Question

Brand: Nike

Questions:

• Design an Integrated Marketing Communications outline for your brand. Explain your reasons for using different media.
• You need to recruit a new sales team for your brand. Explain the different steps that you should follow and also, the profile of the sales professionals that you are looking for.
• Marketing Myopia: Explain what do you think your brand should do in order to stay strong along time and avoid decline.
• Suggest the launching of a new product or service from your brand. Explain how would you cover the different steps of New Product Development in the case of your brand.

Formalities:

• Wordcount: 1,000 – 1,500

Answer 1

In most of the multinational companies, the core structure is rooted in the strategies of marketing management and integrated communications of the brand. In the case of Nike, it is very valid for matching the importance of human resource strategies in business operations. Nike is the company dealing with design, manufacturing, development, and global marketing of the apparel, footwear, equipment, accessories, and related services in different segments like sports, running, and other daily activities. The company is employed over 74,000 direct in-house people worldwide for the business operations and headquarter is in the state of Beaverton, Oregon, U.S.

Integrated Marketing Communications

The integration of all sorts of communications carefully for the marketing solutions and use as a promotional tool for the brand. It includes different combinations of marketing channels, and tools related to reinforce the brand value.

In Nike, the promotional or integrated marketing mix to effectively communicate with the global athletic apparel, footwear, and equipment industry. The company uses the structure to promote the products and services considering the dynamics of the market. While considering the 4P’s of the mix like product, price, place, and promotion are well connected with the integrated marketing communications. The Nike adopted a well-strategic approach and combination in personal selling, advertising, sales promotion, direct marketing, and public relations. This marketing mix helps to strengthen the brand image and product diversifications.

Nike uses athlete’s celebrities to promote the segment based on the area of expertise and the target customers easily resemble with the interests of the product in the market. In the personal selling space, the well-trained company staff in the stores provide well-packed assistance to the customers and persuade the buyers to choose the products. In direct marketing, the company uses the tactic of heavy advertisements and utilize the skills of the salesperson to approach the organizations and individuals in the target market. Through sales promotion, the company is offering huge coupons exchange and special offers for the new arrivals and clearance sales in the stores.

Recruitment of a New Sales Team

In Nike, the sales team is the core after the crunch of the advertisement or after the crust of the marketing phase. It is crucial to choose an efficient salesperson for the brand to represent Nike in the market. It is important to understand the basics about the brand, know about the product, and choose the packed salespeople who understand the product for the pitching the sales in the market.

(a) Understand the specifications of the roles and describe the requirements.

(b) Make clear descriptions for the sales team, individually.

(c) Always ensure to reach out to the right segment or choices of candidates.

(d) Enable strategic approaches while choosing the candidates.

(e) Ensure proper quantitative and assessment of the salesperson (candidate).

(f) Initiate the interview with the candidate for the real purpose.

(g) In final terms, negotiate and make a polished offer.

In the sales team development, it is essential to choose the candidates with core responsibility towards the brand, be more goal-oriented, adaptability is crucial, high level of motivation, better knowledge about the brand, time management, trainability nature, and persistence level. Consider the brand thought the eyes of a candidate and help the salesperson to articulate the dimension of the brand.

Profile of the sales personnel in Nike: In the store management, the salesperson have to work directly with the store manager and help the shoppers to locate the products, recommend the suitable products, assemble the in-store displays for the quick view, organize the merchandizes in the sales segment, and promote the attributes about the product. In the managerial role, the performance dynamics have to meet and contribute revenue to the system, provide the best shopping experience through meeting and connecting the needs, and partner with the management team for better implementations.

Marketing Myopia

In the situation of marketing myopia, the company has the narrow-minded approaches towards the marketing and focuses more on the single aspect of the marketing and it kills the creative aspects of the brand marketing. In Nike, the marketing team has to consider certain techniques to maintain the growth and the practices which have to be avoided.

(a) Always ensure to maintain a clear vision about the timelines.

(b) Always keep the customer in the center, and never be product-oriented at first.

(c) Marketing of the product is more important than selling the product.

(d) Ensure the company is doing the right kind of researches in the market.

(e) Utilize the resources and track the competitors in place.

(f) For the future pace, always diversify the product line and brand structure.

(g) The concept of disruptive marketing.

In the mid 20th century, the company Nike understand the direction and space of the product. The company utilized the opportunity by making the track running shoes for the athletes in the 1960s (Summer Olympics). In the post-Olympic timeline, the company introduced the products into basketballs, football, and other major sports categories by aggressive campaigns and breaking the marketing myopia. In modern business, the company has to constantly consider the changing interests of the consumers and concentrate on satisfying the buyers.

New Product Development

The new product line up is always important ad crucial for companies, especially while taking the steps in Nike. Nike is organizing a new product release in the category of Nike Air, where the quality and grip of the running shoes increased, and the marketing of the product connected to the light feel and technology advancement of tracking the footsteps (quality of running).

The new product development is the process of bringing a new idea to market through the different stages like idea generation, idea screening, concept development, research, planning the overall dynamics of the product, prototyping the product, sourcing the required resources for the development, business analysis, marketing strategies for the promotion, and costing principles or the commercialization.

After the plans for new product development, the company has to plan the communication plan to highlight the product in the market. Draft and define the product timelines, and train the internal communities using the marketing domains, and leverage the key industry campaigns to connect with the audiences and invest time or money at a balanced point for meeting the standards.