Various Nike Commercials

Building off of my other blog post, I want to focus on a few Nike commercials with no words, just all music and sounds. The first two are very similar, just involve different sports. Both have a nice mix of stars and random people which I think really adds to the commercial. Instead of just seeing these superstars doing these incredible tricks, there are regular people in there also. You can’t help but smile when you see all the synchronization and choreography among all the people. One of my favorite parts of either commercial is in the soccer one when at one point it’s just a goalie standing there, kind of bouncing from side to side trying to get into the rhythm with balls being kicked at him. It’s a sharp contrast to the rest of the commercial but it’s hilarious and makes it feel like they just found a random guy on the street who’s trying to fit in with everyone, but clearly doesn’t have the skills to.

As mentioned before, what really steals the commercials is the music. All the sounds are made up with sports noises. The beat in the basketball commercial is set early on with the bouncing of the basketball. Throughout the commercial, there’s the familiar squeaking of basketball shoes against the hardwood floor, a loud grunt every now and then from a player, and other noises you’d hear at any basketball game. The soccer version is pretty much similar with a few slight changes such as some whistles/fans cheering and even a bit of some Brazilian flair with a little samba.

The last video is an incredibly simple and elegant video. It’s Tiger Woods (before his fiasco) simply bouncing a golf ball on his club. He does all sorts of tricks and makes it look like it’s no big deal. The best part about the commercial isn’t actually seen though. The commercial idea was actually created impromptu. Tiger was just messing around in between takes for a different commercial and was entertaining some of the camera crew when an executive saw it and thought it’d be a great commercial. The combination of the easy-goingness of the music and the way Tiger makes everything look so simple and elegant make this an incredible commercial which gives the viewer a feel-good vibe.

The Power of Parodies

In my last post, I talked a lot about the NFL and the commercials that they aired during this year’s postseason. In particular, I talked about the strategy to use fan reaction videos to convince the casual sports fan to watch the NFL playoffs. However, the true genius behind this marketing plan lies far beyond what is seen on the television screen, but rather in its ability to be replicated and, to an even greater extent, parodied. Take this example with the Minnesota Vikings:

The fact that the commercial campaign is being parodied demonstrates the level to which the campaign as a whole is successful. It shows that not only can it be commercially successful, but virally successful as well. Popular video websites such as YouTube and Vimeo allow users to upload virtually any content, and we very often see videos “go viral.” This provides even more free advertisement to the NFL, and sparks dialogue that spans pages (as seen in the “comments” section). Additionally, on a site like YouTube there are suggested videos on the page that are similar to the one being watched, so when parodies are made the suggested videos often link back to the originals.

In general, a parody of a video (or in this case of a commercial) represents a much stronger connection to a video’s message. The creator is making a commitment to the video by taking the time to think of and craft a video in the same vain as the original, but he/she demonstrates a deeper level of understanding by parodying it. In this case, the message is the emotional appeal of one’s favorite team making a big play to win an important game; in the parody it shows the emotional wreckage that can happen when fans find themselves on the other side of that big play. This is encapsulated in the above video best from 0:48-0:53, as we see a Vikings fan repeatedly slamming an object against a countertop while the NFL Playoffs tagline, “This Is What It’s All About,” reads across the screen.

Reebok's Terry Tate Office Linebacker Commercial

Reebok’s “Terry Tate Office Linebacker” commercial from the 2003 Superbowl is easily one of my favorite commercials of all time. This commercial is based on a company that hires an office linebacker to ensure maximum productivity of its workforce. The linebacker, named Terry Tate, goes around the office tackling and screaming at the workers when they are slacking on the job.

One of the most enjoyable parts of this commercial is its use of comedy. It is extremely funny to see Terry Tate tackling and screaming at the workers. He is running around the office knocking people into oblivion. A lot of the comedy in this commercial draws from the notion of an incorrect context. On a football field, it would be very normal to see a defender tackling and taunting an opponent. In an office building, however, this behavior is somewhat unprecedented. Thus, the inconsistency of a football player patrolling around an office building plays a big part in creating the comedy of the commercial.

Additionally, this commercial’s appeal does not derive from a star athlete. Terry Tate is not a real NFL linebacker. Rather, he is a made-up character that represents any generic linebacker. Therefore, unlike many sports commercials explored in this blog, star appeal does not have any role in making this commercial a success. Instead of star appeal, this commercial seems to succeed due to its novelty. The majority of people who saw this commercial during the Superbowl were football fans. Moreover, many of these people work in an office building during the week. These two components of the their lives, however, are often kept far away from each other. As a result, the combination of work life and football into one commercial appeals to all of these viewers who probably wish their office life could be more related to football. Overall, this commercial is a hysterical and clever integration of football and office life that is easily relatable to many Americans.

