Robert Passikoff, founder of marketing consultancy Brand Keys, said an ad like Nike's will divide people, but the outrage won't last. They're focused on what they stand for, and if that upsets some users, so be it." No matter what you do, you offend some people. "What you stand for is almost as important as what you make," said Allen Adamson, co-founder of marketing firm Metaforce. Nike is one of the world's largest sports apparel companies, with $34.5 billion in revenue last year. This means it could ultimately alienate and lose customers, which is not the purpose of a marketing campaign."īut other experts think the strength of Nike's brand will help it weather the storm and perhaps benefit from it, too. "However, it is also a risky strategy in that it addresses, and appears to take sides on, a highly politicized issue. "Nike's campaign will generate both attention and discussion which is, arguably, one of its central aims," he said. Neil Saunders, managing director of the data and analytics firm GlobalData, called the Kaepernick strategy "commercially imprudent." Its stock closed down more than 3 percent Tuesday. Nike did not return a request for comment about its strategy. But the Kaepernick ad struck a nerve, timed just before the NFL season kicks off on Thursday. and Shaquem Griffin, a linebacker whose left hand was amputated when he was 4. Other athletes in the campaign include tennis star Serena Williams, New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. "Even in the face of potential backlash, they support their athlete partners, and that's an incredibly powerful statement to the athlete community," Gordon said. And they said it could solidify Nike's bond with athletes, especially black ones, an important consideration for a company that relies heavily on sports stars to endorse its products.īrian Gordon, CEO of Engine Shop, a sports and entertainment marketing agency, said the ad is provocative but "authentic to who they are and the communities they represent and speak to," including the athletes. Most big corporations steer clear of politics, and marketing experts disagreed Tuesday over whether the Kaepernick campaign is good business.īut some noted approvingly that it made a big splash and set Nike apart. Online, people threatened boycotts and posted videos and photos of shoes set on fire, Nike gear thrown in the trash, and swoosh logos cut out of products. The ad, part of Nike's 30th anniversary "Just Do it" campaign, has outraged many. The ad copy reads: "Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything." Nike has touched off a furor by wading into football's national anthem debate with an ad featuring Colin Kaepernick, the former 49ers quarterback who was the first athlete to kneel during "The Star-Spangled Banner" to protest police brutality against blacks and hasn't played a game since 2016.
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