Last week, I wrote about Nike Fuel and the FuelBand that is being launched this month. I took a spin over to the Nike channel on youtube and can see how the marketing is shaping up. This is going to be a hit. Nike has managed to wrap up the idea of “Just Do it” in the functionality of the product and just like they managed to move fitness apparel into a fashion statement beyond the strictures of performance athletics. The product engagement ecosystem includes the device and it’s design, the smartphone apps, the website apps, twitter, celebrity athletes and endorsers.
Message #1: All activity is good and athletic
http://youtu.be/MT50eLLxPco
Message #2: “Be Like Mike”
http://youtu.be/AwzSql0QODU
The way Nike is marketing this idea may very well get people over their reticence to post their exercise activity. I don’t post my workouts on Facebook because I don’t want to brag and I’m not sure anybody really cares. I do post them all to Endomondo and share because I want to find other people who are running in SF and want to encourage anyone who may be interested. But everybody on Endomondo is already “doing it”, so I’m not recruiting new customers. I think Nike Fuelband users will post on Facebook. They are already posting on Twitter even before the Fuelband is in the market. The #Makeitcount hash tag is generating a ton of activity. You have a mix of consumer and celebrity athlete tweets streaming on the site. The idea has legs, and Nike has a product that will help users realize their aspirations.
On a related note the Nike athlete vignettes look a lot like an ad I helped make back in the 90s for Adams golf: