Just Do It Ad (1988)

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There has been a lot of discourse on the internet, of late, concerning the price of shoes and the manufacturing thereof. This has less influence on me than most. I think I can get by for the rest of my life on the supply of shoes I already own, if I ration them properly. God willing. Obviously that might change if I suffer some kind of catastrophic foot injury that changes the shape of one or both of my feet in some significant way. I guess it could also change if shoe technology advances in such a way that I need an update. I don’t want to be the rube with backward shoe apparel when all of my friends and neighbors are gliding around on AI feet.

But you know, failing that, I’m good.

The discourse though brought to my mind to one of my favorite ads of all time. “Just Do It.” It’s simple, effective, and timeless.

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Chinese proverb

“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.” –  J.R.R. Tolkien

“One step at a time is all it takes to get you there.” –  Emily Dickinson

Doing “it” involves taking a step – either one or a metaphorical one – and taking steps involve putting your shoes on (unless you’re a hobbit.) So how did this ad idea come about? It all began with a murderer on death row.

(more via wiki)

Just Do It or JDI for short is a trademark of shoe company Nike. The tagline was coined in 1988 at an advertising agency meeting. The founder of the Wieden+Kennedy agency, Dan Wieden, credits the inspiration for his “Just Do It” Nike slogan to a death row inmate Gary Gilmore’s last words: “Let’s do it.” From 1988 to 1998, Nike increased its share of the North American domestic sport-shoe business from 18% to 43% (from $877 million to $9.2 billion in worldwide sales). In many Nike-related situations, “Just Do It” appears alongside the Nike logo, known as the Swoosh.

Origin

Dan Wieden, cofounder of the advertising firm Wieden and Kennedy, revealed the phrase was inspired by the final words of death row inmate Gary Gilmore who was facing execution and said, “You know, let’s do it.” “I remember when I read that I was like, that’s amazing. I mean how, in the face of that much uncertainty, do you push through that? So I didn’t like the ‘let’s’ thing, and so I just changed that, cause otherwise I’d have to give him credit,” Wieden joked.

That’s how a guy with two murder convictions inspired one of the most famous ads of all time. Sometimes something that is wholesome can emerge from something dark. Sometimes the way that happens is unexpected. Life is weird and you gotta live it out.

Just do it.

Here are a few more of the better / more famous of the ads from the campaign, which has been running for almost 40 years now: