Let the Games Begin! How Brands Go for Gold at the Olympics
- What is the world’s most popular sporting event in terms of viewership?
- Which brand features a gold-foiled wrapped burrito for its Olympic promo?
- What is Rule 40, and why is it so controversial?
When more than 10,500 athletes from 200 countries and regions float westward down the River Seine to the Eiffel Tower during the opening ceremonies of the Paris Olympics, brands that decided to grab one of those 5 interlocking rings for marketing campaigns will experience the same adrenaline rush as these athletes. They will also have first-hand knowledge of the truth expressed by the Associated Press. “The Olympics are more than just fun and games.”
What This Means for You — Like no other sporting event on Earth, the Olympics provide a venue for athletes, spectators and brand marketing teams to tap into the universal language of athletic competition. The athletes have spent their entire lives preparing for these games and brands investing in Olympic sponsorships are also competing…for attention. To find out how these Games will be played, read on.
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Join the Olympic excitement! We have a SuperStock gallery of incredible sports fans to fuel your creative countdown to the opening ceremonies on July 26th. Click here if you’ve got Olympic Fever!
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The Viewership is Staggering
There are only a handful of sporting events that rank higher than the Olympics for number of viewers. As of November 2023, the World Cup of Soccer was at the top of the heap with more than 5 billion viewers. It was followed by the Tour de France with 3.5 billion viewers and the Cricket World Cup with 2.6 billion viewers. The Women’s World Cup, Summer Olympics and Winter Olympics were tied with 2 billion viewers. This makes the 123.7 million viewers of the 2024 Super Bowl seem small in comparison.
Rating services such as Nielsen project these Summer Olympic numbers will be met in 2024. However, technology is making this calculation more difficult and potentially more interesting to smaller brands that want to reach this massive group.
Hello, streaming.
According to this automated advertising service, “Live sports, which had largely evaded the streaming realm, is now undergoing a transformative shift. What are the factors driving spending from linear to streaming platforms? Primarily, it’s evolving viewing habits, especially among younger demographics.
“Today’s youth are veering away from television sets and communal sports gatherings toward individualized, small screen viewing experiences. Faced with an abundance of media choices, viewers have become more selective, leading to a fragmented audience. Cord-cutting continues to rise, paralleled by the proliferation of streaming services.
“In essence, the advertising spend surrounding the 2024 Olympics mirrors a broader trend in the dynamic between linear and streaming TV, consumer behavior, and advertising strategies. Brands advertising on NBCU Peacock (the network’s streaming service) during the Games can now purchase ad slots using automated technology rather than relying on salespeople.
“By breaking down the Games into smaller, more tailored pieces of content, streaming platforms like NBC’s Peacock have unlocked opportunities for targeted advertising, moving away from one-size-fits-all approaches. This shift towards more focused advertising can translate to reduced costs and increased accessibility for smaller and more diverse advertisers.”
As with many other aspects of media, and society in general, technology is democratizing advertising sponsorships with the Olympics and other large events. Small and medium sized brands will be the beneficiaries. However, production expenses for streaming or digital spots can make it tough for smaller brands to participate in the Games. Licensed stock video and photography from companies like SuperStock can reduce the production expenses, without sacrificing quality.
Promotional Campaigns That Bring Home the Gold
Brands that activate Olympic sponsorships are notoriously “quiet” about the specifics of these plans and spending. However, Forbes reported that “several International Olympic Committee sponsors including Procter & Gamble, Visa and Toyota have committed $100 million this year, an increase of 18% from the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.”
High profile sporting events such as the Olympics bring out the best and brightest of creatives for advertising and promotions. Some brands that are generating buzz include:
Glossier
Glossier will be the first-ever official beauty partner of the U.S. women’s national basketball team at the Olympics. The beauty brand will supply the women’s team with skincare and makeup products. The partnership will include social media content, out-of-home displays and “community engagement moments,”
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups
According to Ad Age, “In order to promote Reese’s first-ever seasonal shape for summer, a medal-shaped peanut butter cup to support Team USA—the Hershey Co.-owned brand is stoking a friendly competition between the new Reese’s shape and its standard cups, with help from Team USA Olympic and Paralympic athletes.
“Soccer gold medalist Alex Morgan and Paralympic gold medal swimmer Jessica Long represent the “legends” while Sophia Smith (soccer) and Haven Shepherd (swimming) represent the newcomers. They will appear in video advertising, social media and on store displays that acknowledge the silliness of the competition.
Click here for a snack-peek of the spot.
Michelob Ultra
Michelob Ultra is popping a top for summer sports, including the Olympics. The brand is rolling out special packaging and highlighting a rebate incentive to promote its role as a US Olympic sponsor. A 15-second ad, “Sweat Team USA,” dropped on July 4 and highlights a special Ultra bottle with an American flag and the Olympic rings on its neck.
