How Nike Turned Criticism into a Marketing Funnel

The Marketing Funnel Podcast with Fexingo: Awareness, Interest, Decision, and Action Stages · Jun 26, 2026 · 8m · transcript

In Episode 75 of The Marketing Funnel Podcast, Lucas and Luna unpack Nike’s audacious move to turn public criticism into a core funnel strategy. Using the AIDA model, they trace how Nike leveraged controversies—like Colin Kaepernick’s 2018 campaign and the backlash over the Alphafly 3’s release—to drive awareness, deepen interest with brand purpose, nudge decision-makers through limited drops, and trigger action via social validation. The hosts cite specific numbers: the 31% sales surge after the Kaepernick ad, the 8 million social media engagements in 48 hours, and how Nike’s internal data…