Analysis of two Nike Basketball-Commercials

Before analysing the two Nike Basketball commercials, it is important to mention that Nike is a global brand. According to de Mooji “a global brand can be a mass brand looking to satisfy a common product need in all countries” (2010, p. 11), which certainly holds true for Nike. He also ensures however, that the approach of a standardized global advertising strategy can prove difficult in countries with consumers of non-Anglo-American cultures. This becomes very clear in the following quote: 
“There may be global products, but there are no global people.” 

                                                                                                (de Mooji 2010, p. 5)
As a consequence, more and more global brands try to find the compromise between a global and a local advertising strategy, called ‘glocalisation’ (An 2007, p. 304). Nike is one of them. As an example serves the company’s website, which offers links to a local website for each country Nike operates in.

Nike Basketball USA

Nike Basketball China

Similarities:

What the two Nike-commercials have in common is that they advertise a brand image rather than a specific product. Brand image is usually defined as “a set of beliefs held about a particular brand” (Kotler 1988 quoted in Meenaghan 1995, p. 24) and is formed in the consumers’ minds much like a “magnetic human-like aura around the actual product” (Meenaghan 1995, p. 24). The message both commercials are conveying is that through constant dedication to the sport, hard work and sacrifice, everyone can become a successful basketball player. This message mirrors the famous Nike-slogan JUST DO IT and builds upon previous advertising campaigns by Nike like the FIND YOUR GREATNESS-campaign last summer. 

Another similarity between the ads is the usage of famous basketball-stars. While the Chinese NBA-star Yi Jianlian and the American All-Star Kobe Bryant appear in the Chinese commercial, the currently best player in the NBA Lebron James features in the American spot. This advertising technique adds credibility to the brand as world leader in athletic products. It moreover increases the recognition value of Nike and enhances the brand affect in a positive way, according to studies by Misra and Beatty (1995, p. 170).  

Even though basketball is a team sport, both advertising spots concentrate on individual players. In the Chinese commercial the young Chinese teenager is the centre of attention while in the American ad Lebron James adopts that role.
Individuality is very important in most Western cultures and particularly in the United States, where individuality is often seen as “the basis of liberty, democracy, and freedom (…).” (Mueller 2011, p. 137)
It therefore seems understandable that the American commercial depicts James as a unique individual player, an aspect that is visually dramatised by the dark basketball court and the spotlight lit on him.

China however, is considered a collectivistic society where strong emphasis is placed on the welfare of the group rather than the individual. Interdependence, family and concern for others are therefore the key aspects in most Asian advertising campaigns. (Mueller 2011, p. 139) It thus seems not quite clear, why the emphasis in the Chinese commercial is placed on one individual player. The main reason for this might be Nike’s global advertising strategy as well as the intention to encourage individualism along with other Western cultural values.



Differences:

A global strategy nevertheless allows for some adaption to the country in which the commercial is shown. The very end of the spot shows a crowd of Asian basketball players walking towards the viewer, each dribbling a basketball. This scene shows that Nike did incorporate the cultural aspect of collectivism, which is so essential in China.

Another difference between the two advertising spots is the language being used in them. Even though this might seem mundane, the language of communication is a crucial cultural aspect, as we learned before. It is therefore important to point out that every message in the Chinese commercial is spoken in Mandarin and in the American commercial accordingly in American.

The above analysis demonstrates more similarities than differences between the both commercials and therefore proves that Nike indeed uses a global advertising strategy with some local adoptions.
In the two commercials, Nike portrays basketball as a sport strongly influenced by American culture, for example through the employment of Hip Hop music, by putting the main focus on individual athletic success and by using American basketball stars in both ads.
Since the Chinese commercial is focusing on a young Chinese athlete, incorporates the cultural aspect of collectivism and is spoken in Mandarin, it is also obvious that some adoption to the Chinese market has taken place.
De Mooji explains that while in China advertising for Chinese brands is expected to communicate Chinese values, Western-style advertising is expected for global brands as they stand for modernization, sophistication and technology (2010, p. 223).

Sources:
An, Daechun, Advertising visuals in global brands' local websites: a six-country comparison, International Journal of Advertising, 2007.

De Mooji, 2010

Meenaghan, Tony, The role of advertising in brand image development, Journal of Product & Brand Management VOL. 4 NO. 4, MCB University Press, 1995

Misra and Beatty, 1995

Mueller, Barbara, Dynamics of International Advertising, Peter Lang Publishing, Inc., New York, USA, 2010

The US Market

According to The World Factbook, the US market can be defined as follows:

“The US has the largest and most technologically powerful economy in the world, with a per capita GDP of $49,800. In this market-oriented economy, private individuals and business firms make most of the decisions, and the federal and state governments buy needed goods and services predominantly in the private marketplace. US business firms enjoy greater flexibility than their counterparts in Western Europe and Japan in decisions to expand capital plant, to lay off surplus workers, and to develop new products. At the same time, they face higher barriers to enter their rivals' home markets than foreign firms face entering US markets. US firms are at or near the forefront in technological advances, especially in computers and in medical, aerospace, and military equipment; their advantage has narrowed since the end of World War II.”

The United States has a population of approx. 316 million people and ranks third largest after China and India. The life expectancy lies at 78,62 years and the population’s age structure shows that 40,2% of the population is aged between 25 and 54.
With a literacy rate of 99% the degree of consumer sophistication is very high, which allows marketers to use even the most complex advertising-messages.

Taking into account the same economic factors as when analysing the Chinese market, the GDP and GDP per capita as well as the urbanization rate are important indicators for the economic environment of the US market.
With a GDP of $15,94 trillion and a GDP per capita of $50,700, the United States has a middle-class that is very attractive to advertisers due to the high income. Other aspects like already existing distribution, communication and transportation networks also provide a good foundation for successful marketing (Mueller 2011, p. 93).

With an urbanization rate of 82%, the country is much more urbanized than China, which supports the aspect of well-established transportation and distribution networks mentioned before. With an open and stable political system in place, advertisers can also plan long-term without having to fear political or business risks.

Sources:
Mueller, Barbara, Dynamics of International Advertising, Peter Lang Publishing, Inc., New York, USA, 2010