Athletic footwear can be categorized into 3 types:
Athleisure = Casual athletic styles, canvas, suede, etc.
Recreational Boots = Hunting, Fishing. Waterboot etc.
Sports based = Golf, Basketball, Soccer etc.
There are essential factors that consumers take into consideration before purchasing a new pair of Athleisure shoes.
Stability—the shoes should have a balanced and secure feel throughout range of motion.
Flexibility—the shoes should allow for a good degree of give at the base of the toes, providing smooth motion.
Comfort—walking shoes should comprise contours and padding conformed closely to the feet, providing a snug fit at the heel and midfoot, with ample room in the forefoot.
There are essential factors that Athletics take into consideration before purchasing a new pair of Sports based shoes.
Heelcounter—the area of the shoe that holds the back of the heel, just underneath the Achilles tendon. This area should be snug but not tight, comfortably cupping the back of the heel. A good heel counter will help prevent the feet from over pronation or supination.
Midsole—the area between the tread and the cloth upper of the shoe. This is the most important component of any footwear. Midsoles are made of a variety of materials that give the shoe greater or lesser degrees of cushioning, support, and flexibility.
Insole—the area inside the shoe, on the bottom, where the sole of the foot is in contact with the shoe. It should contour comfortably to the foot. It is designed to reduce shear forces between the foot and the shoe and provide some shock absorption.
Toebox—the entire area that surrounds the toes. The toe box should provide adequate room for the toes to move freely. Wiggling and bending the toes at the knuckles should be unrestricted. Conversely, too much space will cause shifting and discomfort. There should be approximately one half to a full thumb’s width between the end of the longest toe to the end of the toe box.
Buying Behaviour of Athletic Footwear
Purchases of atheletic footwear can be made because of psychological factors such as emotions attached to the particular brand (Nike). To stay updated with the current trends. Purchases can be because of the benefits offered by Athletic footwear such as Appearance, Quality, Design, Performance, Price, and image. Attitude and perception that the consumer holds towards a particular brand. Nike Shox when worn makes people say “walking on cloud nine with a spring with a spring in his step.
Q3.) What is the management decision problem as it attempts to retain its leadership position?
Answer: - What marketing and distribution strategies should be followed to re- establish itself as the authentic and technically superior sports shoes in international Arena?
Q4.) Discuss marketing research problem facing Nike, given the management decision problem you have identified?
Answer: - How many different marketing and distribution approaches or tactics are their?
Q5.) Develop two suitable research questions and formulate two hypotheses for each.
Answer: -
- Does advertisement affect the Consumer buying behavior of athletic footwear?
H1: Advertisements don’t influence the buying behavior of the consumer.
b.) Does product’s technological superiority affect consumer buying behavior?
H2: Products technological superiority has nothing to do with consumer buying behavior.
Q6.) How can internet be used to help Nike in conducting marketing research and in marketing its product.
Answer: - By conducting marketing research via Internet Nike can work one-on-one with athletes, learning what they need and building them the best possible shoes. Users can experiment with hundreds of possible color combinations for their shoes, and also lets them add personal identification marks on their shoes. Using this data input Nike can personalize and customize shoes for its consumers.
Nike can market its product by sponsoring major sites and placing its banner in those sites. It can use pop up windows also.
For market research Nike can use internet to administer questionnaires and conducting opinion polls. With ever increasing internet users, Nike can get a vast sample size and the cost would be minimal.
