Nike introduced the slogan “Just Do It” in 1988 as the central message of a major advertising campaign. Advertising executive Dan Wieden created the phrase for Wieden+Kennedy, Nike’s agency.
The campaign appeared in television commercials and print advertising featuring athletes and ordinary people. Its deliberately broad wording allowed Nike to promote running, basketball, training, and other sports without limiting the message to one product or activity. The slogan helped make Nike one of the most recognizable sports brands in the world.
A common mix-up is to attribute “Just Do It” to a specific athlete or to Nike’s earlier “There Is No Finish Line” campaign. The 1988 line became especially powerful because it framed exercise as a decision anyone could make, rather than as an activity reserved for elite competitors.