The purpose analysis of Nike-English composition (ENG 101) | Arizona State University (ASU)

The purpose analysis of Nike–English composition (ENG 101) | Arizona State University (ASU)

The Purpose Analysis

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The Purpose Analysis

Nike Inc. recently released its “Want it All” advertisement, which happens to be very appealing and interesting. Being one of the most famous American multimillion corporation, Nike Inc. engages in the marketing and sales in apparel, equipment, footwear, manufacturing and design. Therefore, Nike intended to use this advertisement to showcase some of the products offered by the company to customers globally (Eyada, 2020). Following this, adverts made by Nike Inc. utilize different strategies such as dreams, energy and courage, which are effective in persuading its audience into purchasing their products. As Drewniany and Jewler (2013) point out, for an advertisement to be effective it should appeal the eyes of the target audience through the use of strong rhetorical appeal as well as having the needs of the audience at heart. In light to these statements, this paper will analyze the strategies used by Nike in the “want it all” advertisement to appeal a wider target audience.

Image showing a snapshot of a fictional person used in the advert

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The advertisement features a young kid who has great ambitions of succeeding in future to the NBA court from the streets of his own neighborhood, showing attributes of regression, growth, defeats, victories, failure and success (Mujanovic, 2018). Therefore, Nike Inc. uses the advertisement to encourage its audience that everything is possible for everyone if only they work fiercely and propose it to achieve their objectives (Mahdi et al., 2015). This advertisement is very attractive, especially in the eyes of athletes who happen to form the major market for consumption of Nike’s products. Additionally, the advertisement appeals to impoverished urban athletes to continue fighting for their goals and appeals to the importance of achieving dreams just like Donte Grand hence giving inner city kids hope for a better future.

As one of the advertising strategies, Nike Inc. uses a fictional person who happens to be a young boy by the name Dante and without wasting much time, the viewers are introduced to the kid’s dreams of wanting to become a professional basketball player in future. Additionally, through the ‘Nike: Want it All” advertisement, the audience is taken through the boy’s journey from the beginning to the end, hence showing Dante’s goal, which is to play in NBA (Mujanovic, 2018). Therefore, viewers get the privilege of understanding the trials and tribulations one has to endure before becoming a successful basketball player; from playing in the streets of the neighborhood with friends, through high school then to his college at Duke and finally after perseverance, he gets a chance to play for the NBA team by the name Cleveland Cavilers. In this regard, the Nike uses the strategy of message elaboration to appeal to its audience within the commercial. According to Petty and Briñol (2011), the utilization of the elaboration likelihood model as an advertisement strategy enables the target audience to easily think through the message being passed to them hence boosting the spirit of persuasion.

The advertisement utilizes the features of pathos and ethos in conveying the message to its audience. As a way of appealing to the emotions of its audience, Nike Inc uses pathos to show that every individual wants to win in life and to achieve this, one needs perseverance and unending energy (Middleton et al., 2022). Therefore, this advertisement successfully captures the emotions of its audience by implying that each young heart has got a dream and aspires to achieve it (Mahdi et al., 2015). Indeed, every heart has emotions and using the kid the advertisement symbolizes that there are many dreams that have been nested in the heart of every basketball fan. Such emotions could effectively lend us the spirit of regular practice, perseverance and strength, which ultimately see us winning in different situations. The advertisement also uses ethos to appeal to the target audience’s sense of ethics. Throughout the advertisement, there are no unethical acts and this further works positively in enhancing the credibility of the company. Considering that Nike is a big brand name that is admired and relied upon by many people globally, such credibility is very critical in promoting sales. As Romanova and Smirnova (2019) point out, a good advertisement should use ethos and pathos not only to appeal the eyes of the target audience, but also appeal to their senses and equally connect with their hearts.

Nike Inc. uses imagination and creativity to incorporate the theme of success, achievement, ambition, courage and energy (McStay, 2013). This themes appeal a broader audience by encouraging sports lovers to never stop and never let go. Most sports fans would find logic in such themes after watching the advertisement because it stresses on the spirit of hard work and perseverance. The advertisement ends by putting emphasis on three key words; “Want it all” hence encouraging the target audience that the heart can aspire to achieve anything one ever dreams of.

Image showing the transitional journey of courage and practice

Conclusively, Nike is famous for creating some of the best advertisements globally that inspire the audience to keep adding energy in their daily activities such as sports. As Doan (2017) points out, for an advertisement to be effective it must contain appeal and Nike succeeds in appealing to its target audience throughout the advertisement. Generally, the advertisement is very effective and fulfills its intended purpose, which is to create a connection with the target audience (McStay, 2013). While Nike is among the best and most selling apparel and shoes brands, such appealing advertisements help the company to create a strong connection with its followers together with encouraging their imaginations. Consequently, high levels of engagement enable Nike to increase its revenue and sales including a strong brand image.

References

Doan, V. (2017). Rhetoric in advertising. VNU Journal of Science: Policy and Management Studies, 33(2).

Drewniany, B. L., & Jewler, A. J. (2013). Creative strategy in advertising. Cengage Learning.

Eyada, B. (2020). Brand activism, the relation and impact on consumer perception: A case study on nike advertising. International Journal of Marketing Studies, 12(4), 30-42.

McStay, A. (2013). Creativity and advertising: Affect, events and process. Routledge.

Mahdi, H. A. A., Abbas, M., Mazar, T. I., & George, S. (2015). A Comparative Analysis of Strategies and Business Models of Nike, Inc. and Adidas Group with special reference to Competitive Advantage in the context of a Dynamic and Competitive Environment. International Journal of Business Management and Economic Research, 6(3), 167-177.

Middleton, K., Thompson‐Whiteside, H., Turnbull, S., & Fletcher‐Brown, J. (2022). How consumers subvert advertising through rhetorical institutional work. Psychology & Marketing, 39(3), 634-646.

Mujanovic, B., 2018. NBA New Nike Commercial / Lebron James 2018 HD. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoODFIu1AJk

Petty, R. E., & Briñol, P. (2011). The elaboration likelihood model. Handbook of theories of social psychology, 1, 224-245.

Romanova, I. D., & Smirnova, I. V. (2019). Persuasive techniques in advertising. Training Language and Culture, 3(2), 55-70.

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