branding has changed the traditional media communication by turning it from one-way to two-way
conversation. Meaning, that the company now doesn’t only promote to their audience but more or less
engages, challenges, and creates a real bond with them. “If brand is essentially the personality of something,
digital media gives us the ability and opportunity to understand the true personality of something”, says
Rowles (Rowles, 2014).

Digital branding also changes the customer experience, saving them time, giving them a direct contact,
giving them the opportunity to share their opinion freely and connect on a different level. By doing that the
market itself can impact a brand’s name and the perception of it. There are different touch points between
consumers and companies and they are interpreted as an engagement or experience though a specific
marketing channel a business is using. The channels could be very broad and diverse, ranging from the
packaging of a product to telephone calls or emails. The touch points could be mostly through social media
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and online reviews, or commenting on places like blogs and video channels, or even communicating through
emails. It is not always certain that customers will communicate directly with the brand through all these
channels, but maybe will influence other people’s decisions or opinions by writing a product review online
for example. Nowadays this has been proven to be one of the most used and important touch point (Rowles,
2014)

2.3 Emotional branding

In today’s world the best brands are those who are able to build a strong emotional relationship with the
consumers. When businesses connect specifically with the emotions of their customers the result may be
huge. Considering this opportunity, they should pursue this connection as it was a science, strategy, or even
friendship. Unfortunately, most of the times building that connection is based on guesses and not something
that can be studied or had an exact formula (Magids, 2015).

Emotions are a confusing topic in business, as it is in everyday life. The main idea is to connect with the
consumers by engaging and making memorable experiences for them. In a research by Amic. G. Ho, it is
stated that scholars have investigated different theories of psychology and sociology, in order to explain how
consumers’ feelings can be influenced and connected with a brand. It turns out that for people to achieve
emotional satisfaction it is important to have a two way, quick interaction. In the example, a successful
design outcome is not enough only to be of good quality but also needs to meet the specific customers’
emotional needs. The new trend of design for twenty-first century is to add a “feeling” into the design
outcome which could be easily experienced. After that was recognized, the scholars noticed a change in
consumer attitudes toward a brand. The design outcomes basically could shape the customers perception of
it. The tools companies use to create a brand identity and deliver a message, such as logos and images, to
create familiarity with a product. Brand concept is a bit different though, “it is the summary of consumer’s
emotional response for design outcomes”. The brand concept should be a reflection to consumer’s emotions
and behaviours, therefore, a company needs to know those emotional characteristics in order to get to them
(Ho, 2017).

3.1Nike’s Brilliant Marketing Strategy

It’s safe to say Nike’s at the top of its game right now. Not only does its own 48% of the American athletic
footwear market, but its share of the basketball footwear market is at a staggering 96%. What sort
of marketing strategy has Nike used to achieve and maintain this level of market dominance? Sure, the high-
profile celebrity endorsements probably play a role, but for the most part, Nike’s dominance comes from far
more than just throwing money at athletes, actors, and artists.

1. Meaningful story – They’re selling more than a product; they’re selling aspiration

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Nike didn’t build its loyal fan base by harping on its iconic waffle shoes. In fact, Nike’s ads rarely, if ever,
mention their products at all. What their ads do, and do well, is induce emotion in the consumer through
‘emotional branding’. Each ad is carefully crafted to evoke particular feelings and needs in the consumer that
can only be satisfied by Nike products. It does this by playing up the traditional narrative of a hero who
works hard to overcome adversity, ultimately emerging victorious against a terrible foe. But it isn’t a literal
enemy being fought in this case. Nike takes the analogy to a level far more relatable: the ‘terrible foe’ is the
voice in your head that tells you, “You can’t”. To that, the organization says: “Just do it.”

1. They earn word-of-mouth by creating compelling ‘Water cooler Moments’

It’s vital to have your consumers talking about your brand. It keeps you at the forefront of your customers’
minds, and allows you to reach those who have not heard of you! One way of achieving this is by creating
‘water cooler’ – experiences so exciting that people would talk about them for days on end. It’s something
Nike’s very good at doing.

