iStock.com/Alexandros Michailidis
July 25, 2024
Will the Paris Olympics Pay Off for Brands?
A survey from Numerator shows advertising recall from past Olympics is extremely low, while product endorsements by Olympians boast only a moderate influence on purchasing decisions.
The findings come as the Paris Olympics, which runs from July 26 to August 11, is widely expected to show a strong recovery in viewership from recent games, opening up opportunities for brands sponsoring and/or advertising around the event.
According to Numerator’s survey of 10,000 U.S. consumers in July, only 14% distinctly remembered specific Olympic commercials from past years. Among those who do, Coca-Cola and Wheaties advertisements, as well as commercials featuring Michael Phelps and Simone Biles, were the most commonly mentioned.
The survey further found that only 13% of consumers were “significantly more likely” to buy a product endorsed by an Olympian they like, with 36% “somewhat more likely.” A notable 51% were unaffected by such endorsements.
Nonetheless, NBCUniversal said in early April it had sold $1.2 billion worth of advertising across linear TV and digital for the opening and closing nights of the Paris Olympics and Paralympics, putting it on pace to pass the record for most ad revenue ever generated by an Olympic Games.
Among the factors driving interest from advertisers are surging momentum for women’s sports, strong awareness that the Olympics occupy prime real estate in terms of live tune-in, and the growth of NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming platform.
For the first time ever, every single event will stream live on Peacock, amounting to more than 5,000 hours of overall live coverage that enable advertisers to tailor messages aligned around certain sports.
“The Olympics used to be monoculture when it was only on NBC and there were [only] three channels,” Robert Lambrechts, chief strategy officer at creative agency Pereira O’Dell, told The Current. “NBC had the Olympics and you had no choice. But then the fragmentation of media has actually made the Olympics more of a niche player, probably in a good way, a targetable play for people.”
Other research shows the Olympics can pack a long-term benefit for affiliated brands.
Findings from NBCUniversal and BAV Group show that official partners see more than a significant increase in positive association among Olympic fans, as well as an increase in loyalty and esteem and greater differentiation tied to excitement about a brand. Smaller post-sponsorship comparative benefits were seen in preference and consideration.
Research from Nielsen shows that long-range sports partnerships around mega-events such as the Olympics can provide a significant boost to brand awareness, while streams, game highlights, and following athletes on social media can further build engagement, consideration, and conversion.
Adam Isselbacher, SVP and group director of research and analytics at UM Worldwide, told Nielsen, “Brand building is not just about making a brand visible. It’s about embedding into the consumer consciousness.”
Advertisers are also hoping that linear viewership will rebound. As noted by the Washington Post, the prime-time telecast for the 2021 Tokyo Summer Games dropped 27% from the Rio Olympics in 2016. Months later, the tumble in Beijing was worse for the 2022 Winter Games, a 42% decline from the 2018 PyeongChang Games.
While the Olympics continue to face concerns around doping, corruption, and geopolitical risks, viewership at the Paris Games is expected to benefit by avoiding the pandemic-driven disruptions that caused delays and led to the absence of crowds. The Beijing Games headwinds included a focus on human rights abuses in China. Only six hours ahead of U.S. Eastern Time, Paris also offers a more viewer-friendly scheduling versus the Asia-based events.
Additionally, Paris is planning a spectacle, starting with Opening Ceremonies featuring over 10,000 athletes sailing down the Seine in what is poised to be the most ambitious Olympic opening ceremony ever attempted.
“I see Paris as a chance for the Olympics to get its mojo back,” Bob Costas, who hosted NBC’s prime-time Olympics coverage 11 times, told the New York Times.
Numerator’s survey found 57% of U.S. consumers sharing that they’re somewhat or very interested in this summer’s Games. Gymnastics, swimming, track & field, diving, and volleyball are the top five sports consistently favored across generations.
However, a just-released Gallup poll predicted that the U.S. viewing audience for the 2024 Paris Games is poised to be the smallest for any prior Summer Olympics since Gallup began measuring the metric in 2000. Of U.S. adults surveyed, 35% plan to watch a great deal (10%) or a fair amount (25%) of the games, down from 48% measured for the 2016 Olympics and “figures just shy of 60% from 2000 to 2012.”
Discussion Questions
Do you see the Olympics recovering as an advertising opportunity for brands?
What opportunities do newer mediums such as streaming and social media create for brands affiliated with the Olympic Games?
Will viewership around the Paris Olympics see a strong bounce back versus recent summer and winter events?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Brandon Rael
Strategy & Operations Transformation Leader
Gary Sankary
Retail Industry Strategy, Esri
Lisa Goller
B2B Content Strategist
Recent Discussions
More Discussions
How Can Retailers Crack the Gen Z ‘Riddle’?
Gen Z is becoming an increasingly important consumer demographic, but an elusive one to map. How…Does Bath & Body Works’ Scented Holiday Campaign Pass the Sniff Test?
Bath & Body Works is kicking off a new campaign with scent being at the fore…Which Tech Will Solve In-Store Inventory Woes?
Three major tech lineups are looking to solve retail inventory problems. Which is most suited?
For those sponsoring, it certainly pays off in terms of brand visibility. The Olympics is a global event with an extremely powerful reach. Of course, how this translates into sales is another matter. For certain companies, like sports brands, there can be very direct and immediate uplifts in sales. For others, the impact is more muted and delivered over time.
<<Mais non, monsieur!>> Believe me, if there were a line <<C’est impossible!>> I would have honed in on it. The Olympics are perhpas the worlds’s clearest example of a gulf between the purity of the initial concept, and the corrupted embarassment it’s become. (Gulf jumping: an untapped market potential…hmm?)