Gatorade's "Be Like Mike"

Gatorade’s “Be Like Mike” commercial is potentially the most iconic sports commercial of all time. It may also represent the most shameless, albeit effective use of the sporting celebrity and the sporting highlight in a commercial to date. Its creators craft an utterly happy atmosphere, one in which a plethora of distinct voices can be heard joyously singing phrases like “I want to be like Mike” and “Sometimes, I dream that he is me”. All the while, the viewer is being relentlessly hit with a bevy of famous Jordan highlights, cute kids/regular people trying to replicate his greatness, and generally amiable interactions between Jordan and others. The commercial is overwhelmingly, almost sickening, pleasant. It does, however, deliver a clear and concise message – if you want to be like Michael Jordan, drink Gatorade. In a sense, this commercial is emphasizing a truth. Michael Jordan likely does drink Gatorade, as do most athletes, and by drinking Gatorade, you are now more like him. To the incredibly naïve, this commercial instead says, “drink Gatorade and you will be able to play basketball like Michael Jordan,” which will most assuredly not be the case.

Jordan’s presence and highlights within the “Be Like Mike” commercial are unbelievably successful marketing tools. People generally desire association with things that are cool, exiting, dynamic, and culturally relevant. Michael Jordan and his highlights were all of these things. The commercial was first aired during the summer of 1991, right after the conclusion of the NBA’s 1990/1991 season. Jordan had just been crowned the finals MVP, the regular season MVP, and the Bulls had won the NBA Championship. Jordan was undoubtedly one of the most famous athletes in the world. But, he was more than just immensely successful, he was cool and colorful, an obvious choice for a product spokesman. Gatorade’s decision to have Jordan appear in their commercials proved to be a shrewd business move as it helped launch the product into unprecedented success. This was largely due to Jordan’s natural salesmanship. He didn’t have to be a textbook salesman, instead he just had to continue being cool and relevant, which he did. People truly did want to “be like Mike” and that’s why this commercial was so successful.

McDonald's and Basketball- Through the Years

Call me crazy, but when I think of McDonald’s, my mind doesn’t immediately spring to thoughts of in-shape, professional basketball players. However, this is the direction McDonald’s advertisers have gone in for literally decades. One of their most recent commercials features superstars Lebron James and Dwight Howard squaring off in a slam-dunk contest where the winner gets a Big Mac, obviously a coveted prize for two professional athletes who, if need be, could buy an entire McDonalds in order to get their hands on one. While this commercial could stand by itself in its entertainment value, what is most exciting is that it is a copy-cat of a 1990’s McDonald’s ad featuring the basketball superstars of the time, Michael Jordan and Larry Bird, taking jump-shots for the same prize.

The past commercial creates audience foreknowledge for those who were around in the 90’s, providing definite information the audience can bring to this commercial. The premise and dialog are almost identical, with the exception of changing the jump-shot contest into the more visually spectacular slam-dunks. This might be because Dwight Howard is not a jump shooter, Larry Bird was not much of a dunker and well, MJ and Lebron James do both, or because the technology in the 1990’s was only advanced enough to show outrageously complicated jump shots as opposed to dunks like the ones performed in the recent installment of the commercial by James and Howard. Although it is clear that in both commercials some of the shots were edited, the stars’ skills are still showcased and we can marvel at their outstanding abilities. It is fun as the audience to also witness the playful interactions between both sets of superstars who are each other’s rivals. Dwight Howard’s big, comical personality is front and center in the commercial while Lebron simply dunks when he is supposed to and smiles along with us. Bird and Jordan make faces at each other as the contest continues on and on until they are taking shots from the top of a skyscraper across the street.

The real genius in the recent commercial is its self-referentiality. The Howard/James commercial is not only identical to the Bird/Jordan version, but it features Larry Bird at the end of the commercial eating the player’s Big Mac. The audience can laugh at Bird who is finally getting the lunch he competed for 20 years earlier while watching a new generation of players from the sidelines. For those who do not know of the 90’s version of the commercial but who are still basketball fans and familiar with the Hall-of-Fame career of Bird, the fact that James and Howard do not recognize him is a comical twist. Those of a younger generation, who are similar to James and Howard in their ignorance of basketball history, can relate to the stars and still find the commercial entertaining on a more shallow level.

