The 4E's of Nike Marketing

The 4E's of Nike Marketing

Nike is arguably the most well-known sports brand in the world today and has obviously set an example for up and coming sports industries to follow their strategies. Becoming one of the biggest brands in the sports industry didn't just happen coincidentally. What comes to mind when you hear the word, Nike? The three things that instantly come to mind for me is the swoosh, just do it, and pretty much any famous athlete. The company has established a brand name for themselves and have dragged the most popular athletes along with them. Marketing is the reason for their large amounts of success in the industry, but how did they "Just do it?" 

Exciting Customers

Traveling along with the new generation of social media marketing, Nike has adapted tremendously to this transition. Notably, the company uses Facebook and Instagram most often to display their company. On Facebook, they have separate pages for different product categories, such as football, golf, and running. In the article How Nike uses Facebook and Instagram by Sean Cole, he writes, "According to Social Blade, Nike has the fourth-largest following of any brand on Instagram, and with 82.6 million followers on its main profile at the time of writing, Instagram is clearly where the majority of Nike social fans flock to." This shows how Nike uses Instagram as a platform to excite customers about their brand. Specifically, in 2018, when Nike posted a controversial post with Colin Kaepernick. It shocked the internet, and according to Cole, they also enjoyed a 31% rise in sales after this post.

Educating Customers 

To be successful, customers need to know the purpose of your company and have a clear call to action to draw customers to your products. Obviously, Nike has done this because customers continually come back to the website every day and engage. In a Forbes article written by Greg Petro, Nike Just Does it- Keeping An Eye on the Customer, he states ""Everything we do starts with the consumer," Nike CEO Mark Parker told investors during an earnings call in 2015. "It's our obsession with serving the consumer that sharpens our focus and drives our growth."" This shows what they focus on, and what their social media/website consists of. 

Experience the Product

Although most athletes in this society have experienced Nike at some point in their life, it is still necessary for them to show what they are about on different platforms. A big platform where videos can be shown to give the customer information about firms' goods is Youtube. Whether they are reviews on new Nike products, commercials showing off a new product being put into the market, or just a video of the impact Nike has had on some people's lives. Videos such as the "Dream Crazier" campaign produced by Nike, or multiple other influencing videos produced by them can be shown on Youtube to help market their brand and culture. The dream crazier video celebrates women in sports and inspires athletes to chase after their dreams. 

Engage the Customer

The first three E's set the stage for the last E, which is to engage with the customer. With this, comes a potential for relationship and loyalty for a customer. I strongly believe the reason there is so much loyalty from Nike customers is that they don't just sell sports gear. The Nike brand sells a lifestyle, a mindset, and a belief. Just do it, the well-known slogan inspires customers to compete not with others but with themselves. Inspiring a whole sports consumer base is not easy, but they have done an excellent job doing so.