Will Finds A Way | Under Armour Finally Utilizes Their Roster for the Most Powerful and Diverse Collection of Ads in Sportswear

See the inspiring stories of athletes who refused to be denied. Our top training shoes and workout clothes help fuel their unstoppable will.

Source: Will Finds A Way | Under Armour

I wrote a post a month ago that was more of the same when it came to analyzing the issues with people being drawn to Under Armour.

Under Armour Didn’t Make 1 Video To Market The Curry 4 | Marketing

In this post I wrote that, “UA doesn’t utilize its athletes or build narratives using its own platforms.” This comment was meant to establish that the UA website is possibly the most underutilized sportswear website of the big sneaker companies. The site lacks any real storytelling and when the company builds sections to promote athletes their goal is to sell gear as opposed to selling the story. The story will in turn inspire loyalty. Today, however and probably for the last few days, Under Armour worked with their ad agency of choice in Droga5 to produce a campaign that shines the light on their athletes via videos and a more organic narrative. The name of that campaign is “Will Finds A Way”.

What’s important here is that UA reached into its deep bag of athletes to build the stories of 9 people with amazing stories. I’ve always maintained that Under Armour has to move beyond the sales racks and beyond kids who wear the majority of the gear created by the brand. The only way this is going to happen is with stories from those connected to the brand. One of my favorite athletes is Jessie Graff. Anyone who reads this blog knows that I’m an ex basketball player and coach. Those close to me know that my son is a 6-4 16 year old who played one season of basketball and isn’t interested in the game at all.

He represents many of the kids today who are finding a new path to fitness and health via rock climbing, and Ninja Warrior. My son and daughter can tell you who Jessie Graff is, but wouldn’t know Dennis Smith Jr. if he walked in a room. While Dennis is one of the athletes in the campaign, what I’m trying to establish is that UA unlike Nike and adidas, has a real opportunity to build a community and a connection with kids because they have one of the most important new athletes of the now. The problem is no one knows Graff is a UA athlete because nothing is really out there, but now there is, and there was with Unlike Any, but I still think that campaign was underutilized:

This video takes about 90 seconds of your time and by the end of it you feel crazy inspired. This is the type of work that matters. It’s the narrative of the underdog who outworks everyone through dedication and consistency. The video series doesn’t stop there. While utilizing the Rock to introduce the story (one of the most recognizable stars in the world), Under Armour utilizes lesser known athletes in their arsenal to establish their dedication to the niche sports. What happens is you begin to feel that a brand cares deeply about sport and more important, diversity. One of the videos is of Johnny Agar and it is by far the most powerful, artful, ad I’ve ever seen. Johnny created the ad last year and now he’s an Under Armour endorser.

Under Armour finally utilizes their roster of athletes in a personal, humanizing manner and if they can continue to build on this form of storytelling and promote it organically (I would have a staff of people working to locate stories on social media) and build a content aggregation site very similar to GamePlan A for adidas, and share the stories of the people. This would not be a temporary play for fans, it would become an integral part of the UA business and if this happens UA breaks through the ceiling and finally begins to grow into the company that disrupts long term.

P.S. If you watched the “Rule Yourself” video and you didn’t feel anything, check yourself in somewhere. You have no soul.

Note: Under Armour has to find the balance between selling and marketing. They work far too hard to sell you a product. Marketing is about feeling. The colors in this campaign are way too ‘in your face’. The website is lined with notes about the product, and we don’t need that; we need community.

Following the launch anthem comes individual films that explore deeper into the athlete’s story of WILL:

• Natasha Hastings missed out on quintessential childhood experiences to focus all her energy in running and training and has had to face those who criticized her strong, athletic build. Those life realities, driven by her will to reach her full potential, propelled her to become one of the best and most elite runners in the world, where she’s earned the moniker the ‘400 Meter Diva.’

• Yusra Mardini experienced inconceivable turmoil and war in her home country of Syria, but her sheer will for survival powered her strokes across treacherous ocean waves when she saved numerous other refugees by swimming their boat to safety. She went on to compete as a swimmer with the Refugee Olympic Team and continues to train to meet her next goal: competing in the 2020 Olympics.

• Dennis Smith Jr. suffered a knee injury that threatened to take his dream away, of making it to the elite collegiate level and then on to the NBA. After learning to dunk on the playgrounds of Fayetteville, North Carolina and ignoring the trappings of outside influences, he made it to the courts of the NBA where he continues to play with a fury that comes from knowing how close he was to losing out on his dream.

• Zoe Zhang experienced a devastating injury that forced her into early sport retirement as a winning class champion on the National Taekwondo team, but instead of stopping there she changed courses and took advantage of her hard-earned skills to become one of China’s most famous actresses with a focus in martial arts. Her flexibility and ability to quickly adapt renders her a force to be reckoned with, on and off the big screen.

• Teddy Riner devoted his life from a young age to Judo, and is aiming to become the greatest judoka ever seen. People think it comes naturally to him, but no one sees how early he starts his day, how many hours he spends in the gym and how he keeps his body and skills top-notch to redefine what’s possible in Judo and continue to strive to become the greatest judoka in the world.

• Jessie Graff is a real-life superhero; despite her supernatural abilities to navigate prominent elaborate obstacle courses and handle stunts for prominent films and television shows, Jessie believes her true superpower is her will as she continues to surpass her competitors, both male and female.

• Johnny Agar is an inspiration to the Under Armour brand, with a unique partnership that started in 2017 with Johnny starring in his own homemade version of an Under Armour commercial. Today, his story continues to be celebrated through the “Will Finds A Way” campaign. He faces unimaginable challenges daily; with cerebral palsy comes the loss of ability for basic life skills, like walking or feeding himself, but he gets up every morning to train for athletic competitions most people without the constraints of disabilities wouldn’t fathom training for. He ignores the doubt of his own body and strives to push beyond his physical limits with pure emotional strength, ultimately training with vigor to walk the last mile of a triathlon with his father.

• Javon “Wanna” Walton is all too familiar with the word “no” after hearing it repeatedly throughout his short decade-long life, from doubters not believing in his dreams. His uncompromising approach to training and becoming a champion in two sports – gymnastics and boxing – fuels his vision of becoming heavyweight champion one day; nothing is standing in his way.