A SUCCESSFUL WORLD CUP FOR NIKE: LESSONS FOR SUCCEEDING IN A CONGESTED

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKET

Despite the World Cup being an ‘all Adidas’ affair, Nike can also claim victory. In addition to Nike boots scoring the winning goal, its eight video campaigns registered a total 240.6m views (Adver-tising Advantage) with the top two videos pulling in almost five times as many viewers as the lead-ing Adidas video. In the social media arena, Nike excels in the planning and execution of success-ful strategies. Nike is now coming into its own as a brand that not only understands social media but excels at it. The evidence of a recent earning call would suggest that Nike CEO Mark Parker is both a strong customer advocate and a believer in the value of social media.

“Through our social media platforms, we leverage the power and passion of sport to deepen our relationship with our consumers.” A perfect example of this is our Risk Everything campaign, which celebrates the energy and enthusiasm of global football. Two of the campaign’s videos, Winner Stays and The Last Game, have set new records for engagement with over 370 million digital views and growing.

While Nike is famous for the ‘Just Do It’ phrase, it is their ability to ‘understand it’ and ‘plan it’ before doing that sets them apart within social media. They see the value in meaningful content, accept that meaningful content carries a cost and invest in delivering a multi-textured customer experience. While resources play a role, it is a commitment to quality that truly sets Nike apart as a social media player.

Other companies possess the resources of Nike, yet have not generated similar results. In con-trast, some brands may never match resource levels, but by following the core principles of Nike, they still generate a strong ripple in the increasingly congested social media landscape.

#1 Realign Your ResourcesReflecting changing marketing realities and engagement dynamics, Nike has moved resources away from traditional advertising towards digital and social channels. Net spend has increased year on year, with a strong rebalancing of spend across channels as Nike looks to maximise its return on investment.

In 2010 Nike developed Digital Sport. The aim was to use technology to bring Nike closer to its customers through its digital devices. In addition, Nike also made the decision to in-house their so-cial media content. Combining the customer data they collect with the social media platforms they engage with, Nike possess a powerful platform with which to engage their customers and fans.

These changes have seen, in the US, spending on TV and print is down 40% (Intelligent HQ) on a budget that has steadily grown to over US$2.4bn. Essentially, where campaigns such as the ‘Bo Knows’ advertising in the 1980s were premiered on TV, the modern version is more likely to ap-pear on Facebook or YouTube first.

Like Red Bull before, Nike quickly grasped the importance and value of being able to tell their story through their channels using their voice. They also understood earlier than others that being close to your customer requires listening to them, and in some cases, involving them in the process.

They bought into the vision wholeheartedly, supported with the right amount and mix of resources. Recent messages coming out of Oregon would suggest that they are confident in their approach, not only seeing short-term rewards but also understanding the long-run competitive and cost ad-vantages that are available.

What this means for your business: • Social media is not cheap – As the market becomes crowded, obtaining a meaningful share of voice and delivering a high quality proposition will take resources.

• Resources are nothing without objectives and a strategy – Without providing the three key elements of; vision, objective and strategy, it is difficult justifying the resources required to make an impact with social media. Social media success requires a desired objective that is invested in and championed. As such, thinking around social media must move towards seeing it as a key element in remaining relevant to the consumer.

• You are only as good as your people – Even the best strategy will fail without the right people to deliver it. As the social media orthodoxy solidifies, brands will scale-up their internal capabilities, with most of the ‘heavy lifting’ being done in-house with specialist elements still being sought from agencies. Strong talent is the heart of a strong strategy.

#2 Relationships Through EngagementNike understands the power of meaningful customer interaction. These interactions form part of a wider relationship, one where the consumer feels their brand is listening to them. Customers who feel engaged with a brand will feel greater loyalty to the brand. The element that defines the ex-perience is relevance through understanding. Additionally, warmth is a vital part of the experience. Warm messages, particularly around physical activity are great sources of motivation and reward.

A snapshot of their Twitter feed illustrates the approach Nike takes. The main theme running through the page is, ‘conversation’ Nike talk to their customer in a manner that is evidently friendly.

What this means for your business: • Communication must flow both ways – Many brands still use their social media presence to sell their products. In truth, good products sell themselves. What social media does is build aware-ness, belonging and desire. At the heart of achieving this lies the ability to listen to your customers, understand and respond to them.

• Messages must be meaningful – When speaking to your customers, leave them with a mes-sage that is relevant to their situation, expectations and that leaves them with a good memory of the experience. It is worth remembering that each message, Tweet or Vine has a potential audi-ence of millions that will draw conclusions from what they see. When communicating, maintain a sharp eye on the customer and a wider view of the audience as a whole.

#3 Narrative Drives ContentFrom its earliest days, Nike was a brand that told a story, a brand that inspired through tales of success against the odds. That ability to tell a story is a core element of their hiring approach and has helped keep the brand that created so many memorable campaigns relevant even as many of its rivals have struggled. Nike has a strong culture around building a story and it is this ability that they have translated into the social media arena. A look at Nike content from the last 30 years reveals one powerful thread among others; the ability to generate emotion with their stories; something other brands have struggled with. The simplicity of sport also helps to transmit simple messages such as, ‘dedication’ and ‘success against the odds.’

What this means for your business: • Stories win on social media – While many brands go for shock value or virality, the successful brands like Nike keep their stories simple yet powerful. Simplicity of expression is an enabler for powerful messages and ideas to engage the consumer. If content can inspire then you have won half the battle. Know the story you want to tell and the emotions you want to generate. Ideally, it will connect to both your brand and products, that congruence is vital in maintaining consistency.

• Emotion over awe – In an age where attention spans have shrunk we have seen a ‘race to the extreme’ on social media. This is unsustainable without completely turning consumers off over time. Building content on emotional responses is a simple way to engender longevity. The author still looks fondly at the Nike advert from 1995 titled, ‘‘The Revolution Will Not Be Televised’ and how it inspired an interest in basketball that persists to this day. All brands must set themselves the challenge to be memorable and from that, success should follow.

A Successful ApproachWhile Nike has advantages in terms of the market they operate in and the athletes they endorse, they have managed to stay ahead of the competition with excellence in three of the main elements of getting social media right. For any organisation, the planning preparation and execution will give brands the edge, if done correctly.

Well before the final, Nike had won the social media battle through its meticulous approach. Apply-ing the lessons above with true desire and commitment will ensure you have the best chance to win in the social media age.

© SEYMOUR SLOAN 2014