Three marketing lessons from Super Eagles jersey launch

Three million pre-orders?   Check!

Sold out in three minutes? Check!

Thousands of tweets on the subject matter?  Check!

Positive coverage by international media?  Check!

Evoked a sense of unity and patriotism amongst Nigerians? Check. Check and Check!

It’s been a while since I saw a topic that united Nigerians at home and abroad. And as a communication strategist, I have been watching with interest as Nigeria’s World Cup Jersey has been one of the leading conversation drivers online over the past few days. The jersey gave Nigerians a channel to further express their love for the beautiful game of football and show support for the Super Eagles.

However, regardless of what you might think of the jersey-I think it is beautiful by the way, here are three key lessons we can all learn from this uber-successful jersey launch by Nike.

Have a great product

One of the major reasons why the kit launch has been very successful is because the kit is very beautiful. I have been actively following Nigeria’s football since 2002 and this is arguably the best jersey I have seen. If we are to go with the reactions of the general public about the jersey, and the subsequent rush to get one, then I am right.

The jersey got sold out online in just 3 minutes, and Nike was reported to have gotten 3 million pre-orders.

The aesthetic of the jersey is simply outstanding, and the fact that the design team drew inspiration from the iconic jersey worn by one of the Super Eagles finest set during the 1994 world cup further strengthens the storyline.

When you have a great product, it is easier to get people to buy what you are selling. Focus on creating a great experience, a great product first and sales will be easier.

Leverage on Pop Culture

When Nike decided to unveil this jersey in February, it leveraged on popular culture by aligning with two of Nigeria’s biggest exports: Arsenal FC Footballer, Alexander Iwobi and Pop Star, Wizkid.

These two stars between them have a lot of influence amongst Nigerians populace both in Africa and in the Diaspora, and this collaboration set the stage for the eventual frenzy that we have been witnessing on social media when the jerseys were eventually released last week.

Nike also released a behind the scenes video of the jersey being unveiled to John Mikel Obi, Wilfred Ndidi, Alex Iwobi and Kelechi Ihenacho.

The jersey was a hit from the onset, because it is a great product and using two of Nigeria’s finest cultural exports (Alex Iwobi and Wizkid) to model it gave it the necessary push to become successful.

Football is one of those sectors that you can use to drive the narrative for your country to the outside world, and this jersey gave Nigeria a lot of earned media in key publications across the world.

You can leverage on pop culture themes to push out your brand’s key messages. You can jump on conversations and tap into Nigerians passion for: Football, Music, Fashion, Weddings, Family depending on the industry within which you operate.

Unfortunately, there seems to be no clear-cut strategy from the government on how to drive positive narratives about the country and its incredible people to key external audiences.

Choose the right time

A poll by Sky Sports named it as best jersey to be showcased during the World Cup. So we can all agree that the jersey is a great product. However, you can have a good product and kill it by launching at the wrong time.

Think about this: Would the launch been this successful if Nike decided to release the jersey on the day of the final for this year’s Champions League(A match that saw Real Madrid winning their 13^th Champions League Trophy at the expense of Liverpool)? I doubt it.

Most of the conversations online that weekend was centred on that match, and while I believe the jerseys would still have been sold out, it might have taken a longer time than it did.

Nike has a world-class marketing team, and it is every marketer’s dream to have a product that is in so much demand. It was reported that Nike had to push the release date back due to such high demand.

Now to timing, Nike eventually released the jerseys on Friday, 1^st of June, 2018, and with the Super Eagles slated to play a friendly against England the next day at the Wembley Stadium, there was bound to be a rush for the available units.

You know what happened next, Nike online store sold out in 3 minutes, and queues were seen outside Nike’s Oxford Street Store in London as early as 6am, with the store scheduled to open by 10am.

Bringing it together

The product was great, the story was great, the jersey was well marketed. Nike combined both worlds and displayed an uncanny understanding of what makes Nigerians tick by using some of Nigeria’s biggest pop culture exports and influencers. This ultimately gave the jersey a ‘cool kid’ vibe and everyone wanted to be a part of it.

The product and its marketing also awoke a feverish spirit of national pride/patriotism – something that is not quite common these days.

This was a great marketing campaign for Nike and in extension, Nigeria, and the company can boast of several million dollars in revenue due to the jersey and Nigeria’s brand got a positive boost in certain circles.

It is now time to sit back and enjoy the beautiful game once the World Cup commences.

Wishing the lads all the best in Russia.

Muyiwa Babarinde is a senior communication associate at Red Media Africa. He is passionate about marketing, technology and national development. He writes from Lagos, Nigeria.