Integrated Marketing

Communication Plan
of
Nike Inc.
By:
Kavan Mankodi (J024)
Rishi Rungta (J034)
Ayush Shah (J035)
Manav Sheth (J038)
Abishek Kumar (J043)

INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.

Contents
1. INDUSTRY ANALYSIS................................................................................3
1.1 MARKET OVERVIEW............................................................................3
1.2 MARKET SIZE......................................................................................3
1.3 CURRENT TRENDS AFFECTING PROMOTION PROGRAM......................3
1.4 MACROENVIRONMENT FACTORS & ISSUES.........................................4
2. COMPANY OVERVIEW...............................................................................7
2.1 ABOUT NIKE........................................................................................7

INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.

1. INDUSTRY ANALYSIS
1.1 MARKET OVERVIEW
Over the past five years the Athlete and sporting goods manufacturing
industry has shown slow growth according to the modest growth in the
sports participation rate. The demand for sporting goods is increasing over
the period.
In the next five years ie. By the year 2020, it is expected that consumers
will become more health conscious, which will increase the demand for
Athlete and Sporting goods. This industry is highly fragmented and
characterized by the high level of competition.
Nike incorporation is the worlds leading sports footwear and Apparel
Company. The Nike brand is mostly targeted towards the athletes, selling
related products such as shoes, sporting equipments and clothes.
While the top players in this industry are expected to comprise less than
20.0% of total industry revenue in 2015; one of the top player is Nike
which uses strong brand awareness among consumers to gain market
share. Also few sporting goods manufacturers have vertically integrated
operations, which includes the marketing, manufacturing, designing and
retailing processes in their operations. Nike is using the vertical
operations to examine the consumer trends and to implement
new technologies.

1.2 MARKET SIZE

In todays world, market of sport goods is increasing and this market is
highly growing in U.S. as compared to other countries and it has been
projected more than 63 billion in U.S in 2014. Consumers purchase
different products such as athletic footwear, licensed sports merchandise,
athletic apparel, exercise equipment but they are not included in
recreational transportation. Many of the products such as sporting goods
are sold through online channels over the internet and have highest
growth in market share of distribution channels. Despite of having online
channels people more over prefer to shop in stores for sport goods.
Worldwide, Nike and Adidas have greatest revenue and are market leaders
in sporting goods industry and manufacturing with revenues 27.8bn and
20bn U.S dollars respectively.

1.3 CURRENT TRENDS AFFECTING PROMOTION PROGRAM

INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.

1.4 MACROENVIRONMENT FACTORS & ISSUES

In this section of the report, we will take Nike which is considered one of
the biggest sporting goods and equipment companies as a representative
to the industry, and will analyze the PESTEL factors for the company
products.
1. P is for Political
Political factors are especially important to the backend of a company
the part we dont normally see. Most of todays political changes only
affect how a company can produce their goods or how much profit they
make. Political factors decide the survivability of an organization. For Nike,
some of these are:

The United States, Nikes home country so to speak, has fantastic

policies for growth which are especially valuable to this corporation.
These include low-interest rates and well arranged international tax
agreements.

As a company that produces and sells physical goods, Nike is,

however, always subject to changes in tax and manufacturing laws.

Various political conflicts can always make customs related

processes difficult, or prevent imports and exports.

INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.

2. E is for Economic
Nike sells a well-respected medium range product, so they are less
vulnerable to economic factors than others, but nevertheless here are
some of the Economic variables:

A market collapse could mean bad news for Nike, along with many
other big brands. Consumers may choose to switch to lower-end,
cheaper products if this were to occur, or even just as a decent level
of quality becomes easier to produce.

Nikes revenues are to some extent dependent on the low cost of

labour in Far Eastern countries. This is changing, though, which
might mean higher Nike prices across the globe come with the
development in Less Economically Developed Countries.

With its deep pocket of finances, Nike has the resources to chase
after small emerging markets in which they could sell products.

3. S is for Social
Public Relations has never been more relevant than today. A good social
status means a lot for modern corporations, so its definitely worth
considering these factors:

Worldwide increases in health consciousness means that more and

more individuals are moving towards better lifestyles. These people
will undoubtedly buy plenty of sports apparel, something which
would make Nike very happy.

On the other hand, Nike receives much criticism for its dubious
production processes. In fact, the issue of Nike sweatshops is so
prominent that it has warranted an entire Wikipedia article on the
topic.

4. T is for Technological
Technology gives companies the ability to innovate in so many different
ways. From interacting with customers to designing products, technology
provides value to organizations just like Nike. Here are some of the
Technological factors affecting it:

INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.

Social media allows things to blow up or whittle away faster than

ever. Nike is doing well with using social media to build their brand,
but it can be a double-edged sword if used incorrectly.

Nike also gets the opportunity to use valuable information based

metrics thanks to technological advances, allowing for them to
optimize targeting and production, and maximize revenue.

5. L is for Legal
Legal factors are sometimes grouped together with Political factors in
PEST analyses, but in a PESTLE analysis which is what were doing
the two are separated. There arent many legal variables which
affect Nike, but we havent forgotten about the elephant in the room:

It shouldnt surprise you to hear that, like most massive

corporations, Nike also dodges substantial amounts of tax. In recent
years, there hasnt been too much of a crackdown on this, but its
still valuable to consider.

Also, Nike occasionally meets legal repercussions for its shady

marketing practices, which include false discounts.

6. E is for Environmental
Environmental issues are of ever-growing importance. Of course, there are
only a few factors which affect Nike with regard to this, but they are worth
stating:

Nikes mass production factories are, without a doubt, harming the

environment. Not only do they release plenty of aerial pollution like
most factories, but Nikes production centers occasionally go as far
as directly polluting rivers.

