Part 1
Nike Inc. is known for their “Just Do It” campaign. The Nike swoosh is an iconic
symbol recognized globally as the cornerstone for their global ad campaigns. However, in
western culture Nike strategically identifies its advertising of the color black as it is a symbol
of power and strength. According to Barroso, Garcia & Jiménez (2018), color has the ability
to invoke an emotional connection between the consumer and a brand. The original Nike
‘Swoosh’ logo was red, utilized as a symbol for energy, passion and joy. Nike has long
withstood controversy surrounding the “Just Do It” campaign, just do what? Although, this
campaign has recently celebrated its 30-year anniversary, Nike was determined to clarify and
expand its meaning to, “Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything” (Nike,
2019). This clarification signifies internal strengths, beliefs and passions.
Although Nike Inc. has a robust advertising share in China, the “Just Do It” campaign
has taken on a very different approach. Although, the color black signifies power in western
culture; the color red signifies power in Chinese culture. Nike responded by making the color
red the focus of the Chinese advertising campaign. According to “Just do it” (2018), roughly
15% of Chinese between the ages of 15 to 35 play sports compared to almost 50% in the US.
As such, the “Just Do It” campaign led to the development of “The Next Wave” in China,
with a focus on growing the love for sports with the youth as the focus.
Part 2
For companies with international operations in countries with distinct cultural
differences, it is critical for public affairs and communication liaisons to customize the
messaging to ensure the highest level of effectiveness and respect. Additionally, employee
benefits packages vary in importance and legal requirements between different countries.
(U.S. employees)
To: Nike Employees
Date: April 1, 2019
Priority: High
Subject: Nike launches “Pay it back” Initiative
As you already know, currently all full-time Nike employees have the option to purchase Nike
stock at a 15% discount rate per share at the lower of the share prices, either at the beginning
or end of the period. This benefit promotes employee stock purchase plan participation. This
memo is official notification through our “Pay it back” campaign, effective June 1, 2019, all
full-time Nike employees are eligible to purchase shares with a 20% discount.
This plan can be purchased either through lump sum up front payment or monthly payroll
deduct to distribute the cost. The amount invested can be updated quarterly to allow our
employees the flexibility to flex your cash flow as your needs may change.
This increase is in response to our strategic objective to give back to our employees to grow
and obtain your financial future through improvement to our robust compensation and
benefits package.
We appreciate your dedication and hard work and are excited to share this opportunity!
Respectfully,
Mark Parker, CEO Nike Inc.
(Guangzhou employees)
Fax: 1-888-8888
#CF1234
Nike launches “Pay it back” Initiative
Nike Employees
Dear Employee:
As you know, currently all Guangzhou Nike employees receive a pension benefit of 28% of
your monthly salary.
This memo is official notification through our “Pay it back” campaign, effective June 8, 2019,
all Guangzhou Nike employee pension benefits will increase to 30% of your monthly salary.
This increase is in response to our strategic objective to give back to our employees to grow
and obtain your financial future through improvement to our robust compensation and
benefits package. It is our priority to continue to enhance retirement pension benefits.
Respectfully,
Mark Parker, CEO Nike Inc.
2019-4-1
CC: Guangzhou Operations Manager
References
Barroso, C. L., García, F. G., & Jiménez, V. S. (2018). Análisis comparativo de la simbología
cromática en publicidad. Nike en china y españa. Vivat Academia, 21(142), 5178,51A-77A. doi:http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.15178/va.2018.142.51-78
"Just do it" Chinese-style; China and brands. (2003, August 2). The Economist,368(8335),
59US. Retrieved from
http://link.galegroup.com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/apps/doc/A106195826/AONE?u=nhc_mai
n&sid=AONE&xid=b4453775
Nike (2019). About Nike. Retrieved May 1,2019, from http://www.about.nike.com
Part 1- International Advertising
Since Tesla spends very little to advertise their vehicles (Tesla Spends $6 On
Advertising Per Vehicle…, 2016), I will take some liberties and describe what I would
imagine a domestic and international advertising campaign might look like. Tesla sells its
vehicles in many countries outside of the US, but China is the most strategic as they have the
largest market for electric cars (A study of China’s…, 2017) and Tesla is currently building a
new factory called the Gigafactory 3 in Shanghai (Tesla, 2019).