For someone who loves basketball and watches the NBA slam-dunk contest every year, this commercial is a lot of fun for me. Although I don’t think it is all that likely Lebron James and Dwight Howard are rolling up to the drive through window every chance they get, McDonald’s has used an effective technique to portray the continued success of their signature Big Mac and fries among superstar basketball players. Will they follow up in another 20 years? As long as basketball and the Big Mac are still popular, I can’t see why not.

Blake Griffin for the Kia Optima

It is safe to say that Kia wants its new commercial to be a “slam dunk,” literally. In this commercial, the automobile company is clearly appealing to the emerging stardom of Blake Griffin, a high flying NBA rookie who has taken the basketball world by storm. He has grown to be so popular that whenever he has a highlight, it is almost immediately uploaded onto Youtube or NBA.com. There are certain stars in the NBA that only people who watch basketball know about, but Blake Griffin is not one of them. His memorizing dunks not only appeal to the basketball fan, but also to anyone who can appreciate the spectacular and the amazing. What Blake Griffin does can even remind us of previous commercials done by the NBA where its slogan was: “The NBA. Where amazing happens.”

What is even more special about this commercial is that the highlight is not even from an actual game. It is actually one of Griffin’s dunks from the 2011 Slam Dunk Contest. This clearly demonstrates that it is not necessary to directly connect a product with the game itself, but only necessary to associate the product with one of the game’s stars and with one defining moment that happened to be part of All-Star weekend. This commercial is also an example of cross-promotion. For instance, KIA Motors is attempting to market its automobile, the KIA optima, through another venue, which in this case, is the professional basketball world. The commercial wants the viewer to know that Blake Griffin is amazing, but so is the KIA Optima.

It is also not a coincidence that State Farm Insurance is clearly depicted in the commercial as being behind the backboard. This is an example of product packaging where if the viewer is compelled to buy the KIA Optima after watching the commercial, he or she might also be compelled to buy State Farm Insurance to go along with it. The only disappointing part about the commercial might be that Blake Griffin does not come with the car.

NBA 2010 - 2011 Season Opening Commercial TNT

This commercial about the upcoming NBA season spins the idea of marketing in a unique way. Instead of marketing a product, this commercial is marketing a sport itself. The NBA knows that the best time to excite its current fans and to garner new fans is at the beginning of the season. Thus, they have decided to showcase the league’s most exciting stars in an attempt to market the game of basketball. From Brandon Roy hitting a game winning jumper to Kobe and Lebron dunking over helpless defenders, the NBA is hoping that many people will be appealed by the excitement and amazingness that basketball can bring.

The commercial also displays the fanaticism that comes with being a sports fan. For many of us who are sports fans, it is not just a game, it is a way of life. We are just as excited as the players themselves when our teams win and perhaps, even more despondent than they are when our team loses. The commercial also shows how passionate NBA players are about basketball. Most of the time, the casual fan appears to think that these professional athletes do not care about winning or losing, but only about getting their paycheck. However, when Nate Robinson says, “If you took my heart out, it would be a basketball” and when Dwyane Wade says, “It makes me complete,” people will start to realize that some of these professional athletes are truly passionate about the game of basketball. It is their job, but they love to do it. Kobe even goes on to mention that he loves the sound of the nets and the smell of the leather on the basketball.

The NBA, in this commercial, is essentially dramatizing the game of basketball. These are not just superior athletes playing competitively on the court, but they are also human beings who can feel emotions and who use those emotions to fuel their play. To the basketball fan, this commercial will reinforce what they were already feeling, that whether it is the players or the fans, we are all equally important in making the game what it is. To someone who is looking to do something new, the commercial will hopefully show them that basketball is about passion, competition and always striving for excellence.

Peyton Manning MasterCard Commercial

When a company hires a spokesman to promote its product, the ultimate goal is to sell the maximum amount of that product. Companies go to great lengths in order to position their spokesman in ways that effectively advertise their products. The commercial above is a MasterCard commercial featuring Peyton Manning, the quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts. Peyton Manning is one of the best and most famous athletes in the United States. He has been one of the faces of the NFL since he was drafted 1^st overall in the 1998 NFL draft. Thus, given his premier status in the U.S. sporting landscape, it makes sense that MasterCard decided to pay Peyton Manning to advertise their credit cards.