However, Nike also shows promise of a change in their current

practices, with a strong resolve to become more eco.

INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.

2. COMPANY OVERVIEW
2.1 ABOUT NIKE

NIKE, Inc. is all about innovations and discovery by providing the products
and experiences for athletes.
Nike was founded by University of Oregon track athlete Phil Knight and his
coach Bill Bowerman in January 1964. Its original name was Blue Ribbon
Sports (BRS). The company initially operated as a distributor for Japanese
shoemaker Onitsuka Tiger, which meet Knight's automobile. (Nike Inc.,
2016)
In 1964, BRS sold 1,300 sets of Japanese running shoes netting $8,000.
After that in 1966, BRS opened its first retail location at California. By the
time after the first retail store, it got expanded in different regions as in
the East Coast, in Wellesley.
After that in 1971, the relationship of BRS and Onitsuka Tiger was coming
to end and BRS made its own line of footwear, which included the Swoosh
planned by Carolyn Davidson. So the Swoosh was utilized by Nike in 1971
and then was registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in
1974.
Afterwards Nike had made itself as a leading brand in U.S. athletic market
and covered half of its market share. Also Nike with the association with
Wieden Kennedy made various marketing communication ways to reach
the customer and to make them aware about products. By 1980s, it made
association of games with its products offerings to its target market.

INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.

NIKE IMC Plan

Various tools of IMC like advertising, direct marketing, sales promotion,

personal selling and public relation make brand promotion schematic.
Effective integration of such tools makes consumer engagement efficient.

Nike has made extensive use of integrated marketing communications, a

brand associated with with athletic activities and sport. Commencement
of Nikes success was with its Just do it campaign. With this campaign,
Nike tapped into the spirit of the inner joy experience of consumers. The
profound feeling of joy and fitness was communicated through this
campaign. The company utilized various communication platforms for
their advertisement in order to capture attention of their target consumer
segment, increasing Nikes sale by 1000% over a period of ten years.

Logo story
Nike Swoosh is one of the well-known logos. The logo has made
the organisation one of the most successful and valued brands
worldwide as it has created a strong brand image which
symbolizes performance, dominance and winning. Nike has been
INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.

successful in spreading their brand message across the globe

that has made them gain sustainable competitive advantage over
their competitors like Adidas and Reebok.

Objectives of the plan

To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world. This
statement was inspired by, a highly esteemed track and field coach and
co-founder of Nike Inc. This motto is the companys foremost mission, but
strategically integrated with this goal are a number of IMC objectives that
assist the organization towards effective integrated marketing
communication.
One such IMC objective is to employ a range of marketing communication
tactics that would cater to the organizations target market, who have
different nationalities, genders, cultures, and ages. To enact this, Nike
introduces its latest products through a marketing communication group
that could strengthen the positioning of, and key messages about, the
Nike brand, through different forms of visual aids and point-of- purchase
advertising.
Another IMC goal of Nike is related to the companys quality and
innovative products. Nike first develops its goods and services that would
eventually cater to the needs and demands of people all over the world.
As a result, its market share would increase, and more revenue would be
generated for the organization. Evidently, this goal has been almost fully
realized, since Nike has branches in different parts of the world, such as in
Europe, Asia, and the like.
In connection to this, Nike continuously aims to apply marketing tactics
that are appropriate with the people who reside in these continents or
nations. For example, aside from traditional advertising in the form of
television, billboards, and the like, Nike also makes use of contemporary
marketing instruments such as the internet, wherein people in almost any
part of the world could access various sites to customize Nike shoes and
products.

IMC Strategies

Celebrity endorsements

This is one of the key strategies that Nike has adopted. They have been
very careful while selecting the face of the brand. The idea is to ingrain
the celebrity image in consumers mind which would help them associate
INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.

with the brand product with famous personalities making the brand
valuable and attractive. Famous athletes like Michael Jordan, Maria
Sharapova, Cristiano Ronaldo and Tiger Woods have endorsed the brand
and conveyed the importance of athleticism making the brand name
heroic and iconic. Such celebrity advertisements create strong impact on
consumers and further improves brand loyalty.

Social media
Nike has set up a perfect example of efficient use of social media which
has become an essence of brand promotion in todays competitive
world. Utilization of social media like Facebook, YouTube, twitter and
many more in order to build public relation and to deal with criticisms
has been aced by Nike. Evidence suggests that approximately 92% of
consumers trust recommendations made by family and friends over
advertisements, or Word of Mouth. Consistent efforts towards
customer engagement and persuasion through application like Nike+
and even considering @Nike support where Nike responds to their
followers on twitter has made Nike the best example of organised
customer service. Such efforts has given Nike a huge fan following and
loyal customer base, helping them to build companys word of mouth
marketing.

Campaign

INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.

Write the future, a campaign during FIFA 2010 is a very good example of
Nikes skillful utilization of strategy. The prime goal was to become the top
brand in the world of football beating Adidas as the official sponsor of FIFA
2010 and to achieve tremendous revenue growth in the football apparel
segment. The gist of the campaign was to ignite communication with the
epic 3-minute film which would inspire audience with flashes of success
and failure, past and future. Some of the best players like Cristiano
Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Didier Drogba and many others were featured in
the film. Nike wanted to create an opportunity for their consumers so that
they could participate in the experience via social media. Nike employed
social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube and Xbox 360 to reach to
their fans. During this campaign, the Nike Facebook fan following raised to
336% which was from 1.1m to 4.8m. The result was, Nike won the world
cup and became world no.1 sports brand in the football field.

INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION PLAN: NIKE INC.