Brand Activism: Nike and Colin Kaepernick
Nike’s selection of politically polarizing Colin Kaepernick as the spokesperson for the thirtieth anniversary of its iconic “Just Do It” campaign catapulted the brand into the media spotlight and made it a political flashpoint for consumers across America. Would the choice of Kaepernick be positively or negatively perceived? And, would it affect Nike's business results or just generate a lot of social media chatter? As Nike’s management team watched some people burn their sneakers in protest on YouTube and others applaud the company’s behavior on Facebook, they wondered whether inserting Nike into the middle of a heated political debate was the right thing to do or the most reckless action Nike’s brand stewards had ever taken, putting Nike’s $30 billion brand asset at risk? After all, on social media, it was easy to say that one would boycott or buycott a brand due to one’s political beliefs, but in the marketplace, other purchase criteria often reigned supreme.
Keywords: Marketing; Brands and Branding; Advertising; Advertising Campaigns; Marketing Strategy; Marketing Communications; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Consumer Products Industry; Sports Industry; United States; North America;
Citation:
Avery, Jill, and Koen Pauwels. "Brand Activism: Nike and Colin Kaepernick." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 520-104, May 2020. (Revised May 2020.) View Details
