1998:
“Nike is about to become a significant network television advertiser. We will spend nearly three times what we spent on the ‘Revolution’ campaign in the fall of 1988. (Despite the high visibility of ‘Revolution,’ Nike had spent less than $5 million on TV that year.) This is a turning point for a company that not long ago spoke to its customers at track meets from the tailgate of a station wagon. This just cannot be a narrow look back at where we have been. We should be proud of our heritage, but we must also realize that the appeal of ‘Hayward Field’ (an Ad set at the University of Oregon’s Track & Field Stadium) is narrow and potentially alienating to those who are not great athletes. We need to grow this brand beyond its purest core…we have to stop talking just to ourselves. It’s time to widen the access point. We need to capture a more complete spectrum of the rewards of sports and fitness. We achieved this with ‘Revolution.’ Now we need to take the next step.”
Much has been written around the story behind creating the line 'Just Do It.' So it's nice to read about the business problem the brand was facing from the Director of Marketing Insights and Planning at the time.
Which led to work, like this, that carried the line we all know.
And there's an insightful thought around the three circles of influence that help create a good brand purpose;
- the social tension,
- the core brand truth,
- an unmet consumer need.