Brand Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Brand Analysis - Essay Example Nike was started in the early 1960s when Phillip Knight, the Chief Executive Officer and William Bowerman, partnered to develop a coach’s idea of manufacturing products that would help to improve the consumers’ performance, who were athletes, on the track (Coucha, 2011). Nike ventured into it with the promise to make possible â€Å"authentic, athletic performance† with their shoes (Schmidt & Chris, 2002). That became their brand promise. The brand image that Nike initially launched was purely an American emblem, associated with high performance, aggressive and innovative top male athletes. These athletes were considered achievers, in line with what Nike intended to present to the consumers (Coucha, 2011). In delivering their product related promise, Nike joined the growing aerobics arena which was influencing the design of shoes towards being more fashionable, albeit less durable. Although other manufacturers were using garments to manufacture shoes for the aerob ics market, Nike stuck to leather, which was more long lasting but considered less fashionable (Kunde, 2002). As part of extending their non tangible promise, Nike took to the corporate scene by embracing the global social responsibility. Initially, it was a reaction to public oppositions relating to their labor practices in Asia. To salvage their image, they changed their corporate labor strategy, campaigning to be the industry leader in worker relations. They refurbished their factories and improved the working conditions on their premises in Asia. Compensation packages for labor were raised and new global standards applied. They created a Corporate Responsibility Division to reflect their intention to care for the ‘World family of Nike† (Schmidt & Chris, 2002). A brand’s perception and recognition are considerably influenced by its visual presentation. For effective visual brand identity to be achieved, the use of particular and consistent visual elements is cr itical (Schmidt & Chris, 2002). To create a distinction, a logo, colors, fonts, and graphic elements are used. In terms of visual identity, Nike’s logo of the â€Å"swoosh† is outstanding and easy to remember by consumers. Globally, there is a 97% recognition and awareness for the Nike logo and brand (Coucha, 2011). This is further propelled by associating themselves with athletic celebrities with similar personalities as the Nike brand. Examples include Michael Jordan the basketball hero and Michael Johnson the sprinter. For the purpose of increasing their relevance in the European market, Nike began associating themselves with famous European sports personalities while maintaining their criteria of selecting names that matched the Nike personality of super achievers. Such names included Eric Cantona and Roberto Mandeni. They also sponsored local, European teams like Borussia Dortmund and Paris saint Germain. This had an appeal that made them a household name in Europ e (Holt, 2004). Advertising strategies were customized to reflect the similarities of European countries with the United States as a means of dealing with the diverse culture differences. As compared to Adidas, the German giants, Nike portrays a more self expressive and emotional personality in its brand image. This gives for a challenging, hardworking and winning mentality with a focus on