Nike Brand Identity & Brand Image

A brand is represented by its name, logo and slogan which can help the consumer recognise the brand instantly. In the previous blog post Nike's slogan "Just Do It" was discussed in relation to the brand values. Now Nike's name, logo and packaging will be considered and by using Kapferer’s brand identity prism analyse how Nike built a strong brand image for consumers. 

The name Nike comes from Greek goddess of victory and their logo known as the Nike “swoosh” is two simple curved lines that are almost in the shape of wings. A marketer will employ a symbol along with its brand name to make the brand to make the brand distinctive and to communicate a certain image (Ferrell, Dibb and Simkin, 2016). Nike's symbol and meaning of their name has connotations of movement, speed and being victorious, attributes which every athlete would like associate with themselves. Nike’s branding is a solid black “swoosh” logo with the brand name in capital letters, also in solid black, which makes the consumer think of the products as professional, reliable, luxury products. The colour black is also associated with being strong and masterful, qualities which many athletes would like to achieve. Brand strength is a function of the product's attributes and functionality, it's differentiation, plus any demonstrable added value to the purchaser (Ferrell, Dibb and Simkin, 2016). Ferrell, Dibb and Simkin (2016) have used Nike as a brand example to highlight that the brand is seen as 'first mover', they have reputation for highly desirable products due to their brand being known for it's high end quality and performance, therefore provides the customer with this same reputation as the brand which is an added value to the purchaser making Nike a strong brand against competition. 

Although the brand has a large range of prices, this is to accommodate their large target market. As they target everyone, not just professional athletes they understand these customers need sportswear at a lower price than the professional athletes would pay but they still want good value for their money or they will go to their rivals. Prices are dependent on the type of shoe the consumer is purchasing and how much the consumer would like to personalise their footwear. Nike still provide good quality products at reasonable prices which attracts a wide target market and encourages brand loyalty. 

Ferrell, Dibb and Simkin (2016) states that packaging must support the brand's image and positioning to help customer's differentiate between competition brands products. Nike shoes come packaged in a simplistic, dull orange coloured shoe-box with the solid white Nike logo on the lid, consistent with the design of the logo and the stores. Nike have considered the effect of these shoe-boxes on the environment and the growing concern of consumers about cutting back on packaging waste therefore they re-engineered to use 30% less material than their 1995 shoe-box. This is said to save 200 trees annually, giving the brand a positive reputation in the media. Like a brand name, a package can influence customers' attitude towards a product and thus affect their purchase decisions (Ferrell, Dibb and Simkin, 2016). Nike use category-consistent packaging, which means the packaging of the product is associated with the type of product. All shoes are packaged in the rectangular, similar sized cardboard boxes, this is the usual practice for packaging shoes. Nike's packaging is instantly recognizable due to the graphic design on the outside of the box.

Kapferer’s brand identity prism enables brands to assess their strength and weakness using the six-sided prism to maximize customer satisfaction and loyalty. These aspects are physique, personality, culture, self-image, reflection and relationship. Brand identity is said to be a unique set of brand associations reflecting what a brand stands for and the intended promise to the customer as a relationship is forged (Aaker, 1996).

• Physique element of Nike is the solid black/white “swoosh”, this is recognizable worldwide without any text as their logo is currently as shown above. The dull orange colour is also a physical element of Nike, helping differentiate from rival brands. 

• Personality relates to human characteristics associated with the brand. In relation to the brand Nike, human characteristics include sportive, athletic, determined and strong. Ferrell, Dibb and Simkin state that the brand personality once developed, such emotive sentiments of 'bring the brand to life' making the brand desirable to target consumers and business customers.

• Culture is the organisations values and behaviours, Nike have American values and are sports and fitness based, innovative and challenging. 

• Self-image is how the consumer of the brand think of themselves when using the company’s products, Nike consumers will see themselves as professional, successful, strong athletes with high quality, personalised goods

• Reflection refers to the typical brand customer. In terms of reflection, Nike consumer base would be runners as the brand purpose was based on providing better running footwear to maximise their potential in this one sport. The actual target market for Nike is much larger with separate stores (e.g. women’s only stores in London, China and California) and social media accounts dedicated to a variety of sports (e.g. there are seventeen Instagram accounts; Nike, Nike Women, Nike London (UK account), Nike Sportswear, Nike Training, Nike Running, Nike Football, Nike Lab, Nike Skateboarding, Nike Basketball, Nike Golf, Nike Rio, Nike Baseball, Nike Young Athletes, US Nike Football, Nike NYC and Nike Court (tennis))

• Relationship signifies the relationship between the customers’ and the brand. I would say the relationship between Nike and their customers is a supportive, reassuring, confident relationship due to their community online and offline and the brand mission statement is to inspire and innovate their customers. Their advertising campaigns make you believe in your own strength and capabilities.

Nike have built up an incredible brand identity with a distinctive brand image which contributes to the success of the company and builds a loyal customer base. However in July 2012, Nike was not chosen to be the sponsors for a huge sports event, the London Olympics, and the next blog post will examine how Nike overcame this obstacle by creating an iconic advertising campaign to rival their competitors by reminding the world of Nike's mission and core values.  

References

Aaker, D. (1996) Building Strong Brands, New York: Free Press

Ferrell, O.C., Dibb, S. and Simkin, L. (2016) Marketing: Concepts and strategies. London, United Kingdom: Cengage Learning EMEA.

Market, C. and crtvmrkt (2016) The $35 Nike logo and the woman who designed it. Available at: https://creativemarket.com/blog/the-35-nike-logo-and-the-woman-who-designed-it (Accessed: 21 November 2016).