Assignment 1
An article in Age Global on 31 October 2011 shows how the global sporting organisation, Nike uses the marketing concepts of (a) online marketing and (b) marketing segmentation and targeting in its advertising and research efforts towards running in China.
Nike recognises that in its efforts to encourage ‘running’ as an enjoyable activity, it needs to target a main audience of ‘young, urban, image-conscious Chinese.’ In doing this an exciting and original idea should be executed, and so, Nike uses the most logical response via online marketing. By launching their ‘Run For’ campaign, Nike attempts to facilitate customer interaction via video-sharing and social media sites.
Therefore Nike, in this example, is trying to encourage running by incorporating everyday people into their ‘Run For’ campaign. Online marketing is said to ‘allow information sharing at a new level and facilitate interaction between customers and channel members.’ (Kotler et al, 2010 p.544).
In this example Nike attempts to create a positive feel towards running and allows the Chinese community think of it as a social event, while using direct and online database marketing. In doing so, Nike is able to interact with past, present and/or potential customers. To achieve this Nike allows members of the Chinese community to communicate their perspectives on running, which is potentially attracting a larger target audience. By using customer interaction and seeking a large range of opinions, Nike is more likely to attract a more fluctuated interest and customer base.
The article also demonstrates the concept of marketing segmentation and targeting. Market segmentation is a largely used concept by many marketers around the globe - generally for its idea of dividing larger market groups into smaller segments in order to effectively establish the different preferences for