2. Unique, Exciting Things – Nike Phenomenal Shot

During the FIFA 2014 World Cup, Nike partnered with Google to create ‘Nike Phenomenal Shot’. When a
Nike athlete scored a goal, display ads were delivered to fans in real-time. Fans could also rotate their
players around in 3D, framing them for shots that can be personalized with filters, captions, and stickers.
Once you’re done with your ‘Phenomenal Shot’, you can share it on social media. More than 500,000
“Phenomenal Moments” were created –amazing in itself, but even more so considering the subsequent reach
every moment could obtain once shared.

3. Original YouTube series Margot vs. Lily received over 80,000,000 views

In 2016, Nike created a YouTube series to complement its marketing campaigns. Margot vs Lily centres on
two sisters, and it features Nike merchandise like shoes, workout gear, and Nike+ technology. It also directs
viewers to the #BetterforIt website, which contains more detailed content for those interested in initiating
and improving their fitness journey. But it’s not just an extended ad, the show has a compelling story that’s
actually fun to watch! As of now, the series has received over 80 million views, leading to increased
downloads of the Nike+ Run and Training Club, as well as greater activity and purchases by existing
members.

4. Newsworthy Technology – Nike Self-Lacing Shoes

The coolest tech so far however would have to be Nike’s new self-lacing shoes. The Hyper Adapt 1.0 has
sensors that automatically moulds the shoe to the shape of your foot when you step into it.

5. They make some really fun ads that people love sharing and talking about

Nike makes some of the best ads in the business. They teem with world-class athletes displaying their
extraordinary skills. One of Nike’s most successful ads is ‘Winner Stays’. The ad features teenage boys

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transforming into Ronaldo, Neymar Jr. and other soccer superstars as they battle it out on the soccer field; it
netted; it netted the sportswear brand more than 107.8 million views.

6. They’re socially-conscious

Consumers today expect more from the companies they buy from. They want their purchases to have a
positive impact on the environment and on society, and they don’t hesitate to reward brands that do. Nike
engages in several community outreach initiatives both within the US, and globally. Recently, Nike opened
its 7th community store in Detroit, a city struggling to thrive amidst bankruptcy and years of economic
hardship. Like Nike’s other community stores, its mission is to serve the city through volunteer work and
promoting physical fitness. The store opened to huge lines, with customers queuing up 2 days before its
launch!

7. Constant innovation – NIKE+

Much like sharks, a business needs to keep moving forward to stay alive. Nike learnt this the hard way in
the mid-1980s when it lost out on the lucrative aerobics market to Reebok. Since then, it has worked hard to
ensure that never happens again. In 2006, Nike developed the ‘Nike+iPod’, an activity tracker that records
the distance and pace of its user’s workout through a sensor in the sneaker. It was ground-breaking
technology in wearable tech that resulted in an 8.1% rise in profits within the first six months. Even today,
Nike continues to expand on the Nike+ technology, releasing phone apps, watches, and even a dedicated
training app!

8. Flyknit

In 2012, Nike broke new ground when it introduced its revolutionary Flyknit technology. While traditional
sneakers are made up of individual pieces that are stitched together, Nike shook things up by utilising
computer-controlled “knitting” technology to shape the entire upper-part of the shoe. This reduced the
number of components by up to 35 pieces, producing a lighter shoe that still provides as much strength and
support as other top running footwear in the market. Following its launch, competitors
like Adidas and Skechers quickly entered the market with similar technology, eager to get a piece of the
action.

