![]() Take a page from Nike's playbook next time you contemplate taking on a controversial topic to gain exposure. Success comes down to how well you can predict the big picture and gauge the ripple effects. There are endless ways to craft your messages. Related: A Case Study in Why Core Values Are Crucially Important The big picture Kaepernick alleges that the League's team owners have colluded to keep him off the field, and his legal case against the NFL is pending. Even if it means sacrificing everything." It's a powerful symbol of living one's values, given that Kaepernick opted out of the final year of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers, becoming a free agent in March 2017 - before the team could release him. These principles center on mindsets such as never giving up, rising to the challenge, sacrificing for the greater good and serving a purpose.Ī line from the commercial Kaepernick narrates became the headline on still-frame ads featuring his face: "Believe in something. From a branding perspective, the Kaepernick ad was a golden opportunity for Nike to cement its values. The rule likely was a reaction to the NFL's drop in ratings and public pressure. Two months later, the NFL enacted a new policy that all players on the field must stand for the national anthem or be subjected to penalty fines. In fact, the two giants inked a new, eight-year partnership extension in March 2018. The outfitter is one of the NFL's biggest sponsors and produces all the players' jerseys. Nike's gamble was much bigger than its sizable following of individual customers. Related: 10 Tactics for Increasing Your Customer Value and Loyalty 4. Buying Nike products became its own statement of support for the causes Kaepernick represents. But the ad ultimately strengthened Nike's dedicated customer base. Outraged customers posted videos of themselves burning Nike products and cutting or ripping the company's logo from their gear. Nike's leaders anticipated the campaign's ripple effect likely would include a serious boycott from the opposition, but they took a calculated risk. A good share of his supporters are young, liberal-minded individuals - many of them people of color. Many of his opponents are primarily older, white conservatives. Kaepernick's protest shined a spotlight on the contrasts found within America's population itself. Related: 'Fit Mom' on Strategizing After Online Backlash 3. Nike's brand was front and center through it all as revenue soared. Supporters voiced their affirmations, and naysayers voiced their strong disapproval. An extreme closeup of Kaepernick's face featured prominently in the campaign, and news outlets plastered his image with nearly every headline about Nike's 30th anniversary marketing effort. Nike's Kaepernick ad reignited the media circus that had surrounded much of the 2016-2017 NFL season. The more the two sides debate, the more your company's name comes up in public discourse. ![]() You must be aware that when you approach a controversial topic, you'll have a lot of supporters and a lot of detractors. The various platforms give everyone with a device and an internet connection the opportunity to provide his or her two cents on any given issue. The same snowball effect holds true in social media marketing. Related: 7 Things Brands Can Learn From Trump's Social Media Strategy His brash, unfiltered attitude and blunt words created all sorts of public backlash. The big news networks covered it all, nearly every hour - and even before he'd secured the Republican party's nomination. On the campaign trail, Donald Trump generated an enormous amount of free press. The 2016 presidential election stands as perhaps the greatest proof of the no-such-thing-as-bad-publicity model. With the right premeditation, brands can wield backlash as a powerful tool to gain exposure and support. Even Pepsi's colossal failure generated enough buzz to help drive a boost in profits. In the age of social media, backlash isn't always a terrible thing. Kaepernick also narrates the commercial, literally giving him a voice amplified by Nike's massive marketing reach. As a person of color with a foot in both worlds, he has a believable personal investment in the causes the two ads championed. Born to a single mother who made an adoption plan, he was raised from infancy by white parents. Kaepernick, on the other hand, is biracial. Many viewers were turned off by the incongruency of Jenner as a stakeholder in the movements against police brutality and racial injustice. Pepsi chose pop-culture figure Jenner, a white woman born into family wealth and celebrity.
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