When Steve Jobs told Apple employees: Nike sells shoes, but never talks about product
Steve Jobs famously used Nike's marketing strategy as a blueprint for Apple's brand revival in 1997, emphasizing values over product specifications. He argued that Apple should focus on the passion of its users rather than technical 'speeds and feeds.'
Why it matters
This historical anecdote provides insight into the branding philosophy that helped transform Apple into one of the world's most valuable companies.
Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997 after getting fired in 1985. After his return, the Apple founder then had reinventing the brand’s image as his key priority. Addressing Apple employees at a town hall then, Steve Jobs said the brand has suffered from neglect and “we need to bring it back”. Jobs turned to Nike for inspiration. “Nike sells a commodity, they sell shoes. And yet when you think of Nike, you feel something different than a shoe company. In their ads, as you know, they don’t ever talk about the product, they don’t ever talk about their air soles, how they’re better than Reebok’s air soles,” Steve Jobs said.“What’s Nike do in their advertising? They honor great athletes and they honor great athletics.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in