9. They’re killing it on Social Media

Social media isn’t a one-way street for Nike; it’s a conversation. The company maintains separate Twitter
accounts for each of its subsidiary brands (e.g. @nikefootball, @nikebasketball), which they predominantly
use to respond to consumer @mentions. Aside from that, Nike’s posts are fun, short, and often motivational,
which make for easy reading and sharing. They also frequently contain calls-to-action for followers to
respond to and engage with the brand. Emotional advertising:

3.2 Nike’s Emotional Advertising:

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#JustDoIt

The "Just Do It" campaign launched in 1988 was highly successful with the Age selecting the campaign as
one of the top two taglines of the 20th century with it being both "universal and intensely
personal". While Reebok was directing their campaign at aerobics during the fitness craze of the 1980s, Nike
responded with "a tough, take no prisoners ad campaign". One of the campaign's objectives was to target all
Americans regardless of age, gender or physical fitness level which led to Nike becoming worn as a fashion
statement, not just as fitness gear (Nearly 80% of Nike's running shoes are not worn for their intended
purpose). Nike's fundamental objective was to represent sneakers as a fashion statement to consumers,
especially females, teens and males aged 18–40.

Throughout the campaign, Nike enlisted numerous notable athletes in order to attract customers and promote
the image of Nike as being reliable to not only everyday customers but professional athletes. Athletes such
as football stars Bo Jackson, Ronaldinho and Wayne Rooney, basketball stars Michael Jordan, and Kobe
Bryant and tennis stars Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal were used in their advertisements, including a range
of people from varying ethnicities and races.

Nike was faced with criticism by Ernst & Young surrounding the campaign, with the pay of elite athletes
compared to those in overseas shoe factories, and for violating the minimum wage in their operations in
Vietnam. The "Just Do It" campaign went out to a range of media outlets including merchandise, outdoor
billboards, print media, and graffiti art. The campaign embodied Nike's image as an innovative American
icon associated with success through the combination of professional athletes and motivational slogans
emphasizing sportsmanship and health. This led to customers associating their purchases with the prospect
of achieving greatness. In 2015, actor Shia LaBeouf used this phrase in LaBeouf, Rönkkö &
Turner's #INTRODUCTIONS video, which later become an Internet meme.

#BetterForIt

It’s an unspoken truth that women can be hard on themselves, especially when it comes to fitness. Nike
captured this mentality perfectly in its latest commercial, spotlighting different ladies (a yogi; a spinner
sitting behind a row of models; a marathon runner) trying to ignore that annoying voice inside (face it, we all
have one) who constantly says “I can’t.”

For women just beginning their athletic journey, the campaign called #BetterForIt hits close to home. How
many times have you hit the gym and lifted weights you thought were puny in comparison to the
bodybuilder going H-A-M next to you? Ever felt like your flexibility was all out of whack during a Bikram
yoga session? Let’s not forget that time you tried to do 10 burpees but were only able to do a strong three
and felt like a failure for it. Luckily, Nike is turning all that negative B.S. into a super motivator.

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“It’s about “powering [women] to be better through services, product innovation and athlete inspiration,
motivating each other to push to the next level,” the company tells Ad Week. After airing its first spot called
“Inner Thoughts” during Sunday night’s MTV Movie Awards (April 12), Nike has begun to roll out inspiring
visuals to keep the #fitspiration flowing. “Don’t let you stop you,” reads the video description. “If you’ve got
the drive to get better, Nike Women has the tools and gear to help you do it.”

3.3 Emotional social media Strategy:

Social Engagement:

Social media channels and their uses:

With a total of 318 social media profiles catering to a multitude of products and geolocations, Nike is one of
the most followed brands online. Nike has social media profiles on all major platforms such as Facebook,
Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest and LinkedIn. The brand diversified their online presence by creating separate
pages for its products catering to different target audiences. The sportswear giant is a champion on social
media with quite a few reigning statistics to their name. Nike Football with 44 million fans is one of the top
ten most followed brand pages on Facebook, while the brand’s primary Instagram account is the second most
followed with 77 million followers!

We analysed Nike’s primary social media profiles across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for the
period from January 01, 2017 to December 31, 2017. Here’s what we found out.

