This Week in Marketing Strategy: Nike Bucks Convention, Rivalry Positioning, Trust-Building Digital Tips

Welcome to the February 26, 2017 edition of This Week in Marketing Strategy. Here I’ll highlight a few articles, blog posts or news pieces from around the web that are newsworthy or trending over the last one to two weeks.

First up: Watch the New Nike Ad Celebrating Arab Women in Sports That is Causing Controversy, courtesy of businessinsider.com. The Wieden & Kennedy ad features Arab women training and competing and asks them, “What will they say about you?” It directly challenges those who would say that women shouldn’t be alone in public or aren’t strong enough. It pushes you to wonder… might some actually say you’re strong, unstoppable and resourceful?

This is a powerful ad. One of the strongest I’ve seen in a long time. It’s like one big middle finger aimed directly at convention.

It floors me how some people are up in arms over the ad. They’ve called it inaccurate, inappropriate and shameful. And yet I think they’ve proven Nike’s point, that point being to call into question our preconceived notions about what women could or should do. To motivate women to stand up and take their rightful place in public, in competition, in victory and in our lives.

As Reuters reports, not everyone supports the depiction, some are calling it a misrepresentation of Arab women. read more at businessinsider.com

Second up: Ritson on Brand: Pick an Enemy and Position Against Them. Hard, courtesy of marketingmag.com.au. Mark Ritson reminds us that great positioning is not only about the value your brand provides, but also the enemy you fight. And, great positioning sets up the battle with this enemy so that you can win.

Mark includes a number of case studies, from Avis to Apple, that can serve as great thought-starters for your own brand. It’s particularly helpful if your brand is the underdog (which most brands are).

The versus position is one in which we make it clear what we stand for to customers by highlighting the differences between ourselves and others. read more at marketingmag.com.au

Our third and final article this week: Why Trust is the New Marketing Currency, courtesy of entrepreneur.com. We all know that building a brand is about building trust with our customers. Alex Jasin lays out how content plays a significant role, particularly in digital marketing strategy.

Content is not just for big brands. It plays a pivotal role for most small businesses, as it’s an effective and efficient way to build authority, drive traffic and nurture leads.

I really like how Alex walks through some of the important steps to creating compelling content, including planning and research. It’s not as simple as throwing up a blog and just writing on random topics. Alex encourages us to think through who our target audience is and what they are seeking.

It’s not enough to simply get eyeballs on what you’re selling. Trust, not exposure, is the currency of today. Of course, this raises one critical question: how do you build trust? read more at entrepreneur.com

Those are a few of the popular and trending pieces in the news related to marketing strategy. They caught my attention and hopefully they are useful to you.

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Images from businessinsider.com, marketingmag.com.au, entrepreneur.com.