Any given brand will be affected by a variety of unknown factors that will have an impact on its effectiveness. Are the Olympics likely to be interesting? What events are likely to be of interest to Americans? What athletes will hold the interest of America? Which brands will receive lucky advertisements at the right time and place?
Brands can prepare for these unknown factors by investing in data analytics and market research to understand trends and consumer behavior better.
My mind is taken back to the Women’s World Cup, in which the American team played surprisingly poorly, didn’t stand or sing the national anthem, and audiences disappeared, and commercials were wasted. Americans were simply not interested in watching other countries play the rest of the tournament.
Adding insult to injury, Subway chose Megan Rapinoe to be its spokesperson, and that was a major mistake.
Simone Biles was supposed to be the biggest star of the last Olympics, however, she was unable to perform all the events due to personal reasons, and viewers lost interest.
In contrast, stars are born, and your brand may hit the jackpot. Michael Phelps, Kerri Strug, Greg Louganis, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Bruce Jenner (then) and others are examples.
Researchers have shown that viewers watch the advertisements during the opening and closing ceremonies. That event is probably the most predictable and stable.
In this crazy world, we can only hope that nothing dramatic happens at the Olympics or during their course, which would make the whole event of little consequence.
In my opinion, I would not advise a marketing client to advertise during the Olympics nor would I tie my brand to a celebrity. Sponsorships are more likely to be poor value than good value. Db
This. Unless they mention it in the ad…. otherwise people won’t get it.
Americans love cheering on their beloved athletes and favorite sports. In many ways, the Olympics will be a nice respite from an anvil of politics leading up to election day. People are a little more jittery and on edge about the state of our nation lately, so bring on the Summer Games!
As long as we don’t get bombarded by prescription drug or political ads, and if true brands in clothing, food and lifestyle get to shine during these Summer Games, then there’s great upside for a bounce back.
Amen
Que les Jeux commencent! It’s Paris. The City of Light will attract and enchant global viewers. We want to see athletes swim in the Seine, Steph Curry and Sabrina Ionescu hit threes, and emerging stars triumph in front of a global audience.
Savvy, relevant retailers and brands are poised to be the big winners in Paris. Consider how far retail media data optimization has catapulted forward since Tokyo 2021. Ads will be more targeted and localized to resonate with sports lovers around the world.
The Olympics is one of those magical events, like the World Cup, which is a global phenomenon that takes place every four years. With such an international audience, it’s a prime opportunity for brands to make a bold statement, potentially change their narrative, and drive a viral campaign that will resonate beyond the games.
The Olympics could be a transformative moment for brands, particularly for Nike. Nicole Hubbard Graham’s “Winning Isn’t for Everyone” is the most significant marketing initiative she has undertaken since she assumed the role of Nike CMO at the beginning of the year. Nike has positioned the Olympics as the catalyst for its journey to redefine its marketing strategy, focusing on athletes and key sporting moments. For Nike, the Olympics will be the launchpad for its resurgence, especially as the brand experienced a 2% decline in revenue to $12.6 billion in its most recent financial quarter and revised its guidance for the year.
However, on a more micro level, TikTok has emerged as an authentic storytelling platform, with global athletes generating content from the Olympic Village. Their stories and experiences have resonated with the next generation of consumers looking for authenticity and realness. Brands should take notice, as the Industrial Advertising complex of TV ads, which works for brands the size of Nike, is not a viable economic model for many other companies.
Newer mediums like streaming and social media offer brands affiliated with the Olympic Games several opportunities.
The Olympics is a global event with a lot of eyeballs, so of course the opportunity is huge. It’s a tailor-made platform for Nike, but more open ended for most other brands. But even with abundant eyeballs, it doesn’t feel like the same kind of opportunity as the Super Bowl. Some people watch the Super Bowl as much for the ads as the game. And marketers are happy to indulge that anticipation. I don’t read or hear that same level of anticipation for the Olympics, but that could easily be a function of my own narrow radar. I guess I don’t view the Olympics in the same light as I used to. I loved the celebration of the world of amateur athletes. A repackaging of professional sports stars just isn’t the same. But again, I have to recognize the skewing of my own radar. The Olympics still represent a great opportunity for bold new marketing statements. Let’s hope.
Even the amateur athletes are making millions these days.
Brand visibility and awareness are worth the price of the Olympics. It’s also a chance to show off creative, innovative, and memorable ads that are non “performance-based” Emphasis on “chance”.
If Paris can’t change the humdrum consumer sentiment about the Olympics, I’m not sure anything can. But even an audience smaller than previous games is still a significant audience. Every Olympics brings new stories and new athlete heroes. For sports brands especially, this can open up some significant opportunities to engage consumers with new faces and new ideas.
In the United States, viewership has dramatically dropped over the years. On the other hand, the worldwide audience has dramatically increased over the years, now reaching over three billion.
So, maybe this is a good investment for global brands, but much less so for reaching the U.S. population. Sadly, I often find the patriotic connection in some ads offensive.
Brands know the benefit of having their brand on a show that is viewed by millions. It’s that simple. If it didn’t work, these brands wouldn’t have invested a cumulative $1.2 billion. It will be interesting to read the follow-up article after the Olympics.
Yes – Olympics is a global event and provides a great platform for brands to connect with their audiences.
Especially given the the IOC’s relaxation of rules now allows individual athletes to endorse brands during the Games. This creates more opportunities for more direct interactions between athletes, brands, and fans, especially on social media platforms like TikTok, which has become much more popular since the last games.