Thursday, July 28, 2016

Nike's Content Strategy

Content strategy is a subject that I am very passionate about.  I have noticed so many companies jump onto the social media bandwagon without having a strategy around what kind of content to provide, and so often then end up just trying to “sell” to their audience or provide general information about the company itself.  They focus more on themselves than on their audience and the value they provide.  People want quality not quantity!  Especially when news feeds are filled with politics, bad news and advertisements, its quality content that stands out.  As stated on WebSpecDesign.com, it is important to “… think about the story you want your content to share with your customers.” (Conger, 2016)

Nike’s content is an inspirational athletic message.  Honestly, after doing research for this assignment, spending time on the Nike Facebook and Twitter pages makes me want to grab my running shoes and hit the gym!  Very rarely is there an “advertisement” for product, and when there is, it is generally an introduction to line or athletic collaboration.  This is true across all of their digital platforms and fits perfectly with their value proposition of selling the dream that we can all be “superior athletes”. 

In terms of the buying cycle and how content marketing is used, an article on Patch.com points out that, “… in contrast with a typical advertisement that you might see on television, content marketing doesn’t have to directly mention the product, service, or even the company – at least in the earliest stages. Instead, the content should be designed to entertain or help people solve a problem.” (Morrow, 2013) I believe that Nike primarily focuses on the first two stages of the buying cycle with their content marketing, the “awareness” and “consideration” phases.  They are centered on inspiring people and create an understanding that they provide a solution to the problem of wanting to feel more “fit and in-shape… more athletic.”  All of the amazing athletes they feature are wearing Nike shoes and gear and, like I mentioned earlier, watching their incredible talent makes the audience want to grab a pair of Nike shoes and feed off the inspiration these athletes exude.  


References

Conger, T. (2016, January 27). The Importance of a Content Strategy for your Marketing Success. Retrieved July 28, 2016, from http://www.webspecdesign.com/2016/01/the-importance-of-a-content-strategy/

Morrow, S. (2013, February 20). Content Marketing and the 3 Stages of the Buying Cycle. Retrieved July 28, 2016, from http://patch.com/new-jersey/princeton/bp--content-marketing-and-the-3-stages-of-the-buying-cycle 


No comments:

Post a Comment