Are Nike Advertisements Forcing Me to Work Out?

This week in class we discussed four different main ideas to marketing, and what major techniques companies use to make their brand stick out from the rest. The technique I will be focusing on is Guerrilla Advertising. Guerilla Advertising is when a company uses unconventional or surprising advertising methods to intrigue a costumer to purchase a product.

Nike took this advertising idea to their advantage to promote their brand. Guerrilla Marketing is to surprise those who encounter the ad but it is also to incorporate the brands values into the ad. One of Nike’s biggest slogans is “Just Do It” this slogan and much of their brand is centered around pushing your body to its limit. This is why their ads perfectly standout from other brands yet still fit in with their company name they have made for themselves.

Nike’s ads, as shown, are ways to make you be more active and to try and make you push your body to the limit. Not only does this ad represent Nike’s major branding point, it also gives the soon to be costumer an experience. When they see the Nike tape blocking off the escalator they force themselves to use the stairs, most likely making them feel better about themselves for making a healthier more challenging decision. The same idea glows for the bench without a seat, it’s purpose is to make you not take a break and either stand, walk, or even run. Both of these ads attempt and almost force the pedestrian to make a more athletic decision when traveling in their day to day life.

But how is this form of marketing more effective for Nike then putting a poster with a shoe on it. This form of marketing implants an emotion and image related to Nike in the consumer’s brain. Now when the consumer thinks about athletics or needs new athletic gear it is likely that their mind will automatically go to Nike now. This is because Nike forced the consumer to experience in some sort of athletic experience so they automatically associate Nike with being athletic and pushing limits. Just like they hoped.

This form of advertising is used to give the consumer such a different and unique experience connected to a brand that when ever they think about a certain topic or object their mind will automatically associate it with the brand ad they had an interaction with.