Introduction
In the recent past, digital marketing has grown in popularity and is now employed by several businesses worldwide. Because today’s technology and business ecosystem are undergoing massive transformations, businesses must adapt fast and effectively. Gorbatov, Khapova, and Lysova (2018) define branding as the process of drafting a unique product that sets aside one’s creation from the others. Digital branding on the other hand refers to the employment of technology in reaching out to customers and exchanging feedback about the product with the customers (Moro, 2019).
Nike is an international company that has widely adopted digital branding and it communicates to its customers by use of media advertisements. This paper aims at analyzing Nike’s “Dream Crazier” advertisement, which was developed in 2019, in terms of customer values addressed and its effectiveness. Businesses ought to appeal to consumer values while advertising to influence customer buying behaviors to make a preference for their products.
The Implications of Consumer Behaviour Trends on The Marketing Strategy Adopted by Nike
Advertising tactics are based on target consumer habits that are studied by the companies. Companies may better understand what their customers consider, feel, rationalize, and pick amongst various brands and goods by knowing their psychology. This enables the firms to choose a branding strategy that is appropriate for the target audience. In the light of Nike’s marketing strategy, the company resorted to conducting an internet search to determine their consumer preferences. Additionally, the production of Nike’s products was based on-demand assessments. Due to the rising movement of women empowerment, Nike decided to integrate the message in their “Dream Crazier” advert to appeal to the psychological needs of the consumers. Integration of such consumer behaviors is what led Nike to develop the advertisement that resulted in large volumes of sales.
Consumer Values Addressed by the Advertisement
A successful advertisement should consider the values to be addressed by the message being generated by the advert. Kautish & Sharma (2018) argue that it is difficult to define what buyers genuinely value, as it is psychologically tricky. However, universal value key components do exist, allowing organizations to enhance their efficiency in established markets or penetrate new ones (Kautish & Sharma, 2018). The perfect balance of consumer values will result in increased customers loyalty, higher customer readiness to try a new product, and long-term profitability (Hansen, Sørensen & Eriksen, 2018).
Customers measure the perceived value of a commodity against the listed price when evaluating it. Marketing companies have traditionally spent a lot of effort regulating the pricing side of the equation because boosting prices can raise revenues instantly. This is attributed to the fact that pricing by just controlling a narrow set of statistics is the easiest way. Conversely, pricing statistics and methods have advanced significantly (Kautish & Sharma, 2018). In considering what values are addressed by an advertisement, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory plays an important role. This is because, Maslow’s theory is extended by the principles of the value model (Hansen, Sørensen & Eriksen, 2018).
Fahy & Jobber (2019) acknowledged that activities stem from an underlying drive to meet needs ranging from some of the most fundamental needs to the most complicated needs like love, respect, and recognition. Maslow’s hierarchy is well-known among today’s businesses (Cui et al., 2021). In essence, by paying careful attention to consumers and defining their behaviors concerning products and services, the aspects of the value model broaden Maslow’s findings. Nike’s “Dream Crazier” advert addressed the following consumer values.
Functional values
These consumer values are concerned with a product’s or service’s capacity to achieve its useful purpose. Performance, for instance, is one of the dimensions of evaluating functional values. In this case, Nike’s products possess attributes that are measurable in dimensions such as durability, or dependability. An additional aspect of functional value is to evaluate whether or not the product possesses the right features or qualities. Nike’s shoes and sportswear are known for having the right features and they are durable, according to (Yao & Chen, 2019). Notably, the beauty of a product is also another important feature that Nike employs in the creation of adverts and products.
The advertisement was neatly presented with connected images that communicated clarity and quality. Conversely, an aspect of creativity adds to the list of appealing features that can influence a consumer’s choice (Grainger, 2021). With the Just Do It slogan, and the “Dream Crazier” advert message, innovation was seen at its best. It made consumers reflect on what they value, and addressed their innate fears that they could not do it because they were either inferior or they did not feel equal to the task. Another component of functional value could be linked to a company’s final result. Nike possesses a powerful reputation for high-quality products (Yao & Chen, 2019). This shows that Nike’s advert addressed the consumer’s functional values at length.
Social Values addressed by Nike’s Advertisement
Social values involve the use of pictures or symbolism to establish a sense of relationship with groups of individuals. Eyada (2020) argues that although social values may appear to be a very abstract notion, it is employed in a variety of ways by numerous firms. Additionally, a firm may want to be associated with a specific cause. Nike for instance, puts a focus on women athletes as a significant target group, with women’s sneakers and sportswear surging in sales volume.
In the “Dream Crazier advert,” Nike used the likes of Serena Williams to address consumers who valued women’s empowerment. Notably, 86 percent of women resort to social media seeking recommendations and views on what to buy, and they are a great resource in enabling Nike to develop its digital presence (Rasmussen et al., 2021). These women keep going back to Nike’s website because it addresses their social values.
Psychological Value of the “Dream Crazier” Advert
The potential to elicit an emotional feeling is based on psychological value. This can refer to a variety of emotional reactions triggered by things like music or lighting. Nike’s advert strives to evoke a specific psychological response of their clients. Its marketing objectives were to improve sales and brand recognition, as well as to set a good example by leveraging social consciousness as a strategy (Yao & Chen, 2019). The advert also intrigued the target audience by use of top-notch female athletes like Serena Williams, who many athletes may look up to as role models (Teng, 2020). The most successful brands employ emotional appeals in their advertisements as seen in the case of Nike’s Dream crazier advert. This aims at creating lasting moments in the minds of consumers and giving them products that they can relate to.