Facebook

Nike has over 29 million followers on its primary Facebook page, gaining over 2 million new fans in 2017
alone! The brand published 51 posts in the time period and promoted more than 80% of them. In terms of
content, Nike posted 38 videos and 10 photos. Videos were also the top performing content for the brand. It

18
is noteworthy that Nike has been focusing their Facebook strategy on videos even prior to the
algorithm change in 2016.

Twitter

Nike added more than 58K new followers during the time period, bringing its total follower count to 7
million. The brand tweeted over 15K times, i.e. 41 tweets per day (including replies and retweets) on
average. Similar to its posting frequency on Facebook, the brand posted only 50 proactive tweets in 2017.

YouTube

Nike has over 777K subscribers, adding 133K new subscribers in 2017. It is interesting to note that in
comparison to their other social media profiles, Nike posted more frequently on YouTube with the brand
uploading 70 videos. Nike’s YouTube strategy is primarily focused on putting their products on center stage.
Behind-the-scene-videos detailing product stories and their making form a major portion of their video
marketing on YouTube. The video below, featuring the brand’s latest product Nike AirVapor Max, is the
most-viewed content for Nike in 2017 with more than 20 million views.

Instagram

Nike holds the unparalleled golden standard on Instagram. With an astonishing 77.1 million followers, Nike
is the second most followed brand on Instagram. The sports giant is also the 16th most popular account on
Instagram, the only brand other than Instagram and National Geographic to make it to the top 20 list. In
2017, the brand saw a 10.7 % growth in followers, adding more than 7 million new fans. Nike uploaded 53
posts in during the time period, a frequency that the brand has maintained across various platforms. The
chart below shows the posting frequency of the brand suggesting that Nike does not have a consistent pattern
in posting.

3.4 Brand Equity

Brand equity is the holy grail in the subject of branding. The ultimate objective of a branding team is to
increase the brand equity of an organization. This can be done in various ways, but one of the ways is to use
the Keller’s Brand equity model or CBBE model of Keller.

3.4.1 CBBE Model or Keller’s Brand equity Model

The CBBE model or the Brand equity pyramid is actually a pyramid which tells us how to build brand
equity by understanding your customers and implementing strategies accordingly. If there is a connection
between the brand and the consumer, it results in positive brand equity & has a better chance of acquiring
and sustaining customers, thereby giving a huge advantage to the companies and products which are
considered as “brands”.

By using the Brand equity pyramid or the CBBE model, brands know which strategies to implement and
how to give the right experiences to their audience so that they create the WOW factor.
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The image below shows the Brand equity triangle. As we can see, the triangle is divided into 4 parts. 2 out of
these 4 parts are further divided. Thus, there are total 6 building blocks in Keller’s Brand equity model.

Nike

1. Salience: Customers consider Nike of a brand with high quality and good design sport shoes.

2. Performance: Nike products owns high technical performance.

3. Imagery: People consider that Nike represents the high status, cool style, the winner in the competitive
spot activities.

4. Judgments: Consumers give high credibility to Nike due to its high quality, good design and innovation.

5. Feelings: Nike focuses on inspiration of their consumers, making them believe that all they need is "just
do it".

6. Resonance: Nike proposes the customization services to its customers by offering from the customized
shoes to the personal video filming of participants during the run.

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3.4.2 Aaker Brand Equity Model

Aaker Brand Equity model was developed by Professor David Aaker of the University of California. His
model viewed the brand equity as a combination of brand awareness, brand loyalty and brand associations,
which then combines with each other to finally offer the value provided by a product or service. For Aaker,
brand management begins with building up a brand identity, which is one of a kind arrangement of brand
affiliations speaking to what the brand stands for and offers to consumers a desiring brand picture.

Four Elements of Brand Identity as per Aaker Brand Equity Model

Aaker primarily sees brand identity as a combination of 8-12 elements which fall under four perspectives:

Brand as Product – This consists of product scope, product attributes, quality or value of the product, uses,
users and country of origin.

Brand as Organization – it consists of organizational attributes, local workings versus global activities.

Brand as Person – it consists of brand personality and consumer brand relationships.

