We live in the age of the listicle—short, consumable bits of information served up through our apps. In that context, how do marketers build an enduring brand narrative?
There is no one answer, and there are many brands out there succeeding in unique ways. But there are sound guiding principles that can set you up for success—presented in easy list format:
- Develop an authentic yet aspirational brand platform
- Make sure all campaigns ladder up to that unifying platform
- Maintain a consistent brand voice in all communications
- Tailor by audience and/or channel without losing your brand essence
Sounds simple, right? Not exactly.
Digging a little deeper, your brand platform should be centered on a big, universal idea that captures who you are now (authentic) while giving you room to grow in the future (aspirational.) It should be brought to life through a messaging framework that considers who your target audiences are and what they are particularly interested in. For those executing your marketing, a key part of this platform and framework is a defined brand personality which translates into tone-of-voice guidelines. And while your platform should be evergreen—barring a rebrand—your messaging framework can and should be a living thing. As audience concerns and interests shift, you need to continue showing how your unique value meets their needs in ways other cannot.
If properly executed, this gives you a flexible toolbox of brand elements to work with. And this is where short(er) lived campaigns come in—they allow you to focus in on a single idea or theme at a time that resonates with audiences in a unique way. With intelligent oversight, these campaigns can combine to create a narrative arc that reinforces both your brand platform and the lived experiences customers have with your brand.
Nike offers an excellent example of these principles in practice. For more than 50 years, the brand has stayed true to itself while remaining relevant and interesting to audiences.
While the company was founded in 1964, we’ll begin our history in 1971 with the adoption of the Nike, Inc. name. From day one, the founders knew what this brand was about: athleticism and empowerment. The name itself comes from the Greek goddess of victory, nicely encapsulating the underlying brand premise.
In 1977 Nike ran its first brand ad campaign, “There is no finish line.” The campaign notably featured no products. A 1988 campaign brought us the famous slogan, “Just Do It”—probably one of the most-well know and, yes, enduring brand slogans of our day. In more recent times, the summer 2024 campaign, “Winning Isn’t for Everyone” featured “a collective of the world’s greatest athletes, all motivated by victory.” Across these various campaigns, Nike has featured inspirational headlines and copy such as:
- “Beating yourself is a never-ending commitment.”
- “Do things history could only dream of.”
- “It’s only a crazy dream until you do it.”
- “You can’t raise the bar without raising a little hell.”
Nike runs two types of ad campaigns: brand campaigns like those listed above and product campaigns. While product campaigns of course focus in on a product, usually shoes, brand campaigns consistently choose to feature athletes only—a way of not-so-subtly telling customers, we exist for you. In fact, Nike’s current homepage animation makes this subtext into text, reading, “We serve kids/pros/dreamers/women/teams/coaches/men/beginners/girls/rebels/athletes*
*If you have a body, you are an athlete”
Overall, Nike consistently excels at creating brand communications that both work as a single touchpoint and help build a clear, enduring brand narrative. It is no wonder Nike is considered one of today’s most valuable brands.
