'Quiet power' for Adidas Olympics campaign

The drive, which is entitled ‘Together in 2008, impossible is nothing’, attempts to build on the global ‘Impossible is nothing’ brand platform by introducing the concept that China’s 1.3 billion people coming together makes for a formidable force.

“This is a campaign by China, in China, for China - engaging people right across the nation,” said adidas brand marketing director Celine Del Genes.

The commercials feature ‘impossible’ scenes of Chinese Olympians, who are inspired to reach new heights through the support of their compatriots. Set completely to music, the TVC uses a mix of action photography and computer graphics.

TBWA creative-at-large John Merrifield, who has led adidas work for several years, brushed aside concerns over the spot’s appeal, in a marketplace that is becoming more cluttered by the minute with Olympics messaging. “I know there is a feeling of ‘is that it?’,” said Merrifield. “But the only thing I can say is it’s the beginning of a 10-month conversation. It’s purposely started at this level.”

Merrifield pointed out the ad’s “quiet power” would help it stand out from the increasing noise that now surrounds Olympics messaging. “We’re trying to stand out with quiet intensity,” he added. “It’s not glossy-multicoloured. If you look at the average commercial break, it’s frightening. Executionally, we wanted to make sure it would stand out in a commercial break.

“As it is right now, it’s a very soft opening. In hindsight, you’ll see where we started from is the correct place. I believe it has a quiet power, rather than necessarily something that will be big and bold and dynamic.”

Carat handled media for the campaign, which also includes print, outdoor and a microsite at 2008.adidas.com. Ogilvy PR, meanwhile, handled a massive PR event that included the launch of an ‘experience zone’ in Beijing. The campaign will include various platforms over the next 10 months by which Chinese consumers can get closer to the athletes.

“This campaign is a major element of our four-year Beijing Olympic campaign commitment, which began with the confirmation of our partnership with Bocog early 2005,” added Del Genes. “It is the largest ever undertaken by adidas China, in terms of both scale and level of investment.”

The adidas campaign comes as new research from R3 and CSM reveals that Olympics clutter is reaching remarkable proportions. The research demonstrates that in the last three months alone, more than Rmb 7 billion (US$946 million) in media spend is linked to Olympics advertising, compared to Rmb 4 billion prior to that period. The biggest spender is Johnson & Johnson.