This commercial is part of a larger MasterCard advertising campaign, featuring the phrase: “There are some things money can’t buy. For everything else there’s MasterCard.” The overall idea of this campaign is to illustrate that while certain once-in-a-lifetime events cannot be bought for any price, anything with a price tag can be bought using MasterCard. The Peyton Manning commercial gives prices for a grill, a sandwich, and a tank of gas, but claims that having fans is a priceless commodity.

The most interesting part of Peyton Manning’s function in this commercial is the role reversal with his fans. Typically, Manning is adored and cheered by fans. He is revered as a hero in Indianapolis, and countless kids dream of becoming Peyton Manning when they grow up. In this commercial, however, Peyton Manning is rooting on people who are doing ordinary things such as making a sandwich or filling up a tank of gas. Normally, these people would be rooting for Manning on the football field. In this commercial, Manning is pretending to be a passionate follower of his fans.

The role reversal that Manning employs makes this commercial very memorable. For many commercials, I forget the product being advertised right after seeing it because there is nothing notable about the action in the commercial. In this commercial, however, Manning’s role reversal with his fans has seared the MasterCard image into my mind. I will never see this commercial and not remember that the product being advertised is MasterCard. Therefore, this commercial seems to be very successful in its goal of promoting the MasterCard brand, due in large part to Peyton Manning’s role reversal with his fans.

Nike's "Write the Future"

Nike’s “Write the Future” was a commercial played before the 2010 World Cup. This wasn’t your typical 30 second commercial. The full commercial took three minutes and followed a number of the world’s greatest soccer players. Some main points of the commercial are the lack of any dialogue, the slow motion effects, the various stars (including non-soccer players) and the “storyline” of the various stars.

What the commercial lacks in standard dialogue, it makes up for with its use of crowd cheers and other sound effects. The first sequence consists of Drogba, a star on the Ivory Coast national team, dribbling the ball. You hear the roar of the crowd, cut by the silence whenever Drogba makes a move, the excitement of the announcer, and when the ball appears to be going in, the sound of parades and jubilance of the Ivory Coast citizens (Drogba writing the future for himself, scoring the winning goal and brining the World Cup trophy to his nation). However, right before the ball crosses the line, Italian star Cannavaro comes in and clears the ball off the line. We see the effect this has when Cannavaro has a whole song written about him and hundreds of women cheering for him (not too farfetched for a European soccer star).

The next sequence is probably my favorite in the commercial. England star Wayne Rooney tries a long pass which becomes intercepted by French player Ribery. In the aftermath of his bad pass, the stock market crashes, people hate him, there’s a small cameo by 3 American players who seem to be pleased with the result and worst of all, Ribery gets a giant billboard ad. Seeing what could happen, Rooney sprints back to save the play, and now rewrites the future. He is knighted by the Queen, 3 Spanish players bemoan his new success, the stock market shoots up, everyone is naming their kids Wayne and best of all, he easily beats tennis superstar Roger Federer in ping pong. (This is an interesting use of brining in another Nike sponsor, Roger Federer, and having him take part in the commercial)

Following this scene, we have Ronaldinho showing off some of his Brazilian flare with a few step overs of the ball. This signature move becomes an instant hit and is copied my hundreds and then posted to youtube. Even NBA star Kobe Bryant after hitting a last second shot celebrates by doing the dance. (Again, another Nike sponsor brought in to help). The ad ends with Portugese Christiano Ronaldo lined up to take a free kick, with the possibility of a stadium being named after him and a giant replica statue of him to be raised.

All of these stars’ writing their future is based off of the World Cup. The amazing thing, as ridiculous as it seems, it’s honestly pretty accurate. Granted you’re not going to get knighted for winning the World cup (though there is a soccer manager who has been knighted), if Wayne Rooney actually did bring England its first World Cup since 1966, he would be treated like royalty. The commercial captures the passion that fans around the world have for the nation during the World Cup (which sadly the USA cannot emulate) and got millions of fans around the world excited for the greatest sporting event ever created.

ESPN's "Dancing Coaches"

The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship, more commonly referred to as March Madness, is unequivocally one of the most exciting events of the annual sporting calendar. The unpredictable and unrelenting nature of the tournament makes it a must-watch for sports fanatics. ESPN’s “Dancing Coaches” commercial operates by exploring the unparalleled excitement of March Madness through a unique lens. Instead of simply offering a montage of famous game winners (an all too common tactic), ESPN illustrates the pseudo-hysteria that defines college basketball by documenting the emotional investment and passion of college coaches.

