Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Nike Ad Deconstruction

There are few ads out there that can have a perfect mixture of comedy, suspense, and shock factor. In watching Nike's commercial promoting Kobe Bryant's shoe known as the HyperDunks I discovered all of the above with more comedy than anything else. Usually Nike commercials are more drama filled commercial with a motivational message behind it. This shoe commercial was obviously on the other side of the fence with a much funnier background to it. Mostly thanks to Kobe Bryant being accompanied by most of the MTV show Jackass crew.

I believe this advertisement was more in line with today's day and age, were always looking for something funnier, newer, and original. This commercial was definitely original and off the track of the old Nike advertisements, I believe that is what will grab viewers attentions. The commercial was able to use a lot of star power to back it's validity. It features the world's best basketball player in Kobe Bryant, whose shoes is the product and the infamous Jackass crew known for their shenanigans. The first image is an immediate eye opener with a pool full of snakes, a basketball goal, and a member of the Jackass crew talking to Bryant who notably is decked out in Nike from head to toe including the aforementioned HyperDunks. Nike is always good at keeping the product they are trying to sell in the front of everyone's minds by sticking it all over your tv screen.



The video seems to be etchy and more home video style to give the sense of realism to viewers. The conversation between the two gets broken up by a member of the Jackass crew jumping into the pool full of snakes on a tricycle. This shows suspense and comedy and definitely gives you a "what the hell did that guy just do?" shock factor. Kobe is then seen jumping around like a mad man laughing hysterically at the stunt the Jackass just pulled. Seeing this made me believe that this might actually be an uncut video shot on somebodys cybercam at a random parking lot. Not everyday I get to see Kobe cut loose and just be crazy, I usually witness him in business mode on the basketball court so seeing him in this light is new and an original take by Nike.

The thoughts of it being a real home video were quickly transformed when it next showed Kobe stepping out to behind the pool and running and jumping completely over the blow up pool and dunking it with ease. This part of the video was obviously fake and blatantly shown so by Nike. he clears it with incredible ease that is impossible for anyone without wings. Usually showing blatantly fake things draws a negative response from people but, seeing as Nike followed through with the comedy and stunt filled commercial from the beginning, I took it as it was meant to be a joke. I took it as Nike was over-hyping even their own flagship basketball shoe and player to show the viewers how light these shoes actually are. Upon further research I found out the shoes in the commercial were in fact the lightest basketball shoes ever made. After realizing this I realized that the fake dunk was actually genius marketing tool and could come off as just pure comedy to most people and that will draw them in that way. The last scene tops it off for me when a recognizable Jackass member Wee Man, a midget who is shown holding up one of Kobe's HyperDunks and raises it to his mouth so he can suck in the air to say "HyperDunk" in a helium toned voice. I thought that was very clever and hilarious. The shoes are filled with helium, how else can we explain the insane dunk? It is also funny because Wee Man's voice goes along with his tiny frame and the clever nature of it.

I believe the audience targeted in this commercial was a lot more broad and hit a lot more different types of people. More so than the other Nike commercials I have seen. Most all Nike commercials are targeted to athletes and this one is no exception. Kobe Bryant is a national icon not just on the basketball court, on any level. The Jackass crew hits white teenagers that are into skating, snowboarding, and other extreme sports the Jackass crew take part in. I think even in a more generalized view, it hits just teenagers that don't exercise that often and are just average teens that don't have too much to do and just want to get into exercising more often. Nike was able to use something more creative and way different than their usual criteria to reach a much more broad audience and I think they succeeded.
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