Bo Knows
Nike1989
Bo Knows is a 1989 60-second television commercial and campaign for Nike, created by Wieden+Kennedy, Portland.
The line
Bo, you don't know Diddley.
Why it works
A product launch disguised as a tall tale. To sell cross-trainers — a shoe for every sport — W+K's Jim Riswold cast the one athlete playing two professional sports at once, Bo Jackson, and had stars from every discipline (Jordan, Gretzky, McEnroe) testify "Bo knows..." until the premise collapses gloriously with Jackson mangling a guitar riff and bluesman Bo Diddley delivering the verdict: "Bo, you don't know Diddley." It debuted during the July 1989 MLB All-Star Game — the very night Jackson hit a leadoff home run and took MVP — a media-planning coincidence that became legend. The campaign helped Nike retake the No. 1 spot from Reebok and dominate the cross-training category. It is studied for myth-making as product demonstration, and for the perfectly engineered self-deflating punchline.
Techniques
- Testimonial and endorsement Stars from other sports vouch that Bo knows their game, using the one athlete playing two professional sports to sell a shoe for every sport.
- Humour The tall tale escalates until the premise collapses, with a mangled guitar riff and a bluesman's verdict deflating the hero.
Sources · 3
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