The clips of coaches frantically calling plays or reacting to a call with which they vehemently disagree clarify what can be deemed a highlight. Unlike more traditional sporting commercials, “Dancing Coaches” manifests an unglamorous and often unrecognized side of sports. Instead of, for example, focusing on Michael Jordan’s great game winners or the Saints’ unlikely rise to prominence in the NFL, ESPN reveals the unruly and sometimes emotionally raw side of sports – one that may be ultimately as interesting to the viewer. In this way, highlights can be viewed not only as those things that are seen as crucial in determining the outcome of a sporting event, but also those occurrences that appear unusual or especially intriguing. In this case, ESPN intends to illustrate, with evidence, the energy and enthusiasm characteristic of not only March Madness, but also sports in general. So, ESPN references an unusual and under-documented aspect of sports to show how deeply rooted passion and excitement are within sports. This point is then reinforced by text that proclaims, “It’s not crazy, it’s sports.”

ESPN is attempting to positively shape our expectations of not only the upcoming NCAA tourney, but also the much larger realm of sports in general. It is useful to then think of “Dancing Coaches” as a paratext for both March Madness as well as general sports coverage (interest in both would inevitably benefit ESPN in some manner). In his book Show Sold Separately: Promos, Spoilers, and Other Media Paratexts, Jonathan Gray defines paratexts as information that shapes our expectations and faith, ultimately informing why and how we consume. This notion of paratexts can easily be applied in this context; ESPN wants people to expect excitement, expect emotion, and albeit clichéd expect the unexpected. These expectations inform decisions about the consumption of sports coverage, which in this case is the greater text.

“Dancing Coaches” is effective in using an unusual aspect of sports to convey some of its fundamental characteristics – uncertainty, passion, and excitement. The video clips serve as evidence to support this illustration. Justice’ “D.A.N.C.E.” provides an interesting soundtrack, one that functionally supports the commercials message by saying, “This might look like dancing, but it’s not. It’s sports.” This may seem unusual, but not within the context of sports where the unusual, the exciting, the uncertain are common. The delicate crafting of this message is what makes “Dancing Coaches” great.

NFL Playoffs - This Is What It's All About

This year, the NFL aired a host of playoff commercials. There are always a wide range of commercials aimed at convincing fans to watch NFL games, but in the playoffs it is even more vital to capture the casual football fan. This year, the NFL took a unique and interesting approach, using fan reaction videos of incredible moments to promote the NFL playoffs. One of the most widely used of these commercials is of the Super Bowl-sealing interception by Tracy Porter that led to the New Orleans Saints beating the Indianapolis Colts for their first Super Bowl victory in franchise history. The commercial can be seen here:

There will always be a core base of football fans that are going to watch every NFL playoff game. Additionally, there are the diehard local fans that will watch every game that their team is in until they are out of the playoffs. But what about the local fans whose teams didn't make the playoffs? Or the casual sports fan that likes watching a football game when it happens to be on, but won’t necessarily take the time to seek one out? These casual fans are the ones the NFL seeks out come playoff-time – the true moneymakers.

The New Orleans Saints reaction commercial is the prototypical example of how to capture the interest of these casual fans. It pulls at the emotions of the viewer, and focuses on the opportunity to witness an incredible moment in sports history. A fan never knows when one of these moments will happen, but the draw of the possibility of witnessing it live when it does is what can push these casual fans over the edge in getting them to watch every game in the playoffs. The tagline at the end of the video, reading “This is what it’s all about,” is further evidence that this was the intent behind this commercial campaign.

Another aspect of this commercial that helps make it so successful is the quality and point of view of the video footage itself. It is very clear that all of these video clips are low-quality, fan-made reaction videos. This allows the viewer to feel as though they are sitting right there with the fans in living rooms and bars across the country, which makes the entire commercial feel more personal. The people in the video are not actors, superstars, or athletes; they’re just ordinary people witnessing extraordinary events unfolding before their eyes. It is exactly this personal connection to the audience that makes these commercials so effective. Since the viewer feels an emotional connection with the fans in the commercial, the possibility of sharing in one of these moments is promoted even further, which is manifested by the audience watching more NFL Playoffs games.

