I love the new “there are no cinderellas” commercial made by the Jordan division of Nike. The commercial highlights some of the biggest upsets in sports history.
What I particularly love is the fact that it takes on the point-of-view of the underdog – a feeling that people are emotionally drawn to.
The theme of “no cinderellas” associates the brand with everyone and every team who has ever worked hard to achieve something that others said they could not. What a great message to be associate their brand with.
Underdog references made in the Jordan commercial:
- John Thompson III is shown watching video of his father, John Thompson Jr, the first African-American head basketball coach to lead his team to a NCAA national championship.
- The I-AA Appalachian State Mountaineers are referenced for their unlikely win over the 5th ranked I-A Michigan Wolverine football team.
- North Carolina State head basketball coach, Jim Valvano, is shown running across the court after winning a NCAA national championship and snapping the Houston Cougars 26-game win streak.
- The Boise State football team, a team from a non-BCS conference, is shown practicing the “statue of liberty” play that gave them a BCS bowl victory over the Oklahoma Sooners in 2007.
- And finally, Michael Jordan is shown making the game winning shot in the 1982 NCAA national championship game. The victory was Dean Smith’s first national championship at North Carolina.
As I said on my site … ‘classic’ stuff by NIKE.