Nike brand engagement up 135 percent after new Colin Kaepernick ad

There have been plenty of strong reactions to Nike’s decision to make Colin Kaepernick the face of its new “Just Do It” ad campaign, but the amount of publicity the sports apparel juggernaut has gained because of it is already undeniable.

According to some figures from the social media analytics firm Talkwalker, mentions of the Nike Brand were up 135 percent from the previous week as of Tuesday. While the mentions have been both positive and negative, mentions of Nike were approaching the 3 million mark in a 24-hour period, which was a 1,400 percent increase over the day before the new campaign was released.

Many athletes and celebrities have already tweeted about the new “Just Do It” campaign, and the reactions have ranged from support from NBA players like Kyle Kouzma to one member of the music community destroying his own socks in protest. Nike obviously expected the campaign to create a buzz, and it has done just that.