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In-Depth

Inside Under Armour’s powerful campaign

Portland-based agency Guidance Counsel generated plenty of buzz for its work on Under Armour spots featuring, among others, model Gisele Bündchen and ballerina Misty Copeland. Each spot carries a bit of defiance as the women chase after their athletic goals. Under Armour hopes the empowering message will increase its share of the women’s market. Bündchen’s commercial has a unique feature: Viewers can read people’s online reactions to her workout. Bündchen makes her point by ignoring the comments, whether positive or negative.

“This has never been done before, taking the comments in almost real time, and posting them,” said Meredith Chase. She and Rick Anguilla are Guidance Counsel’s principals.

Correspondent Bruce Goldberg spoke to them about the commercials and the overall effort to promote Under Armour to women.

Photos by: Under Armour (2)

What did Under Armour adopt from your suggestions?

ANGUILLA: As you’re building a brand, you’re trying to build beyond just awareness. … Under Armour was perceived by a lot of people, both men and women, as a men’s brand. One of the goals was to create awareness

among women and to create some affinity for the brand. I think a lot of women have grown up with Under Armour, wearing it when they’re playing a sport in high school or college. Women who didn’t play team sports may not have that familiarity with the brand.

CHASE: Based off the incredible amount of press, and number of impressions and feedback, we definitely know we’re creating a conversation that’s never been had around Under Armour. The pop culture discussion that we’ve created … we’ve tapped into an insight around the fact that in everyday life, a lot of women face a lot of negativity being constantly judged in every area of their lives. I’ve used athletes to bring that to life, to showcase the incredible stories of these women who accomplished their goals and turned inward and didn’t listen to the noise, the outside pressure.

What are the keys to marketing to women?

Anguilla and Chase helped Under Armour craft the project.
Photo by: Bill Purcell

ANGUILLA: You have to be authentic. Under Armour … is that traditional model of being authentic on the field. There are a handful of brands that have that acceptance level. And with women, there’s much more a sense of fashion. Men basically wear the same stuff from when they turn 18 until they die. They’re not a very complicated species.

CHASE: I think that’s true. But I don’t think there’s a secret or a key in marketing to women. To do great marketing, it’s understanding three components: 1. Understand your own brand and really understand what’s your point of differentiation; 2. How does that point of differentiation connect with your consumer, whether a 12-year-old kid or a 28-year-old mother of two who works and who works out? 3. It’s understanding your consumer better than anyone else does, and how your unique proposition fits them better.

Where do you see brands getting it wrong?

CHASE: Rick and I have a combined 30 years in the athletic category. Looking at the communications that have been out there 10 or 15 years, it all looks exactly the same from a tonality standpoint. Every single company has a “you go girl, run like a girl, throw like a girl, you have to do it all” sentiment to it. First of all, it’s just played; we’ve been seeing that type of messaging for years. And it doesn’t resonate with how women think of themselves. It comes off very condescendingly to a woman.

Bruce Goldberg is a writer in Colorado.

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