NIKE: THE MARKETING COMMUNICATION STRATEGY The communication process: Communication takes places when one person transmits

information and understanding to another person. There is a communication when people respond or listen to someone. Movements of lips, the wave of hands or the wink of an eye can convey more meaning than even written or spoken words. The basic elements of communication process include communicator, communicatee, message, channel and feedback. Communicator is the sender, speaker, issuer or writer, who intends to express or send out a message. "Communicatee" is the receiver of the message for whom the communication is meant. The communicatee receives the information, order or message. Message, which is also known as the subject matter of this process, the content of the letter, speech, order, information, idea, or suggestion. Communication channel is the media through which the sender passes the information and understanding to the receiver. It acts as a connection between the communicator and the communicatee. Finally, feedback is an essential factor to make communication successful. It is the effect, reply or reaction of the information transmitted to the communicatee. (Belch, 2009.) During information exchange, the sender and recipient go through several interrelated stages. Their task is to elaborate the message and use the channel for transmission in such a way that both parties understood and shared the original idea. It is difficult since each stage is also the point at which meaning can be distorted or completely lost. Information exchange begins with the formulation of ideas or the selection of information. The sender decides which meaningful idea or message should be the subject of exchange. Unfortunately, many attempts to exchange information are cut off at this first stage because the sender has not spent enough time to think about ideas. (Belch, 2009.) Introduction The growing of economic and technological conditions make it possible for companies to promote products and services in a larger market. Even so, there are other factors that still need to be considered for a business organization to reach out to their target market. One of the crucial factor is the consumers processing of companies messages. Looking into the characteristics and thought processes of consumer is what companies sales personnel and marketers should pay attention to, in order to communicate effectively. With regards to this, communication between a company and its target market is very essential. This paper attempts to evaluate a few marketing communication strategies that Nike Inc had in the previous years. "You Nike guys, you Just do it, were the original words of Dan Weiden and later on become the motto of Nike since the beggining of its marketing strategy. This line has been associated to the brand, recognized and used by almost everyone all over the world. Whenever a person speak out these three words, they unknowingly supportting the companys products and spreading Nike to others. The Just Do It campaign not only express the philosophy of the company as grit, determination and passion, but also implied it with something hitherto unknown in Nike ads - humor. In a word, Nike is cool. (Center, 2008.) Nikes growth and developments is the clearest evidence of its efficiency in marketing communication. The company has learned to apply a strategy wherein it could constantly communicate its messages through all media instruments, and consequently, to every

consumer. This was made possible through Nikes combination of conventional and modern advertising. Strategic Marketing Channel One of the first marketing events for Nike didn't take place on the track, however. During the Olympic in Atlanta, Nike ambushed basketball sponsor Champion by sneaking giant Swoosh signs into the arena. When the cameras panned the stands, TV audiences saw the Nike logo loud and clear, while Champion had nothing..Do you know who the "official" sponsors are? You might think from the prevalence of Nikes "Write the Future" campaign on the web and or in social network, that Nike is an official World Cup sponsor. It's not. Nor is Pepsi, whose "Oh Africa" has been racking up millions of views on the web since May. Rather, the official sponsors are Adidas and Coke . Ambushed marketing is when the company not affiliated with an event but runs an ad campaign that links the advertiser to that event in the consumer's mind, without saying the company is a sponsor. Understanding the important of effective marketing, Nike applies its communication strategy and at the same time still relatively manages to be cost-effective in terms of its marketing programs. During Americas Super Bowl, Nike had television time at $40,000 per second though it may sound expensive, the ads were remarkably effective, since Nike was well aware of the significance of Superbowl in America. Nike continuously aims to apply marketing tactics that are appropriate with the people who reside in continents and nations all over the world. Aside from traditional advertising such as television, billboards, and the like, Nike also makes use of new-buzz 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. Nike has taken the lead in e-commerce by being the first to market with its e-commerce website. Nike launched its e-commerce site in 1999 by offering different styles of shoes to the U.S. market. Nike increased its e-commerce presence by launching NIKEiD in 1999. NIKEiD enables online consumers to design key elements of the shoes they purchase. The program represents the first time a company has offered mass customization of footwear. Nikes future plans include opening an online shop for the Japanese market next year followed by global rollout. By being the first to market, Nike enables itself to become established while competitors rush to join. Besides the traditional advertising with print ads, sport magazines and TV, Nike now expands its hugely viral Write the Future advertisement to Facebook and Twitter with more than 17 million view. The objective is simple, where social-network users are prompted to briefly write the future of their favorite players and share their opinions with their peers. Celebrity Endorsement Nike is well known for its quality and innovative products. The company implied effetively through their Just Do It campaign to reassure consumers that Nike was a quality brand. During the campaign, Nike continuously makeing adverstisement portrayed celebrity sports figures such as Bo Jackson, John McEnroe and later, Michael Jordan. If Michael Jordan can play an entire NBA season in a pair of Nikes, certainly the average weekend warrior can trust the shoes durability. Celebrity endorsements appealed to the consumers sense of belonging, in style, and professional. Therefore, the picture of Nike is autiomatically tied with professionalism, style and cool. If a person want to be good at a sport, he must use Nikes equipment; if a person is good at a sport, he must be using Nikes equipment. At the

