Emotion by Design: Creative Leadership Principles from the Genius of Nike’s Marketing and Branding

The key to good branding is creating an emotional connection between company and customer, writes former Nike chief marketing officer Hoffman in this lukewarm mix of career memoir and leadership guide. His long run at Nike started with an internship in the early 1990s, and in his many years there he came to value the power of stories that “make people feel that even their most audacious dreams are possible,” a revelation that inspired this “playbook for unleashing creativity within your team.” Through story after story of Nike’s marketing campaigns and branding efforts, Hoffman hammers home the idea that building a creative methodology into one’s branding process is necessary for getting customers invested, as is working to fuel empathy within a team. But his advice is so vague as to often be meaningless: “see what others see, do what others don’t” is not very achievable when not backed up by concrete advice or examples, while an admonishment to let the quiet voices on one’s team be heard, for example, brings nothing new to the table. Readers with an interest in sports-adjacent marketing may find some value, but the leadership principles feel more like dashed-off taglines. There’s not enough to set this one apart from the pack. (Apr.)