Brand as Symbol – it consists of audio and visual imagery, metaphorical symbols and brand heritage.

The motive of the Aaker Model is to help in making a brand strategy comprising of various brand
components or patterns, in order to illuminate, advance and separate a brand from its rivals. An organization
deliberately utilizes a few of these components to impart to the buyers what their brand stands for.

5 Components of Brand value as per Aaker Brand Equity Model

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Aaker states that brand value is controlled by associated five components. We will understand the brand
value in the next section in details but before that let’s understand these components and how are they
integrated with brand value. This is essential for understanding the general picture of brand equity. These
components are:-

Brand Loyalty – The extent to which people are loyal to a brand

Brand Awareness – The extent to which a brand is known among the public

Perceived Quality – The extent to which a brand is considered to provide good quality products

Brand Associations – The associations triggered by a brand

Other Proprietary – Assets like patents and intellectual property rights, relations with trade partners. The
more proprietary rights a brand has accumulated, the greater the brands competitive edge in those fields.

4. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
4.1 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
 To study Nike’s advertisement influence towards consumer buying behaviour.
 To know how Nike’s brand emotionally affecting people.
 To know how advertisements are beneficial to consumers.

4.2 RESEARCH DESIGN

Conclusive research
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It is used to provide useful information in reaching certain conclusions or making decisions. It relies strongly
on secondary data, for example reanalysing already existing databases looking at it from a different
perspective for a new problem in comparison to the original one. Conclusive research also uses primary
research or data that is collected for that particular case. This research design could be quantitative in nature.
Conclusive research relies both on secondary and primary data and can be split into two main categories:
- Descriptive or statistical research techniques are used for data that studies the population or universe. It
only helps defining the description of a situation, and not what caused it. The two main types of descriptive
research are observation and surveys.
- Causal research techniques are used when finding out what variable is causing a certain problem or
behaviour. The relationship between cause and effect is the base of causal research. This research is quite
complex and the factors discovered might not be completely certain. The two main methods of causal
research are experimentation and simulation.
TYPE OF RESEARCH:-Descriptive research
Descriptive research includes Surveys and fact-finding enquiries of different kinds. The main characteristic
of this method is that the researcher has no control over the variables; he can only report what has happened
or what is happening.
DATA SOURCES
There are two types of data. Source of primary data for the present study is collected through questionnaire
and answered by consumers of Nike. The secondary data is collected from journals, books and through
Internet search.
PRIMARY DATA
The data that is collected first hand by someone specifically for the purpose of facilitating the study is
known as primary data. So in this research the data is collected from respondents through questionnaire.
SECONDARY DATA
For the company information I had used secondary data like brochures, web site of the company etc. The
Method used by me is Survey Method as the research done is Descriptive Research.
RESEARCH INSTRUMENTS
Selected instrument for Data Collection for Online survey is Questionnaire.
QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGN FORMULATION
Under this method, list of questions pertaining to the survey are prepared consumers of Nike. Questionnaire
has structured type questions as well as unstructured type questions. Structured objective type questions are
prepared for the respondents with fixed response categories. Some of the questions are of multiple-choice
type. The questions have more than one alternative.

4.3 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

 Time constraint is the major limitation of this study

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  The sample size of the study is limited to only 100 respondents

5. Data Analysis and Interpretation

Survey Result:

 For the first question the biggest respondent’s gender was the male (85 out of 100) and remaining 15
were female.

Figure 1. What is your gender?

 The next question biggest respondent’s age group was the ones from 18 to 24. The options the author
gave was 25-34, 35-44, 45 or older. The second biggest group was the one over 25 year’s olds.

24
 Figure
2. What is your age?

 On the question about influences you most to try a new product, most respondents have answered
that recommendations from friends and family and the second largest respondents answered the
advertisements.so,we can say that advertisements play a vital role when new product or service is
introduced.

