NIKE- A Case Study into Controversial Marketing

'Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything. #JustDoIt'

Today, Nike is worth $34.8 Billion and stands at the top of the global shoe market.

Since being founded in 1964, Nike has repeatedly landed neck-deep in trouble for its bold and controversial marketing. Yet, Nike always manages to survive and stand at the top.

In this case study, we will talk about

• Nike's branding, in brief
• A series of bold statements & controversial campaigns
• Conclusion and Takeaways

Nike- Branding

Both the founders of Nike, Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman had a background in sports. While Phil Knight's dream was to one day become a great athlete, Bill Bowerman was his former coach.

Even though Phil Knight never accomplished that dream, he carried on this passion by building the world's #1 sportswear brand.

Today, anyone can recognize the swoosh (Nike logo).

According to Mark Palmer, Nike's CEO, the reason they are so successful with each market is their focus on the athletes' needs in each sport and what these athletes are trying to accomplish.

Hence, one of the factors behind Nike's success is its deep branding association with sports.

One way that Nike has used to achieve this feat is classic conditioning by sponsoring players like Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Neymar, Lebron James, Lance Armstrong, and many more, to promote its products.

Controversial Campaigns & Bold Statements

Nike is known for being bold and daring.

Ignoring the chronology, let's first pull out the biggest gun in this arsenal.

1. The 'Dream Crazy' Campaign

If you have been in the marketing industry for more than 2 years or if you are just a Nike fan or you just like staying up to date with the business or sports world, then you must already know about the controversial campaign, 'Dream Crazy' (September 2018).

In 2016, Colin Kaepernick, an American football player, didn't stand up during the American national anthem playing before a game and instead decided to take a knee, symbolic of his protest against racism and police brutality in the country. (Sounds familiar? #BlackLivesMatter?)

This action led to outrage all over the country, arguably costing Kaepernick his NFL career.

Then, in 2018, for the 30th Anniversary of 'Just Do It', Nike launched the campaign, 'Dream Crazy' with Kaepernick as the face and voice of a two minutes long video campaign.

This led the racists and patriots of the country to boycott Nike.

People all over the country burned their own Nike shoes, posted videos cutting off the Nike logo of their socks, and obviously, posted a lot of hate tweets.

Eventually, this campaign gained international attention. Everyone was asking, 'Is Nike crazy?'

Nike was rapidly losing sales, while its share value dropped continuously.

However, then something crazy happened.

Those who resonated with the anti-racism beliefs came on Nike's side.

The black community and people of color started posting wearing Nike products to show their support.

Celebrities like Jim Carrey started supporting Nike on national TV.

“It doesn’t matter how many people hate your brand as long as enough people love it, And as long as you have that attitude, you can’t be afraid of offending people. You can’t try and go down the middle of the road. You have to take a stand on something, which is ultimately I think why the Kaepernick ad worked." - Phil Knight

Nike soon broke all records gaining $6 Billion in brand value, $163 Million in media earned, and a whopping 31% bump in sales.

The campaign also earned Nike its first Emmy award since 2002, for the Outstanding Commercial 2019.

2. 'Don't Do It'

Continuing the anti-racism statement, we can't ignore the recent 'Don't Do It' campaign (May, 2020) in response to the death of George Floyd because of racism and police brutality.

While there are still many who condemn Nike taking such bold stands on sensitive issues, this time the world greeted the campaign with admiration and praise.

The campaign went even more viral when the video got retweeted by Nike's big-time rival, Adidas.

3. Tiger Woods Sex Scandal & Lance Armstrong Doping

In 2009, when it was revealed that Tiger Woods had been cheating on his wife multiple women, all his fans had been disappointed.

While everyone expected Nike to end its contract with him to protect the brand, Nike announced that it had decided to continue sponsoring Woods.

However, in 2012, when Lance Armstrong confessed to doping, Nike dropped him and ended the contract, stating, 'Nike does not condone the use of illegal performance-enhancing drugs in any manner.'

Hence, leading to another controversy, why drop Lance Armstrong but not Tiger Woods?

The simple explanation was: While what Tiger Woods did was immoral, it had nothing to do with his sports career and performance on the golf course. On the other hand, Lance Armstrong cheated in his races and misled Nike for 10 years.

Hence, once again, Nike (implicitly) made a strong statement. Nike simply lived up to its own beliefs without succumbing to popular opinions.

4. A few more examples...

Conclusion & Takeaways

So what can we learn from Nike when it comes to branding?

1. Clarity on Brand Identity and Values: Nike has always been very clear about what it stands for. Be it 1988 or 2020, Nike always had the same ideals and continues to stand by them. "A brand is something that has a clear-cut identity among consumers, which a company creates by sending out a clear, consistent message over a period of years until it achieves a critical mass of marketing." - Phil Knight
2. Targeted Campaigns: In the Dream Crazy campaign, it was a risk but Nike knew that its main target (sports fans and non-white ethnicities) around the world would have outweighed the boycott by the American racists. Even in other campaigns, Nike targeted specific groups through gender equality, ageism, homosexuality, etc.
3. Ride The Wave: Nike doesn't miss an opportunity to stand out in chaos. And chaos is usually very loud. These campaigns earned Nike a lot of free global media coverage.
4. Actions > Content: Understand that taking a stand in an ad is not a substitute for actually taking a stand. Nike always stood by its endorsements and took action accordingly.
5. Don't Confuse Your Audience: It would be a huge mistake if you think you can stay neutral on social issues as your long term stand. Your audience will want to know what you believe. If they don't understand you, your competitors will sweep them away.
6. Branding Saturation: Realize that the branding field is leveling. Saturation is underway as more and more businesses are realizing the value of branding and content marketing. Hence, building a clear image of your brand from the start is crucial. The figure-out-as-you go approach won't work anymore.

“It doesn’t matter how many people you offend, as long as you’re getting your message to your consumers. I say to those people who do not want to offend anybody: You are going to have a very, very difficult time having meaningful advertising.” -Phil Knight (Co-Founder, Nike)

It is also important to notice that all these campaigns and statements, though bold, still resonate with the Nike brand personality of an unstoppable, rigid sportsperson.

Hence, it is not necessary that controversial marketing is a good choice for your brand as well. If it isn't, you can still use these takeaways and stand by your brand values without being too bold and daring.

So which one was your favorite campaign?

Did you drive any value from this case study? Or do you have anything to add?

Please let me know in the comments.