Nike's 'Just Do It' campaign, celebrating its 25th anniversary, was feted in a post on Nike's blog. The blog stated the campaign “started humbly with one 'Just Do It' ad.” The low-key spot followed 80-year-old Walt Stack over the Golden Gate Bridge as he did his daily 17-mile run, explaining his routine all the while before the commercial fades to a black screen that reads simply, 'Just Do It.'”
The blog post, which includes the commercial as well as conversation with the slogan's creator Dan Wieden of the Wieden + Kennedy advertising firm, adds, “It’s only 30 seconds, but 30 seconds that would forever change the sportswear industry and branding, if not sport itself.”
In an article on Adweek, David Gianatasio heralded 'Just Do It' as the “last greatest advertising slogan,” noting how the message initiallly resonated with what seemed like an increasingly complex era, marked by the rapid expansion of cable channels and the arrival of the Fox Network. But he added that the dream and goal-setting sentiment behind the mantra continues to resonate at a human level in today's even busier and more social-media obsessed environment.
“Exchanging tweets is no substitute for helping people think, dream, or in Nike's case do things in a new way,” wrote Gianatasio. “'Just do it' was open to interpretation, and many folks adopted it as their private mantra. And not just in the realm of fitness and exercise. They just did all sorts of things as they strove toward personal goals. These ranged from starting businesses to popping the question, and in some cases extricating themselves from bad relationships. As a result of the line's resonance, Nike's brand image soared.”
The full article is here.
