Illuminating The Focused Performer

The Challenge:

Keeping up with each generation can easily be a full-time job in and of itself (we know, we love it!) – attitudes, needs, behaviors, and technology can (and do) literally change over night. Under Armour wanted to uncover ways of more meaningfully connecting with the Youth and Teen Focused Performer segments – and better understand how they differentiated from their adult counterparts. On the heels of a quantitative study, they came to The Sound to humanize that data and illuminate its core segment. They also were looking for guidance on how to build stronger affinity for the brand and establish guardrails for how to best anticipate and respond to brand affinity drop-off among this cohort. Recognizing the vast potential of this segment, a detailed illumination was critical. 

The Approach:

We took a global approach and met these Youth and Teen Focused Performers on their home turf – in the US and China. We met them on the pitch, gridiron, courts and gyms to understand everything about what life as a Focused Performer is like – and the brands that help them on this journey.

We then went in-home to celebrate their trophy cases, investigate their closets and overall: get a deep understanding of the brands, apparel and equipment powering their journey.

The Impact:

Our findings helped the brand understand the dimension and complexity of this cohort and provided guiding principles and guardrails for Youth and Teens moving forward. This work was instrumental in inspiring the Under Armour cross-functional teams to more meaningfully activate against and connect with this valuable cohort moving forward.