Marketing Activities of the Nike’s “Dream Crazier” Advertisement
This advertisement by Nike strived to prove that women too can be good athletes. In February 2019, Nike unveiled its second commemorative advertising, “Dream Crazier” (Greska, 2019). Nike, in an advert that is presented by Serena Williams, aspires to shine a spotlight on women athletes who have already crossed sports boundaries and united individuals through athletic talent. It also aimed at motivating generations of athletes to pursue their goals (Greska, 2019).
In the advert, a wide group of professional and novice women athletes appears in the video and they transcend both personal and athletic challenges. The airing of Nike’s advert became the pioneer of celebrations for women in sports (Ningsih, 2021). The advertisement was not only important in boosting sales but also empowering women in sorts into believing that they can achieve success.
Nike’s advert helped to change the light in which women in athletics were viewed. Before the advert, women were seen as getting a distinct role in athletics starting in the early nineteenth century (Ningsih, 2021). A common assumption that women’s bodies were fundamentally inferior and unequal to men’s characterized a female’s function in athletics. This historical premise remains to be ingrained in how female athletes are portrayed, particularly in the terminology used by the media. Additionally, in the past, female athletes were “trivialized” by the advertisements when they were portrayed as unfit for athletics (in the sense that they may be feeble, inadequate, or unable in some way) (Greska, 2019).
This is because sports media generated a patriarchal distinction in the manner it labeled gender in broadcasting daily. Male athletes were more generally deemed as strong and resilient, and their physiological achievements were hailed, whereas female athletes’ achievements were lauded less often (Ningsih, 2021). The advert helped in attaining gender equality in the sports advertising arena.
Physical talent and strength were seldom awarded to women athletes. Instead, women were either “sexually objectified or became the target of hilarious sexual objectification” in media coverage and advertisements, rather than being hailed for their athletic abilities (Greska, 2019). Female athletes were infrequently depicted performing sports in television commercials. They were portrayed as being weak, rather than promoting them as role models for strength (Ningsih, 2021).
Nike’s advertisement “Dream Crazier” shattered the stereotype of typical female athletes through advertising, and rather than portraying the athletes as sexually objectified or physically weak, the female athletes were depicted in a positive light.
Effectiveness
Nike’s campaign led to in numerous gains that surpassed monetary value. “Dream Crazier” advert resulted in a 31 percent rise in sales, a four percent gain in Nike sales between September 2nd and 4th, and a 33 percent growth in Nike sales from September 2nd to 4th (Teng, 2020). Teng (2020) also highlights that the more an advert targets a consumer’s emotions, the stronger the bond established between the product and the consumer. In Nike’s case, more women were seen to make purchases after the advert, proving that the “Dream Crazier” advertisement fostered a bond between the female clients and Nike’s products.
In addition, the advert sensitized women to try out different tasks that they may believe, or someone may make them feel like they are incapable of performing. It created a movement that was based on women’s empowerment. As a result, more women went on the internet for searches concerning Nike;’s women’s sportswear, and this increased the sales volumes according to (Teng, 2020). This type of emotional sensitization is immeasurable but it is a great achievement of the advertisement.
The mode of delivery of the media was through social media platforms. The advert was placed on Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook to increase reach and facilitate collaboration with the TV ads (Murphy, 2021). Nike’s “Dream Crazier” advertisement was successful in raising brand recognition, as well as the main performance measures of democracy of speech and perceptions, which were used to evaluate the operation (Murphy, 2021).
With 42.69 percent of online discussions on the day of its release, Nike was able to achieve its goal of increasing its engagement rate on women’s empowerment (Teng, 2020). After its premiere, the advert had 31.6 million views and 665,000 Tweets, putting it at the peak of Instagram’s most popular commercials with 19 million views (Ningsih, 2021). Additionally, the marketers and influencers who were drawn to the “crazier” statement had unique platforms (Murphy, 2021). Every one of these platforms, which includes Serena William’s social media accounts, received over 1 million views and a total of over 81 million views (Murphy, 2021). The prevailing perception of the brand mentions was likewise positive, according to (Teng, 2020). This proves that the effectiveness of Nike’s “Dream Crazier” advert was immensely successful.
Conclusion
Companies like Nike have adopted digital marketing as a way to effectively reach their consumers. In creating the adverts, such prominent brands aim to address specific consumer values. This makes the advertisements more personal and consumers can identify themselves with the brands. By Nike targeting the functional, social, and psychological values of customers, they were able to achieve immense success and make long-lasting impacts on their consumers.
It showed that Nike is more than a brand after profits; it is also an interpersonal brand that appeals to the emotions of its consumers. This is an effective strategy since it is evident that although consumers believe that they make decisions solely based on logic, emotions play a big role in deciding what to choose from the variety of products. Emotions are argued to be inevitable in any decision-making process of human beings. This explains why consumers may choose to pay more to get a product from a particular brand, regardless of the numerous cheaper options available in the market.
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