AdRants: Nike executes CGM the right way

AdRants has a post up this morning about Nike's Second Coming site. They see the execution as a way of doing consumer-generated media the right way, and I have to agree with him, to a degree.

If you haven't seen the Nike site, they refer to it as a mash up--a way to take the clips from the TV spots, remix them and add different music. It's cool and clever, and not a massive breakthrough from other executions we've seen. Shoot, Nike themselves did something in 2000 called Nike Digital Video which was more or less the same concept. The Motley Fool wrote about it, back then

Nike Digital Video is one of the funniest parts of the site. Essentially, it is a tool to make your own Nike-style commercial videos to send to your friends. You choose from a list that includes running, basketball, and snowboarding. Then you choose five images from the Nike collection, add two messages, choose your soundtrack, and email the results. The ones I made ended with a white swoosh, just to remind me where the video was made. This is a silly little diversion, but kind of fun to play with.

So, here we are, 7 years on, and Nike's getting accolades for essentially sticking with the same strategy. I think this is worthwhile: CGM is an ad-creative tactic. It is not a strategy. Nike should be commended, but not for sorting out the best way to do CGM. It is for understanding how they want to interact with consumers and not wavering in the face of over-zealousness.