Marketing Communication of Adidas - Essay Example

?Marketing Communication of Adidas In today’s competitive market, survival of brands is a challenge to firms as they fight to keep their market shareand retain customers. Crucial to achieving a brand’s competitive edge is its marketing communication strategy that differentiates it from other products and captures its niche market. Marketing communication entails communication with the target audience through various channels such as advertising, promotion, social media marketing, personal selling and below the line marketing activities. Marketing communication is aligned with the marketing plan and because of its visibility serves to be the impetus behind achieving the short term and long term marketing and communication objectives. Largely, marketing communication aims to engage consumers by creating brand loyalty, awareness and favorable attitudes towards the brand. Created in 1925 by Adolf ‘Adi’ Dassler, Adidas has dominated the sports apparel and footwear market for over 80 years. Adidas started off as a sports footwear company that designed special shoes for athletes, however, over the years Adidas expanded into sports goods as well. After its success in Germany Adidas expanded to the United States in 1968, and captured the American market in a matter of few years. Adidas’ success worldwide can be attributed not only to its unmatched quality and innovation but also to its marketing strategies. Being a premier sports brand, Adidas has been prominent in the sports world at all levels which has been a huge success factor for the brand. The broad product offering of Adidas has enabled it to capture a global market for itself; the product categories include Football, Basketball, Running, Training and Outdoor sports. Customization and innovation are key growth drivers for the brand. Adidas is identified with performance and in order to uphold that brand image it serves its consumers five performance benefits through its products which are designed to be faster, stronger, smarter, cooler and natural. Marketing communication plays a pivotal role when it comes to establishing brand name, loyalty and engaging consumers. The marketing communication of Adidas seeks to achieve three main objectives: creating brand awareness, identifying a need that the brand or product fulfills and finally encouraging action from the audience. It achieves these by employing seamless marketing and communication leadership strategies, rendering authenticity through strategic partnerships and extending brand reach through endorsements and partnerships. A very important growth driver is the brand’s history with athletes and Global sports which has not only created a favorable brand image but also brand awareness and loyalty in the Global arena. Endorsements and sponsorships have been the central marketing communication tool of Adidas. By virtue of its nature, the brand has the power to dominate the world of sports through strategic partnerships and celebrity endorsements. The most crucial perhaps, have been endorsements by athletes such as Ian Thorpe, Andre Agassi, Kaka, Zidane, David Beckham et al who embody the brand image and product philosophy and consequently create very favorable attitudes in consumers towards the brand. The brand is, therefore, not only preferred by athletes across the world but also by ordinary consumers who have a passion for sports and who idolize those athletes. Another marketing tool of the brand is associating the brand philosophy to tangible outcomes. This not only renders legitimacy to the brand but also sensationalizes it and therefore leaves a very far reaching impact by creating a brand appeal that is second to none. The ‘golden ball’ for instance was the official football for FIFA World Cup 2006. The brand’s association with major sporting events, leagues, clubs and sports associations as partner, sponsor and licensee has also been a central pillar in propping its marketing communication. Among many such associations some mention worthy partnerships and sponsorships include; the official sponsor and licensee of FIFA 2002 and 2006, the Summer Olympics in Sydney 2000, the European Football Championship 2008, the Atlanta Olympic games and such like. Adidas launched its ‘Impossible is nothing’ campaign in 2003 to promote the brand philosophy and empower brand image through influential names in the sports world such as Mohammad Ali, David Beckham et cetera. In 2000 Adidas was honored with the advertiser of the year award. The new official three-striped logo, which symbolizes the brand’s performance and vision, was launched to aid brand retention among consumers. Adidas places its varied consumers at the heart of its business. From athletes to savvy sport lovers, Adidas uses a different brand appeal for each of these segments. For instance one segment might be influenced by endorsements while another might be more inclined towards customization. As the world becomes more and more connected Adidas has strategies aimed at tapping consumers online as well. Adidas ‘personalisation’, for instance, is a newly developed concept which enables online consumers to customize their product as per their needs. Another important factor is communication; how the brand is communicated consistently from the initial idea to the final point of sale. Each brand of Adidas has a different positioning and is targeted to a specific set of consumers therefore the marketing and communications specific to each brand is consistent throughout the communication process. By showing sport as a lifestyle across all channels of communication the brand shows sport as an emotion and creates messages that are in sync with the brand philosophy and act as powerful tools that capture the consumer’s attention and resonate with his lifestyle and needs. Adidas has seen a mature development in its marketing communication over its rich 80 year history. Over time the marketing and communication objectives have changed according to competition, consumers’ needs and accessibility, product offerings, digitization and brand positioning. From one brand name targeted at masses it became a structure of brands and sub-brands specific to niche markets. After the founder’s death and changes in the world market for sports goods, increased competition from brands such as Nike and Puma, meant that Adidas could not rely on product innovation alone and marketing and communication strategies had to be tremendously revamped. In 1983 Horst Dassler introduced ‘International Sports, Culture and Leisure’ (ISL) as the first marketing company committed to promoting sports events across the world. In order to make Adidas sustainable in the face of competition it was transformed from a manufacturing-oriented company to a marketing-oriented one. In conclusion the marketing communication objectives of Adidas are specific to different product categories that cater to certain niche markets and address their specific needs through the marketing and communication channels most effective for that segment. The primary objective of the brand is to position itself as an acknowledged world leader in sports goods which it does largely through associating itself with, legendary athletes and all major sporting events across the Globe. These objectives have seen a progression since the brand’s inception and have enabled it to position itself as a premier name in sports goods. References Adidas, 2012. Adidas - About Us. [online] Available at: [Accessed 06 March 2012]. Adidas Group, 2012. Adidas Strategy. [online] Available at: [Accessed 06 March 2012]. Adidas Group, 2012. Global Brands Strategy. [online] Available at: [Accessed 06 March 2012]. Read More