Attention all ye who are outraged over the Colin Kaepernick ad. Nike, Inc. knows what they’re doing. Their marketing team understands the importance of target audiences. I don’t need to tell you what Nike’s thinking. A better solution: let a former corporate strategist give her take on its goal. The following tweet is from Fonda Lee:
I worked in corporate strategy at Nike for years. Nike’s most loyal and lucrative core consumer? Black youth. Not the Trump supporter cutting his socks with pruning shears. #NikeBoycott? The company is laughing its way to the bank.
— Fonda Lee (@FondaJLee) September 4, 2018
Would anyone disagree with the assessment of the core consumer? In 2012, The Atlantic wrote a piece concerning the cultural divide on footwear. This article cited the well-known history of black community members murdering one another for Air Jordans. Well-known history—not a one-time thing. Black youths consider Nike footwear, clothing, and memorabilia as an important symbol of their lives. Nike footwear is an embodiment of their sports (Michael Jordan) and musical heroes (Run-DMC).
Caucasians aren’t nearly as invested into this. Typical whites such as myself purchase the cheapest shoes we can find at Walmart or Amazon. Why spend money on a product that’ll need repurchasing within a few months due to depreciation or changing trends? If I’m spending more than $50 on shoes, then I’m never wearing them. They’re collector items.
Remember those $495 Lonzo Ball ZO2 shoes? My black friends on social media were having serious discussions over this matter. Me as a white dude? If I spend $495 on shoes—hell, if I get a $495 pair of shoes for free—then I’m building a maximum security prison for storage. This storage facility would require a Cicada 3301 lock combination. Anyone intelligent enough to get that far would then have to defeat ZoZo the Ouija Board Demon in a Hell in a Cell match. You survive all that then they’re yours. Congratulations.
Whites aren’t the primary reason for Nike and the entire footwear industry getting to where it is today. You believe Nike cares if senior citizens remove swooshes? Marketers consider that free publicity. Want to change brand loyalty? Understand that most of Nike’s competitors have spokespeople who support Kaepernick. Switching brands won’t do much unless you research them.
That’s not to say whites are meaningless. White teenage athletes are the cherry on top of the sundae. Does Nike risk the loyalty of this important secondary market? Check out this tidbit from The Washington Post , via Business Insider:
For example, a poll conducted for The Washington Post in May found that 63% of respondents over age 50 thought it was “never” appropriate to protest by kneeling during the national anthem; only 38% of respondents under 30 said the same.
Youths are more open—or at least not as offended—to these protests. Gen Y and Gen Z are starstruck. Just look at whom young individuals are campaigning for in the 2020 Presidential Election. Oprah Winfrey. “The Rock” Dwayne Johnson. Tina Fey. Gregg Popovich. One significant reason that Donald Trump is our President is because people loved him on The Apprentice.
American youth crave star power. Human worth has become based on bank accounts, social media followings, and accolades such as winning championships in sporting events. I’ve always made the joke that, by the time Gen Y passes into the afterlife, that Hollywood, California will have evolved into the new Washington, D.C.
Stars are rich. Stars are famous. Their fame and fortune give their viewpoints more credibility. While parents are trying to provide their children every PAW Patrol toy, their children watch and learn as much as possible about their favorite stars. Their parents are rarely, if ever, available. Kids are more familiar with Ariana Grande than their families.
It’s not too hard to see why our youth idolize—literally idolize—Hollywood actors, athletes, and billionaires. They are the gods of our society. The only question is whether it’s gotten to the point where I should capitalize that “g.”
And you know who’s among the stars? Kaepernick! He’s an ultimate symbol for black communities. He was blackballed from a league that doesn’t consider it important enough to prohibit what Kaepernick did to get blackballed.
Nike’s target audience will respond positively to the Colin Kaepernick ad. Kaepernick is a beloved figure for them. Country duo Big & Rich member John Rich and elderly individuals won’t respond positively. That’s fine. Honestly, I don’t blame you. I’m more about tolerating than supporting. Just realize that Nike doesn’t care about you. They don’t care about me. We’re pretty far down the list of secondary markets.
What Nike does cares about is what any successful company cares about: money. Listening to the core audience will lose them some secondary allegiance. It’ll establish themselves even further with their primary audience.
The other thing is that, if you eliminate political bickering, that the Colin Kaepernick ad is pretty damn good. There’s a great message in it. Why not focus on that?
Now let’s all stop feuding. May we sing together in perfect harmony?
ALSO CHECK
Analyzing Sam Darnold’s First NFL Pass and Why I Liked It
Le’Veon Bell Holdout: No Pay, No Play until Week 11 is the Right Attitude
Shohei Ohtani Playing with UCL Injury on 68-72 Team? Dumb as Hell
President Trump, Fans (and I) Should Express Acceptance Toward NFL Kneeling Protests
Nick Saban Owes Nobody a Public Apology for Maria Taylor Interview
Joshua Huffman was born and collegiately edumacated in Middle Tennessee. That said, Huffman spent 13-plus years with the type of Northern Wisconsinites and Yoopers who turn Nashville bars into alcohol wastelands whenever NFC North teams travel to play the Tennessee Titans. This makes him the NoBro of SoBros. He has published content for Yahoo! Sports (via Contributor Network) and Titan Sized, among other venues. At SoBros, he’ll provide Daily Fantasy Sports suggestions and broad sports coverage. Follow him on Twitter.