An interesting note – the Saints commercial was so successful that the NFL actually made another, shorter version featuring a reaction to the catch that led to the Giants beating the Patriots in the 2008 Super Bowl. These commercials are so much cheaper to make than big production commercials that I wouldn’t be surprised to see even more of them going into the future. Here’s the Giants commercial:

New Michael Jordan Commercial 2010

Michael Jordan, one of the greatest known athletes of our time, represents himself in order to sell his brand, Air Jordan. The commercial is a highlight reel of his sports career both in basketball and baseball. The instrumental music in the background is accompanied by his voiceover of his trials. His speech is in a serious tone in which he questions the viewer about how they think Michael Jordan rose to his success. He stresses points about how the highlights do not start on the free throw line which corresponds to his famous dunk from the free throw line rather how it all starts at practice. This commercial is similar to some of the new Nike commercials which do not discuss only the athletic ability of a star but their personal stories and trials such as his athletic failure when he took to baseball after his basketball career. By showing that he was not born with this gift but needed to work for all his fame and success in basketball, makes him seem more human. The human aspect of the star athlete makes the audience member feel more of a sense of attachment to the athlete and therefore more likely to purchase apparel from the company. In this commercial, Jordan makes me feel as if it is okay to strive for something and not achieve it. What is more important, according to the commercial, is to keep trying and working for what you want. It provides a sense of warmth and comfort to the viewer, which is exactly how I felt after seeing it.

This commercial takes a specific approach and tells a story of his rise to fame. The highlight reel shows all sorts of highlights from practicing in the gym, to college hoops, to the White Sox and finally his most influential success, his career with the Chicago Bulls. The commercial emphasizes through the visuals and the dialogue how there were steps to becoming who he is and how he reached that level. Through the discussion of his emotions, the viewer can again relate as every person who has ever played a competitive sport understands that there is a rush of emotions, whether they be positive or negative.

The highlight reel and passion that are shown in this commercial motivates the viewer to stop watching the television and begin their athletic career. It is clear from this superstar’s words that this kind of athleticism does not come easy but requires work and dedication. Since the brand being advertised is Air Jordan, the fact that Michael Jordan himself is speaking represents what he wants the company to stand for: fervor and commitment. Most audience members would not listen to the advice of a person who did not become so successful so the stardom effect is what drives this commercial and sale of the product. Furthermore, although we do not see Michael Jordan speaking during the commercial, his voiceover paired with the highlights makes him seem almost like an ominous God-like figure. This furthers the idea of the star being the driving point behind the brand.

Nike "Leave Nothing"

Most commercials these days have a specific purpose in mind: to sell a brand or product. However, there are several ways in which the advertising teams for these companies try to sell their label. In this specific case, Nike uses the progression of stardom to sell their product. The commercial shows clips from the lives of star football players, Ladainian Tomlinson and Troy Polamalu, from birth to their literal physical meeting in the NFL. The use of these two stars not only captivates the audiences’ attention but also encourages them to buy Nike products. By being in this commercial, the stars are saying to the public that Nike is their choice of brand and that it should also be yours. After all, if Nike is good enough for these two athletes, who isn’t it good enough for? The use of the star automatically makes the brand more appealing as our culture has a fascination with stars. Lawrence Wenner’s concept of communicative dirt is applicable here because he states that through media there is a “cultural leak” and almost as a source of power (Wenner, 113). It is obvious here that the media is showing the cultural aspect of an obsession with stars and how they have the power to influence.

The commercial is special in the sense that there are no voices or dialogue but only the noise of the crowd, physical hits, and dramatic music. The music becomes increasingly more dramatic as the commercial progresses which keeps the viewer wanting more and culminates at the tackle where we see the Nike swoosh on Polamalu’s glove. The lack of dialogue forces the viewer to focus on the visual of the commercial which is the athletic ability of the two stars. The combination of intense music and no dialogue creates a serious tone which makes the viewer contemplate about how individually they can reach their goals, just like the athletes. The lack of dialogue and physical nature is the voice in this commercial. This commercial would not be successful if it were two arbitrary high school or college athletes. The use of stardom aided by the intense music is meant to bolster Nike’s product and establish a need for the audience to purchase their merchandise.

The idea behind the commercial is “Leave Nothing” which is meant to be read as leave nothing to fate. The fact that star athletes were used is meant to support the idea that the athlete does not leaving anything to fate rather works from day one to become what they want to be. This is portrayed throughout the commercial as they are practicing football and other sports from the start. Furthermore, the commercial illustrates only the athletic ability of the two and how they should be role models as opposed to drawing attention to their personal lives which many commercials do. The amalgamation of all these aspects creates an enticing commercial which makes the audience want to be a member of the Nike product. I am a perfect example because after seeing this commercial, I wanted to get off the couch and choose my own course of life. Although this was just a temporary feeling (as most peoples reactions to commercials are), the initial reaction was there and it was triggered by Nike.