Increasing brand value with an App

Last year, Adidas delivered an impressive increase in its brand value, growth that had not been experienced during its 60-year long history. Scott Dunlap, CEO of Runtastic and in charge of Digital Marketing at Adidas, recently explained in an interview with Google how the company has achieved this interesting feat.

Increasing brand value with an App

For Dunlap, the key to growth has been the use of apps and the company’s dedication to learning about its most loyal customers. In fact, Dunlap has confessed that, after the confinement by covid-19 and the increase in Runtastic downloads, he knew that it was essential to personalize the experience of special clients.

Several things can be learned from this growth experience. In this short article written by several of the “best marketing agencies in Mexico” we will talk a little about it and where you can find three lessons that can help you improve your own Digital Marketing.

Purpose Driven Connections

Probably the most interesting lesson is that customers are much more complex than they may appear at first glance. It is generally thought that customers have very specific, strictly material needs. However, the growth of Adidas reveals that customers were not only demanding new products, but, above all, new experiences.

Let’s remember that we, as the marketing agency that we are, always seek and will seek to create customer experiences.

Indeed, customers not only require merchandise, physical training and entertainment in general. For Dunlap, the need to connect with something bigger and to stay motivated were high points of Runtastic’s Digital Marketing.

Thus, for example, the exponential growth of Adidas and Runtastic was very close to the launch of a challenge called the Hometeam Hero Challenge. This challenge consisted in that each minute of training in Runtastic would be equivalent to $1, which would be donated to the World Health Organization in support of medical and health personnel, as well as research professionals.

 

Personalized benefits

The need to be connected with a greater cause was not the only point worked on. The app and purchase experiences were also modified.

For example, one of Runtastic’s strengths, prior to the pandemic, was its affiliate program, called the Creators Club.
The app had to innovate, since the program presented limitations during the pandemic.

The Creators Club allowed, among other things, to level up both by buying more products and by exercising. However, since the exercise could no longer be carried out with the same freedom as before, the Digital Marketing strategy had to be modified.

The result was the inclusion of virtual events, specialized services and navigation by appointment as new offers within the brand’s app. Other services, such as contactless purchasing, were also seen as a response to customer expectations.

Finding ways to retain the public is what is currently taught in different Digital Marketing courses.

Adaptation to emerging trends

In today’s context, many people want to browse, connect and shop with as little contact as possible. For Dunlap, that’s what a lot of people expect, both from Adidas and from other of their favorite brands. Mobile applications allow you to improve the Digital Marketing strategy, by meeting these expectations and keeping customers loyal.

Adidas has the option to see its products in augmented reality, as well as the option to place first “in a line” after overcoming a challenge. However, Dunlap also highlights the fact that achieving these results has not only been due to the use of the apps; it has also been due to years of work time invested in getting to know the dedicated customers.

Conclusion

We can see how Adidas gave us a lesson about increasing not only the value of the brand, but also customers, users and, of course, associating daily tasks with their products, which therefore increased their sales.

This is something that we can find in each brand if we start to analyze, investigate, and why not? Even spy on what it does. In this way we can follow in their footsteps and find ways to be on par or better positioned than them.

Do you want to continue reading more? We invite you to read this post.