Nike+
Launched in June of 2006, the Nike+ system has been called one of the most successful social experience sites on the internet. Chad Stoller, director of emerging platforms at Organic, recently told AdWeek, “[Nike solves] a problem, and because they solve a problem, a community forms.” The Nike+ website offers users a method to track their personal running progress, but more important, it creates an outlet for people to connect around their passion.
In July 2007, I participated in the Nike+ Summit at Nike headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon. I and eleven other runners from across the US were selected because we were early adopters of the Nike+ system. We met with product developers and designers from Nike, Apple, and R/GA to share our insights about the positive elements and the flaws in the system. Based on my background, and my familiarity with the Nike+ system, I was uniquely positioned within the group to speak for Nike+ users in general, and the under 30 market in particular.
During the summit, the Nike+ team expressed an interest in becoming more relevant in the digital space, especially among the youth market. With those interests in mind, I put together the following presentation outlining nine strategies based on my experience with Nike+. You can also download a (1.2MB) copy of the presentation in .pdf format here.