Nike searching for advertising glory

The New York Times analyzed Nike’s recent fall from the top of the advertising file in an interesting story Sunday. After the misstep congratulating Tiger Woods on regaining golf’s top spot, Nike is searching for share of buzz.

Here’s the story:

It was once common for consumers to express excitement about the latest marketing efforts for the athletic footwear and apparel sold by Nike. The company filled an advertising hall of fame with energetic, confident, often cheeky commercials that became so popular you only had to refer to them by repeating the slogans, which became cultural catchphrases: “Gotta be the shoes,” “Chicks dig the long ball,” “You don’t win silver, you lose gold,” “There is no finish line” and “I am not a role model.”

But recently, it seems, Nike has had a harder time standing out amid the clutter, bringing out fewer ads that are widely deemed hot, or cool.

Some point to the fact that Nike is an older brand as part of its problem marketing to youth.

Nike is now a behemoth with $24 billion in annual sales rather than an upstart that famously used unconventional marketing tactics to gain attention and favor. Nike spent more than $3.2 billion to run ads in major media from 1995 through 2012, according to the Kantar Media unit of WPP, including $115.7 million last year, an increase of 20.2 percent from $96.3 million in 2011.

“The maturity of the brand creates an inherent challenge because you’re no longer the new kid on the block,” said Mr. Swangard, and as a result Nike executives “run the risk of being the victim of their own success.”

Allen Adamson, managing director of the New York office of Landor Associates, a brand and corporate identity consultancy, said: “The bigger the brand, the harder it is to stay trendy and current. It’s hard to be cutting edge when you’re established.”

Also, being a leader, means that others will follow and that can dull the affect of your marketing.

Another problem facing Nike is that the way the brand speaks in ads is no longer that novel. Many marketers now emulate the company’s irreverent, assertive tone and tack.

“Nike really revolutionized the sports advertising industry, and sports, especially, is a copycat industry,” said Steve Smith, a sports lawyer who is a partner at the Bryan Cave law firm. “You see somebody doing something that works, you’ll do it, too.”

“It’s a tribute to Nike,” he added, “but I’m sure it puts pressure on Nike and its advertising agencies.”

Some brands that emulate Nike, like Adidas, Reebok and Under Armour, are also its competitors. Others, like ESPN, Old Spice and Red Bull, are in different fields.

Nike does seem to be using social media and other alternative marketing to reach different audiences.

And like all marketers, Nike is coming to terms with the biggest shift in the landscape: the fragmentation of audiences, and media, makes it difficult to get the proverbial “everyone” discussing the same ads at the same time as was the case decades ago.

“Fifteen years ago, people could have been reached primarily with TV, print, out of home and radio,” Mr. Grasso said, which represent “a fraction” of the media they consume now.

Here, Nike has excelled, uploading to YouTube big commercials for big events like the Olympics and the World Cup and maintaining a major presence in other social media like Twitter, where Nike has more than a million followers, and Facebook, where more than 12.6 million people “like” the brand.

In fact, the ad last month that congratulated Mr. Woods appeared as posts on Facebook and Twitter rather than television or print ads.

I found this story interesting and a good example of company coverage. It’s a great analysis of an older firm that’s struggling to reinvent itself in a different age. While Nike is still thought of as a great marketer, it’s an interesting take on the challenges that it will face going forward.