A key component of automobile advertising are the pictures of the cars that are being
marketed. Buyers want to know what the styling looks like and for some buyers, looks alone
will sway their choice. In the United States market, Tesla will typically use a red model when
advertising their flagship Model S or their upcoming supercar, the Roadster (Tesla, 2019). In
the United States and other Western countries, the color red signifies passion and excitement
(Cousins, 2012), exactly the emotions that Tesla would like to invoke associated with its top
of the line vehicles. In China and other Asian countries, the color red is associated with
happiness, joy and celebration (Cousins, 2012). This could also work for print and online
advertisements, but the color white may be a better choice. In China, the most popular car
color is white (Why white…, 2018). White makes the car appear larger and therefore implies
that the owner is wealthier. Also, as a society, consumers in China would rather conform to
the norm, rather than stick out of the crowd.
Black would also be a poor color choice in China, as it is considered an unlucky color
(8 Superstitions…, n.d.). By contrast, Black is the base color offered by Tesla in the US and
is “free” while other colors have additional costs. Finally, Chinese drivers avoid cars that
have license plates with either the number 4 or the letter X. This is also considered unlucky
(8 Superstitions…, n.d.).
Tesla can learn from the lessons of General Motors in the 1970s when marketing
executives were stumped at the low sales volumes of the Chevy Nova in Latin America
(Sheila Khatri, n.d.). They failed to realize a simple error that “No va” in Spanish roughly
translates into “won’t go”. Who would buy a car that won’t go?
Part 2 – International Communications in Different Countries
Internal communications within an organization are very important. When a company
like Tesla manages business units in different countries, extra care must be taken to make
certain that the cultural norms in one country do not come across with the wrong message in
another country or culture. It is commonplace in the US for Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla to
make extraordinary claims about anything from production rates to the performance of Tesla
vehicles (In Defense of Elon Musk, 2018). In China, it is customary for executives to be
humble and bragging is off-putting (Fox, 2008). Below are examples of internal
communication of a new production milestone for both US and Chinese employees.
USA
To: All Tesla employees
From: Elon Musk
Subject: Model 3 Production Rate Smashes Record!
Date: May 2, 2019
I am proud to report that our weekly production rate for the Model 3 has surpassed 10,000
vehicles per week! This was accomplished through perseverance and good old American
perseverance! The naysayers have been predicting our doom for months and this just proves
how wrong they have been. They don’t understand the level of effort and commitment that
our team members are willing to put forth. We made it through “production hell” and now we
are setting our sights on 15,000 cars per week.
Keep up the great work and let’s prove them all wrong!
Elon
China
To: All Tesla China employees
From: Mr. Elon Musk, CEO
Subject: Model 3 Production Rate Update
Date: May 2, 2019
I am proud to report that our weekly production rate for the Model 3 in California has
surpassed 10,000 vehicles per week. This is a remarkable accomplishment and would not
have happened without the teamwork and collaboration that is a hallmark of Tesla, Inc.
While this accomplishment is good, there is still much work to do to get to our stated goal of
15,000 vehicles per week.
Please join me in congratulating the North American Tesla team. I look forward to our
continued friendship with our Chinese affiliates and I’m excited to see our Shanghai
production ramp up later this year.
Kindest Regards,
Elon Musk
References
“8 Superstitions for Cars on Chinese New Year.” Maxx 'N Go - Download Now!,
maxxngo.com/8-superstitions-for-cars-on-chinese-new-year/
A Study of China’s Explosive Growth in the Plug-in Electric Vehicle Market. (2017).
https://doi-org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.2172/1341568
About Tesla | Tesla. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.tesla.com/about
Cousins, C., (2012). Color and Cultural Design Considerations. Retrieved from:
https://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2012/06/color-and-cultural-design-considerations/
Fox, S. (2008). China’s Changing Culture and Etiquette. China Business Review, 35(4), 48–
51. Retrieved from https://search-ebscohostcom.ezproxy.snhu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=mth&AN=32779855&site=edslive&scope=site
In Defense of Elon Musk. (2018). Popular Mechanics, 68. Retrieved from https://searchebscohostcom.ezproxy.snhu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f5h&AN=132092663&site=edslive&scope=site
Sheila Khatri. (n.d.). Commentary: A rose by any other name can cause an international
incident. Daily Record, The (Baltimore, MD). Retrieved from https://search-ebscohostcom.ezproxy.snhu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bwh&AN=L54798968DRMD&site
=eds-live&scope=site
Why White Is the Dominant Colour for Cars in China? - TLD by MW. The Low Down Momentum Works, 10 Apr. 2018, thelowdown.momentum.asia/tld-weekend-whywhite-is-the-dominant-colour-for-cars-in-china/.
Tesla Spends $6 On Advertising Per Vehicle; The Industry Average Is $1,000. (2016).
Benzinga.Com. Retrieved from https://search-ebscohost-
com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsbig&AN=edsbig.A457318008&
site=eds-live&scope=site
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