end of the day, the Just Do It campaign was able to turn sweaty, pain-ridden, timeconsuming exercise in Nike sneakers into something cool, trendy and exciting. Realizing how endorsing celibrity can create trust, expersetise and provide benefit, nowadays Nike endorses more than three thousand athletes at the present time, including 72 percent of the players in the National Basketball Association, 60 percent in Major League Baseball and half the players in the National Football League. More than 200 universities is now wearing the swoosh on their uniform (Levin 2003). Innovation to promote quality As part of the companys quality and innovative spirit, Nike are now working with other big companies to improve and develop their products, and Apple was recently one of them. Nike and Apple said they are collaborating on a series of products that bridge the gaps between sports, electronics, and entertainment. Their first jointly produced product: the Nike+iPod kit, which involves an electronic sensor inserted under the inner sole of a new Nike running shoe. That sensor connects to a small wireless receiver that attaches to Apple's iPod nano music player. This move of Nike not only extend their target market for Apple, but also create a new potential market for Nike: the work out group. In any neighborhood nowadays, we can easily catch a person jogging down the street with his/her ipod. Now if this person running in any pair of Nike + Ipod, he/she has the power of controll and plan the entire exercise. The convenient and effective character of the product is the key to improve sales for both Nike and Apple. Warranty as a signal of quality In a marketplace where there is often little differentiation between brands, the organization, its people, its policies and its attitude can often be the point of difference. In many product categories the service, back-up and support is as important as the product itself. Customers need to have confidence in the organization. Consumer crises such as product recalls usually relate to one product but they will put other products, brands and even the whole company under the spotlight. Companies are finding it increasingly difficult to remain anonymous behind their brands. Consumers are more aware than ever before, and with the proliferation of media titles and access to new media, they have access to more information. I myself experienced the product warranty when i used a pair of Nike shoes. I was in the national tennis team in Vietnam between 2001 and 2005. As part of the team, we went through shoes and other tennis equipments at a fairly quick rate, due to the frequency of practices. Nike had a policy that for tennis shoe, if the product is worn out before the duration of six months, it can be returned for an exact new product. As far as i concerned, not one of my tennis shoes were worn after six months. I considered Nikes policy as one of their strong point and as a sign of quality. Compare with other shoes brand that i have used, the quality and durability of Nike has always satisfied me. Since then, ive always used Nikes product not only for my tennis shoe, but for all my other sports equipment. Below is the warranty that i had with Nike when i bought a pair of tennis shoe recently. NIKE, Inc. warrants to the original purchaser that this product is free from defects in material and workmanship for the life of the product. This warranty applies when the product is used under normal conditions for the purpose for which the product is designed, and does not apply to normal wear and tear or damage related to alteration, accident, misuse, improper care, or negligence. If there is a covered defect, return the product with proof of purchase to the NIKE dealer from which the product was purchased, write Consumer Services, One

Bowerman Drive, Beaverton, OR, 97005-6453, or telephone 1-800-344-NIKE for return authorization. If NIKE determines that there is a covered defect, the product will be replaced, at NIKE's option, with the same or similiar product. This warranty is in lieu of all other express warranties. The Problem One thing that companies should be notice is when an endorsement backfiring the company. An act or event can have a direct effect to the companys image. For example, when Michael Vick was arrested for dogfighting, Facing protests from animal-rights groups, Nike announced it was suspending Vick's endorsement deal without pay, as well as halting sales of Vick-related shoes and other products at its retail stores. (Serrano, 2007.) Or recently when Tiger Wood was invloved in a mistress scandal and it certainly effect sales of Nike. There has been study compared the stock prices of nine Woods sponsors with competitors and the overall market after the scandal erupted last month. Investors in the three sports-related companies - video gamemaker Electronic Arts, Gatorade and Nike fared the worst, experiencing a 4.3% drop in stock value. (Goldinger, 2009) Another major weakness of Nike that adversely affects the positive role of marketing communication is the issue that it does not comply with its ethical responsibilities. It is true that the company participates in various generous efforts but it is likewise involved in issues of child and human rights violations. Nike should accordingly focus its efforts on the improvement or total eradication of this sensitive ethical consideration. Conclusion: Generally, marketing communication in organizations is evidently essential for any companys success because effective application of this concept results to the fulfilment and loyalty of consumer. Nike Inc. is one example of a multinational company that makes use of the concept of effective marketing communication in its organization. As was discussed in this paper, it utilizes a wide array of marketing strategies which the company readily adapts, based on the needs and wants of the target market. As a result, the concerned company remains to be one of the top organizations that are wanted and needed by different types of people from all over the globe. References: Belch. (2009). Advertising and Promotion. An Integrated Marketing Communication Perspective. . New York: McGraw Hill. Bloomsberg. (September, 2004). The New Nike ;No longer the brat of sports marketing, it has a higher level of discipline and performance. Businessweek. Klaymen, B. (2010, June 11). Ambush marketing gives Nike leg up for World Cup. Goldinger, D. (2009, December 29). Tiger Woods' mistress scandal costs shareholders of sponsors like Nike, Gatorade $12 billion. . New York. Serrano, A. (2007, July). Michael Vick Sacked By Nike, Reebok. Amid Dog-Fighting Scandal, Nike Suspends Quarterback's Contract, Reebok Halts Sale Of His Jersey. Richmond, VA. Center For Applied Research (n.d.) Nikes Just Do It Advertising Campaign. Retrieved on 10/2/08. From, www.cfar.com/Documents/nikecmp.pdf, L. A., & Beherns, S. J. (2003) From Swoosh to Swoon. Business Communication Quarterly. 66. 52-65