Built Slowly

How Adidas turns time into credibility, not hype.

Author

Javier García
January 07, 2026 • Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

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Introduction

Welcome to another exciting week!

Table of Contents

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Best Ad of the Week

Adidas – “Not Built Overnight” (2025 Global Campaign)

Adidas’ “Not Built Overnight” is a quiet rebuttal to overnight success culture. The ad follows a single idea across different sports and lives: progress taking longer than expected. A runner training in the dark for months before their first race. A footballer practicing alone long after teammates leave. A teenager breaking in the same pair of shoes day after day. The timeline jumps forward slowly, never rushing. The final line appears without music: “Nothing that lasts is rushed.”

Key marketing lessons

• Push back against instant success narratives
Adidas positions patience and repetition as the real markers of progress, aligning with how growth actually happens.

• Time as credibility
By stretching the story over months instead of moments, the campaign feels earned, not inspirational fluff.

• Product integrated through wear
Shoes appear scuffed, broken in, lived with, reinforcing durability and commitment without claims.

• Motivation through realism
The absence of dramatic wins makes the message more believable and more motivating.

• Brand confidence through restraint
No hype, no slogans shouted. Just a clear belief expressed calmly.

A reminder that brands don’t need to promise transformation. They need to respect the time it really takes.

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Weekly Tip

Design for Memory, Not Just Attention

Getting attention is only the first step. What really matters is what people remember after scrolling away.

• Focus on one clear idea worth recalling
• Use simple language that’s easy to repeat
• End with a line that reinforces the core message

Attention is temporary. Memory is what builds long-term impact.

Weekly Challenge

One Tool, One Tip

This week, simplify your content by focusing on a single tool or feature:

• Choose one tool you actually use for content, analytics, or planning
• Share one practical tip on how you use it in real life
• Explain the outcome it helps you achieve, not the features
• Ask followers if they want more tips on the same tool

Specific, practical tips position you as experienced and useful, not generic.

Submissions + Feedback

Hope you enjoyed today’s post, if you know someone who may be interested, feel free to send it to them.

Also, if you want me to cover any specific subject on the next issue or share some feedback, feel free to reply to this email.

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