Branded by a "Swoosh"

As I sit here and recap the opening weekend of the 2013 NFL season, not only can I not help but think about how awesome my fantasy football teams did this week, but all the product placements and advertisements as well.  So many commercials for so many brands that we have all come to know and love.  Take a look at this picture:

Chances are that right off the bat you were able to identify a handful of those logos or brands and relate it to something.  Either a commercial you've seen, a world event, or a personal experience.

To me that's pretty amazing. Especially considering that this picture is pretty outdated and a lot of these brands have changed their look or image.  However, there is one on there that has never changed and stayed the same.  The Swoosh.  The iconic symbol was developed by Caroline Davidson in 1971 and is supposed to symbolize the wing of the Greek goddess, Nike.  Nike was the Greek's personification of "Victory", and that is exactly what the company Nike has come to be known for.

I'll just give you a brief history lesson of Nike but if you want the full scoop, please go to the official Nike website and read.  It is pretty interesting in my opinion History and Heritage of Nike

In the 1950's a successful track coach in Oregeon by the name of Bill Bowerman, had not only experimented with different track surfaces and rehydration drinks to benefit his athletes, but also came up with the idea of an athletic running shoe. At the time, the concept he had in mind, was as foreign as moon shoes and the big shoe companies all laughed at him.  So he began cobbling them on his own instead.

Meanwhile a track runner, who also earned his MBA in finance, by the name of Phil Knight was earning a job with Tiger Shoe Company based out of Japan.  Bowerman was one of the first people Knight tried to make a sale to, but instead ended up with a business partner.  It was now that two pushed the idea of Bowerman's shoe to Tiger Shoe Company.

In the 1960's the pair formed Blue Ribbon but soon discovered that having full time jobs, and trying to run a start up company, was too much to take on alone.  Enter Jeff Johnson, the first full time employee of Blue Ribbon Sports. It was Johnson who designed brochures, prints ads, etc for the company and even came up with mail order system.

The 1970's can be held responsible for the birth of the name Nike(thought of by Johnson) as well as the birth of the infamous Swoosh(designed by a graphic design student, Caroline Davidson).

  And that is where our history lesson ends for today(but please feel free to refer to the previous link for the full history).   

I want to stop there, not because the rest of the history isn't important, but because it was the swoosh that caught my attention this past weekend.  In 2012, Nike became the official maker of all NFL jerseys(replacing Reebok). It is also the same year they pumped out this awesome "my fast is faster" commercial 

NIKE COMMERCIAL
I loved this commercial when it came out and I still do.  I really enjoyed the "Nike Sparq Training" ads as well.  Nike has a way at tugging at your emotional strings, and they know how to do it very simply.  Their commercials are very straight forward and to the point.  Here are these top caliber athletes, using Nike products, training like animals.  Now for me, being a strength coach and an athlete myself, these commercials "pump me up".  They make me want to go train and use their products. However, there was no "My better is more better" ads or "just do it" ads on opening weekend.  Or if there was, they didn't air it often cause I didn't see it as I continued to not move from my couch watching game after game.  For me this was strange, to be the ultimate provider/sponsor of the NFL and not have a commercial.  Then I started to notice a swoosh here, and a swoosh there.  One on Kaepernick's jersey and another Crabtree's sideline gear.  As soon as I saw this swoosh, I instantly thought, "NIKE" and all of a sudden those plain old sweats the guy on the IR was wearing, looked a lot "cooler"

They say a good brand is "in for the long haul".  That it taps into emotion and that it knows itself.  Well in my opinion, if any one company has done these things, it has been Nike.  I live probably 90% of my life in athletic clothes, and I almost always have that little swoosh somewhere on me.  You see, Nike doesn't need to run countless ad time and time again, because they have branded countless people like myself with that always relevant little swoosh.  And because of that, the Nike swoosh is always on display, always circulating.  In essence, we are paying Nike to advertise for them.  Well played Nike, well played....