25
 Figure
3. What influences you the most to try a new product or service?

 Most of the respondents answered that TV adverts and online advertisements would most influence
the consumer buying behaviour. Television advertising has immediate delivery of message, high
frequency of message and High mass audience coverage. As you may well know, online
advertising is developing at an incredible speed, yet at the same pace, people are becoming
increasingly blind to online ads. Some types of ads are worth more than others.

26
Figure 4. What type of advertisements are most influential over your buying behaviour?

 For the next question how much influence do you feel advertisements have over your buying
behaviour, most of the respondents answered medium influence and followed by next group
respondents answered larger influence.so, we can say that advertisements will influence the buying
behaviour.

27
Figure 5. How much influence do you feel advertisements have over your buying behaviour?

 Most of the respondents answered that advertising is beneficial to consumers because it provides
important information about the product. But some respondents answered as not sure.

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Figure 6. 'Advertising is beneficial to consumers because it provides important information about goods and
service.'To what extent do you agree with this statement?

 Coming to the emotional branding, many of the respondents stated that they could be influenced
emotionally from brand’s advertising and social media posts, and nobody gave “Never” as an answer
to the question whether they could be emotionally influenced or not. Also over 64% of the surveyed
recalled that their opinion about a product could change, due to a brand’s emotional appeal to their
audience. That proved a big part of the research in this, and showed that consumers also are aware of
that type of branding strategy and that feelings could be strongly related to their purchases.

29
Figure 7. Do you believe that this brand can affect you emotionally through their social media or
advertising?

 For the next question most of the respondents answered that the more times an advertisement is
viewed by a consumer, the more likely the consumer is to go and buy the product. Some respondents
answered that it is false and some were not sure.

30
Figure 8. 'The more times an advertisement is viewed by a consumer, the more likely the consumer is to go
and buy the product.'To what extent do you agree with this statement?

Figure 9. How likely is it that you would recommend this brand to a friend or colleague?

31
  For the last question most of the respondents answered that Nike advertisements are better than the
competitor’s advertisements.

Figure 10. How would you rate the Nike ad compared with others of the same kind you have seen?

6. Conclusion
The specific brand objective of Nike would be to build up its brand reputation, image and equity. A brand is
not simply a collection of products and benefits, but also a store house of value stemming from awareness,
loyalty, and association of quality and brand personality. A brand is a name, term, sign, symbol or design or a
combination of them intended to identify the goods or services of one seller or group of sellers and to
differentiate from those of competitors. In essence, a brand identifies the seller or maker .It can convey up to
six levels of meaning: Attributes, Benefits, Values, Culture, Personality and User. If a company treats a brand
only as a name it misses the point. The branding challenge is to develop a deep set of positive associations
for the brand. Nike has to ensure that their brand is built up on these pillars.

The advertising and promotional strategies used by Nike had been great through the years. It had found ways
to relate to the individual in its own way which I think is amazing. It had made sure that the products they

32
offer are available and attainable for all walks of life. Nike had everything from the best promotions, to the
best commercials and advertising, the best athletes and the best connection to consumer from price to style.

The purpose of this was to explain how brands use emotional branding and advertising strategies as part of
their branding strategy in order to increase their sales and brand awareness. From the research conducted and
collected it was given an understanding of the topic and proved that there is an emotional influence over
consumers through companies’ advertisements and social media. The author has used different sources of
information, such as books, articles, and blogs. The idea behind the diverse literature was to give a different
sides and opinions on the problem and compare.
The focus of the theoretical research was on two main tools used online: advertising and social platforms. It
was also discussed how consumer behaviour is affected from those various feelings delivered by the brand’s
messages, both in their ads and social media posts. The main focus of the research was on Nike and the
author has done a throughout research on their emotional branding strategy, since they are proven to be one
of the best in that.
The primary research, which was in the form of a survey, was conducted in order to support the findings
from the primary research and literature review. This research showed the respondents opinion on how
important it is to them to have an emotional connection with brands. It also had relation to the study case and
gave an understanding how the consumers see the brand and how effective Nike’s branding strategy is in
reality.

