Nike makes grass roots investment count

Last week saw Nike's second burst of activity to support their #Makeitcount campaign. It was perfectly timed on Wednesday 29th February - an extra day to make it count.

Here's the wrap from the Metro...

 

I've already talked about why i rate this campaign here. Having set out a clear vision at the start of the year with Olympic hopefuls, this second burst starts to deliver a little more authenticity through grass roots organisations and allows Nike to benefit from some of the long term partnerships and initiatives it has invested in over the last few years. 

Take their running club for example, it has become a community in its own right (55,000 fans at the last count) lending real credibility (and genuine advocacy) to any broader Nike campaigns it's associated with such as this one. It doesn't just put the brand's belief into practice, it places the product at the centre of the experience with consumers undertaking an almost weekly pilgrimage to a Nike store itself to meet like minded runners, share stories, get advice and start the run. 

Press ad drives wannabe runners to the 55,000 strong Facebook community

The campaign drives further awareness
around Nike running clubs nationwide 

 

 

 

A partnership i hadn't come across before was The London Basketball School. The facebook page had 4,000 (fairly active) likes early on Wednesday morning and had a real grass roots community feel to it. Further investigation on the LSB website revealed Nike to be a founding partner along with the likes of Sport England, Mayor of London and GLL who own a number of leisure complexes in London and the South East. All of which are helping to create more opportunities for youngsters to play basketball.

Nike helped to launch this scheme in the Spring of 2010 and brought Kobe Bryant along especially (see film at the bottom of this post). It's a great example of Nike supporting grass roots sport through a long term partnership rather than simply badging an existing group. The payback on something like this is never going to be immediate, it's a long term investment, but the independent nature of this group doesn't just give the scheme more credibility, it gives Nike itself more credibility when it chooses to reference it in advertising and events as it did on the 29th.

The LSB featured on Nike's press advertising

An LSB 3on3 event takes place at the London Eye on the 29th,
players could apply the day before on the facebook page

This notion of grass roots training and opportunity for all is closely aligned with the original LOCOG vision of getting kids playing more sport again and as a non sponsor, it's a major coup for Nike to be working in collaboration with the Mayor's office in such an important year - another blow landed against adidas - and another generation of teenage Londoners growing up with a deeper emotional connection to the Nike brand.  

Here's the launch from a couple of years back...