Long before Nike
laid claim to the phrase
"Just do it,"
people uttered the same basic message to one another
for reasons that varied from such things as;
"Let's play ball!"
to
"Let's get married!"
I went on a little fact finding mission regarding Nike, and their slogan,
and I was quite surprised at what I found.
Nike, originally known as Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS)
was founded in January of 1964;
by Phil Knight, a track athlete at the University of Oregon, and his coach Bill Bowerman.
In the mid-80's Nike was a struggling sports niche brand that concentrated on connecting with male athletes in competitive sports arenas out of the back seat of their station wagon.
At the very same time, fitness was changing and a company by the name of Reebok was encroaching on,
Nike's followers.
They were also widening their scope to bring in female athletes and aerobics enthusiasts with their brand new concept of aerobic shoes.
Nike sought direction from the ad agency Wieden+Kennedy (W+K) to put them in a competitive place in the sportswear world once again.
W+K did just that!
No one could have predicted the outcome of their campaign strategy, and certainly not where the slogan "just do it" came from!
So here it is,,,,,,,,,
In 1977, a man by the name of Gary Gilmore, gained international attention after he was convicted of two murders in Utah. Gilmore became the first person in almost ten years to be executed in the United States. He was executed by firing squad. Just before the first shot was fired Gilmore was asked if he had any last words
He had three...
"Let's Do It!"
In 1988, Nike execs were inspired by those very words and with one slight change, launched the
"JUST DO IT"
campaign
Nike did it!
They tipped!!
But, as phrases do, this one continued without the backstory, even today.
Children all over the world now know The Nike Swoosh,
as well as the phrase "Just Do It!'
I don't know that I could walk you through the complete evolution of this thought process and post, but I recently saw two words joined together and it has become my mantra of sorts.
"Start Somewhere"
So wherever you are, regardless of what you are doing,
when it comes to the dream that looks too big to attain,
just
START SOMEWHERE!
laid claim to the phrase
"Just do it,"
people uttered the same basic message to one another
for reasons that varied from such things as;
"Let's play ball!"
to
"Let's get married!"
I went on a little fact finding mission regarding Nike, and their slogan,
and I was quite surprised at what I found.
Nike, originally known as Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS)
was founded in January of 1964;
by Phil Knight, a track athlete at the University of Oregon, and his coach Bill Bowerman.
In the mid-80's Nike was a struggling sports niche brand that concentrated on connecting with male athletes in competitive sports arenas out of the back seat of their station wagon.
At the very same time, fitness was changing and a company by the name of Reebok was encroaching on,
Nike's followers.
They were also widening their scope to bring in female athletes and aerobics enthusiasts with their brand new concept of aerobic shoes.
Nike sought direction from the ad agency Wieden+Kennedy (W+K) to put them in a competitive place in the sportswear world once again.
W+K did just that!
No one could have predicted the outcome of their campaign strategy, and certainly not where the slogan "just do it" came from!
So here it is,,,,,,,,,
In 1977, a man by the name of Gary Gilmore, gained international attention after he was convicted of two murders in Utah. Gilmore became the first person in almost ten years to be executed in the United States. He was executed by firing squad. Just before the first shot was fired Gilmore was asked if he had any last words
He had three...
"Let's Do It!"
In 1988, Nike execs were inspired by those very words and with one slight change, launched the
"JUST DO IT"
campaign
Nike did it!
They tipped!!
But, as phrases do, this one continued without the backstory, even today.
Children all over the world now know The Nike Swoosh,
as well as the phrase "Just Do It!'
I don't know that I could walk you through the complete evolution of this thought process and post, but I recently saw two words joined together and it has become my mantra of sorts.
"Start Somewhere"
So wherever you are, regardless of what you are doing,
when it comes to the dream that looks too big to attain,
just
START SOMEWHERE!