7. Bibliography
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nike,_Inc.
https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/superbrands-case-studies-nike/148384
http://panmore.com/nike-inc-marketing-mix-4ps-product-place-promotion-price-analysis
Main article: Nike’s Promotional Mix (Marketing Communications Mix)
Dominici, G. (2009). From marketing mix to e-marketing mix: A literature overview and classification.
International Journal of Business and Management, 4(9), 17-24.
Goi, C. L. (2009). A review of marketing mix: 4Ps or more? International Journal of Marketing Studies, 1(1),
2.
Rahmani, K., Emamisaleh, K., & Yadegari, R. (2015). Quality Function Deployment and New Product
Development with a focus on Marketing Mix 4P model. Asian Journal of Research in Marketing, 4(2), 98-
108.
https://www.marketing91.com/swot-nike/

https://www.cheshnotes.com/nike-swot-analysis/
Kotler & Keller, 2015. Marketing Management. American Marketing Association (AMA)

Hoeffler, S., Keller, K., 2002. Building Brand Equity Through Corporate Societal Marketing. Journal of
Public Policy & Marketing 21(1): 157 Keller, K., 2013. “Strategic Brand Management”, Pearson 4th Edition

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Edelman, D., 2010. Branding in the Digital Age. Harvard Business Review: December 2010

Rowles, D., 2014. Digital Branding: A Complete Step-by-step Guide to Strategy, Tactics and Measurement.
London: Kogan Page

Ho, A., 2017. Explore the Categories on Different Emotional Branding Experience for
Optimising the Brand Design Process. Vancouver: Springer International Publishing

Magids, S., Zorfas, A., Leemon, D., 2015. The New Science of Customer Emotions. Available online at
<https://hbr.org/2015/11/the-new-science-of-customer-emotions)> [November 2015]

https://www.referralcandy.com/blog/nike-marketing-strategy/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just_Do_It

http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=2&hid=9&sid=cf9a02ca-c955-4e50-8049-
48d91db84423%40sessionmgr13&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=sph&AN

http://epublications.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1022&context=comm

https://econsultancy.com/how-nike-uses-facebook-instagram/

https://www.marketing91.com/kellers-brand-equity-model/

https://www.mbaknol.com/marketing-management/customer-based-brand-equity-cbbe-model/

http://brandbattle-adidasvsnike.blogspot.com/2014/12/cbbe-of-nike-and-adidas-part-3.html

https://www.marketing91.com/aaker-brand-equity-model/

8. Appendices
Survey Questions

Q1: What is your gender?

 Female
 Male

Q2: What is your age?

 18 to 24
 25 to 34
 35 to 44
 45 or older

Q3: What influences you the most to try a new product or service?

 Advertisements
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  Recommendations from friends and family
 Seeing famous people use the product or service
 Personal experience
 Expert advice
 Other (please specify)

Q4: What type of advertisements are most influential over your buying behaviour?

 Radio adverts
 TV adverts
 Newspaper and magazine adverts
 Mail and post adverts
 Email adverts
 Online adverts(internet advertising)
 Billboard adverts
 Other (please specify)

Q5: How much influence do you feel advertisements have over your buying behaviour?

 Large influence
 Medium influence
 Small influence
 Not sure

Q6: 'Advertising is beneficial to consumers because it provides important information about

goods and service. ‘To what extent do you agree with this statement?

 I agree
 I disagree
 Not sure

Q7: Do you believe that this brand can affect you emotionally through their social media or advertising?

 Almost every time

 Sometimes
 Not really
 Never

Q8: 'The more times an advertisement is viewed by a consumer, the more likely the consumer is to go and
buy the product.'To what extent do you agree with this statement?

 I agree
 I disagree
 Not sure

Q9: How likely is it that you would recommend this brand to a friend or colleague?

35
Q10: How would you rate the Nike ad compared with others of the same kind you have seen?

 Much better

 Somewhat better

 About the same

 Somewhat worse

 Much worse

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37