Chipotle
The gold-foil wrapped burrito is back at Chipotle, just in time for the Summer Olympics. The “go-to” orders of five sponsored athletes on their way to the Summer Olympics are featured in this tasty campaign.
Anthony Edwards (basketball), Sophia Smith (soccer), Taylor Fritz (tennis), Sara Hughes (beach volleyball) and Jagger Eaton (skateboarding) each shared their favorite burrito or bowl orders, which are available on the Chipotle app or Chipotle.com.
Rule 40: How It Presents Opportunities for Smaller Brands
In June 2019, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) updated “Rule 40” of the Olympic Charter and subsequently established a set of “Key Principles.” These explain how participants, including athletes participating in the Olympic Games can engage in, and benefit from, commercial activities around the 2024 Games.
Billions of dollars are generated for the IOC by “Partner” sponsorships and media advertising during the Olympics, and the governing body rigorously guards these properties, including logos and images from the Games. Rule 40 is the controversial rule of the Olympic Charter which prevents athletes who are competing in the Games from allowing their name, image or sporting performance to be used in advertising during a ‘blackout period’ (just before and during the Games) without the permission of the IOC.
The National Olympic Committees are now permitted to take a country-by-country approach, with more flexibility to permit some advertising featuring athletes, provided that “Olympic themed” advertising remains banned.
The most comprehensive explanation of these rules is found in the “Rule 40 Illustrated Guidance.” It notes, “The IOC is committed to ensuring that the whole world can experience the athletes’ performances, by arranging the broadcast of the Olympic Games on a truly global basis. In this way, we hope to raise the profile of all athletes, and help them attract personal sponsors.”
As with any high-profile sporting event sponsorship, a full-fledged Olympics sponsorship is expensive and there is a high degree of transparency. The committee is very specific about what CAN and CANNOT be done with Olympic logos, athletes, and hundreds of other activations. The challenges come for those brands who are not “Olympic Partners,” or media sponsors but want to participate on a more modest basis. In the new world of streaming, social media advertising and other digital media, this becomes very complicated, very fast.
This Illustrated Guidance document should be required reading for any brand considering ANY sort of Olympic promotion, advertising, earned media effort, social media activation or athlete endorsement. The emphasis of this guide is generic advertising. There are 12 examples of acceptable and unacceptable uses of an Olympian in generic ads.
Anything New in the Paris Games? Sacré bleu!
It has been exactly 100 years since the Olympic Games were held in Paris and the French organizers are determined to show off the “City of Light” with some shiny changes. Here are a few.
The Opening Ceremonies Feature a Flotilla
Nothing says, “we’re in Paris!” like the River Seine and the Eiffel Tower. Incorporating these two landmarks in the opening athlete parade pays proper homage to both. According to the Associated Press, the opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics, held on Friday, July 26, will feature thousands of athletes in a flotilla sailing westward along the River Seine at sunset toward the Eiffel Tower.
“The ambitious idea was to bring the tone-setting spectacle out of an expensively ticketed stadium and into the city where many more people can see it.
Gender Parity Has Arrived
Paris was the city where women first competed at the Olympics with 22 of the 997 athletes in competition. Women competed in tennis and golf, plus as part of team events in sailing, croquet, and equestrianism. Charlotte Cooper of Great Britain became the first female individual gold medalist by winning the tennis singles event.
In the 2024 Summer Olympics for the first time, women have an equal share with men of an entry quota.
Prize Money to the Winners
According to AP, “In Paris, prize money will be paid to gold medalists directly from Olympic revenues in a controversial break with tradition. Each of the 48 gold medals in track and field in Paris carries a $50,000 prize.
A Dance Breakthrough
Breakdance will make its Olympic debut in Paris. Breaking’s 50-year journey from the Bronx will arrive at the Place de la Concorde, where the competition will run Aug. 9-10.
Surf’s Up
Some Olympic athletes have a long plane ride ahead of their event. Surfing by a beach in Tahiti has been added to the Paris Olympics. Oh, and the distance from Paris to Tahiti? 15,705 km. Dude!
Keeping Up with the Competition
There is some cool Olympic news to report about the SuperStock family. Teal Cohen, SuperStock employee and daughter of the company’s CEO, Stewart Cohen, will be representing the USA on the Olympic rowing team. Click here for the scoop on this remarkable young woman. Her father, a well-known photographer, was also granted permission to photograph the USA rowing teams, and these images will be available for editorial use through SuperStock. Also, stay connected to social media and The Magnet for off-the-sideline images from Stewart as he cheers on his daughter in Paris!
If you’re wondering which sports are included in the 2024 Summer Olympics, just click here and a day-to-day schedule is found here. To keep up with the Games daily, just click here.
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