By Antoine Dufay
In marketing and brand management, storytelling is the telling of a story for communication purposes.
This approach consists of using a story rather than the classic brand or product arguments. According to various studies, this tool should normally allow to capture attention, to arouse emotion, to work on the brand personality and, according to some studies, to favor memorization.
Here's how Adidas sets up its storytelling, or the art of moving from the product's function to emotion and belonging to the brand for customers.
Dedicated research centers
In the Oregon-based Sport Science Perception laboratory, Adidas teams conduct technology-based research to better understand athletes' emotions.
More precisely, the experiment was conducted by Jeff Goldblum and broadcast on National Geographic. The objective was to determine which 7 facial emotions (joy, surprise, sadness) are present when an athlete or a customer of the brand analyzes a pair of Adidas sneakers.
The data collected allows to understand the performance/emotion relationship of the athlete and his shoes. Furthermore, a shoe that makes the athlete feel confident and emotional helps him or her improve performance.
According to researcher Jeff Goldblum (head of the experiment) said: "Sneakers are as much about the brain as they are about the body.”
The major campaigns
In 2001, Ben Stiller's character in the movie "The Royal Tenebaums" wore an adidas jogging suit. It may seem like a product placement, but ultimately, this decision will be the cornerstone of the brand's strategy, which has become a "cool" brand and almost a landmark for all generations. This action reflects the huge impact on an emotional level among the brand's customers.
Ben Stiller in the movie “The royal Tenebaums”
Another striking campaign: impossible is nothing, released in 2007. So striking that, 10 years later, people had not forgotten it and are still talking about it!
The principle was simple: no technology, no product promotion but only real stories and emotions!
The spearhead of the campaign was the advert in which star Lionel Messi appears. More than 10 years after the release of the campaign, the slogan "Impossible is Nothing" is now a symbol for a whole generation, making the story of a victory out of a defeat and instilling a triumphant spirit.
More recently, two campaigns that appeared in 2013 and 2015 also made news: "MyGirls" and "Superstars", with the brand aiming more than ever to connect customers to the brand.
In 2015, the brand chose to hire a creative agency "72 sunny" to implement aggressive storytelling at the heart of their advertising campaigns.
The latest campaign, "blah blah blah", had the message of ignoring haters and delivering a positive message.
Storytelling is now everywhere and Adidas has understood this. Thanks to its various hard-hitting campaigns, the brand is now considered the most popular sports brand by most people.
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