PUMA Hits the Global Heights in New Campaign

PUMA’s new global Brand campaign “Go Wild”, marks an evolution in PUMA’s brand identity, by celebrating the individual and inspires everyone – amateurs and professional athletes alike – to unleash their true selves and discover greatness in their nature.

Launched worldwide last month, the campaign stands out by affirming a different vision for sport as a space for self-expression, enjoyment, and identity. The ad shows runners re-arranging their lives to chase the highs of running – showing that running makes anyone and everyone who does it feel good.

In a market where performance for performance’s sake is glorified, PUMA stands out with a smart step away from the category conventions of sportswear, which tend to emphasise performance and effort over fun. But why not both, asks PUMA?  Along with Adam&EveDDB, they created a positioning intended to conquer this unique space in an exceptionally competitive sector.

We asked Julie Legrand, Senior Director Global Brand Strategy and Communications at PUMA how it all started. “We set off with the consumer insight that running will give you a rush like nothing else. Which means that no matter how hard it is, you will never regret a run. The ‘Go Wild’ campaign was developed with the largest consumer research in the brand’s history, finding a clear space in the market for PUMA where performance meets joy – an untapped territory that PUMA is uniquely positioned to own.”

The ad gets a big lift from its humorous soundtrack. It uses a remake of Afroman’s early-00s classic “Because I Got High”, with the lyrics remade to be about the natural endorphins you get from running. The “runner’s high”, which promotes a sense of well-being, reduced pain, and enhanced mood is the central concept of the campaign, and Afroman’s song is a great way of referencing that while triggering plenty of millennial nostalgia.

But what about the markets where “Because I Got High” wasn’t such a massive hit? Afroman’s song was huge in the US and Europe, but it’s not so well known in China or Saudi Arabia. How does PUMA’s new work land in those places?

PUMA wanted to find out. Test Your Ad is a global platform, with norms in every region, so we tested “Go Wild” in China, India, Saudi Arabia the US and Germany to see how it performed. And there’s good news for Puma. “Go Wild” is a strong ad in all three markets, performing well above the country or regional norms.

In China, the ad scores 4.3-Stars, with a steadily rising level of happiness throughout the ad. It also gets an Exceptional score on short-term Spike Rating, showing the ad resonates intensely with audiences and is set to drive sales.

In India, “Go Wild” achieves 4.1-Stars, still a strong result for long-term growth potential. It also scores an Exceptional 100% in Brand Fluency, our measure of fast and accurate brand recognition, showing PUMA’s branding in the ad is extremely strong.

And in Saudi Arabia, the ad’s results are even stronger. It gets Exceptional scores in both short-term Spike Rating and Brand Fluency, and a strong 4.4-Star Rating, its highest in any market.

In the US, the ad Early Riser outperformed the category average with an exceptional short-term Spike Rating and strong Brand Fluency. In Germany, Early Riser also performed well, achieving a 3.4 Star Rating, a strong Spike Rating, and outstanding Brand Fluency.

In all five countries, the scores are higher than the country average.

So even where “Because I Got High” isn’t necessarily a cultural touchstone, the ad works extremely well. This is down to the way PUMA have married message, soundtrack and emotion in the ad. Even if you don’t know the song it’s using, the ad gives viewers a more literal interpretation of the lyrics, with runners standing on top of a peak in exhilaration at their achievement. So “Go Wild” works as a clever reference for those in the know, but also as an inspirational piece of work for any viewer thinking of pulling on their running shoes and chasing the high.