This moment is not just for the athletes.
Like clockwork, we’re on the verge of another Olympic Games. However, due to the scourge of COVID, we’re only three years on since athletes last took a go in Tokyo. Paris 2024 effectively serves as the first Olympic Games without a focus on the pandemic since the 2018 Winter Olympics. This year’s version of the Games is not without its own challenges – mainly security, counterterrorism and the continued runoff from global conflicts, namely Ukraine and Israel/Hamas. No matter the challenge, let the games begin!
For American consumers, the Olympics are the chance to start seeing the rings appear on and around consumer goods. The public may not know who the top sailor is in the world, but they likely know the faces of Katie Ledecky, Simone Biles and members of the U.S. basketball teams. With billions spent by partner brands on the Olympics, it is worth their while to maximize this partnership.
Part of the reason Americans know of the names Biles and others is because NBC has done a brilliant job over the past three decades using the superstar storytelling method to elevate athletes for primetime coverage. This powerful method works beautifully when athletes live up to that elevated standard, but it doesn’t always go that way (e.g., Turin in 2006, when notable athletes either failed to qualify for medal rounds or pulled out due to injury).
Paris 2024 will be a different experience for all consumers of the Games, and it’s based on a convergence of trends to which brands are actively grasping. Whether a changing consumer landscape or a new technology, these trends are not just Olympic-sized challenges.
1. Evolving Viewer Habits and the Rise of Real-Time Interaction
Consumers expecting the broadcast of old should immediately realign their expectations. The days of withholding information until the prime-time broadcast is gone. And a streaming platform may not be enough to respond or withstand a trending moment on social media. Consumers won’t wait for their kids to get to bed to get the info they seek.
2. Leveraging AI and Tech Innovations in Olympic Productions
Welcome to the AI games – kinda. Fears that all sports will one day be replaced by AI characters are unfounded. What is not unfounded is a mix of AI applications, from the IOC’s use of security and cyberbullying detection to NBC’s use of Al Michaels commentary. Much as brands continue to understand how AI applies to their business, the Olympics are going through some interesting use cases.
3. Emergence of New Sports and Events: Adjusting Brand Strategies
New players crowd the field. Much like a new product hitting the shelves, new voices in the mix create noise. In Paris, new events will be making their debut (hi, Breaking!) and that will mean another entity is taking space in the minds of prospective consumers. Differentiating factors are always essential to communicate, but so too is the recognition to tack and yaw to remind consumers of the brand value.
4. Brand Agility: Capitalizing on Spontaneous Olympic Moments
Missing the moment: We frequently celebrate the brands that were quick to capitalize on the moment. Think of the recent CrowdStrike outage and how brands utilized the blue screen of death to their advantage. However, moments missed are moments never recovered. From the athlete who has trained for four years to miss out on the podium, or the underfunded/low-profiled sport that misses the chance to go viral when it comes around, being prepared is the difference between scrambling and thriving. If a gold medalist in archery is a Swiftie – that National Association better have a post primed in the queue.
That last point – missing the moment – is the reason why many brands fail to change their marketing trajectory to connect it to a growing business. At Hart, we understand that preparation is more than just developed plans; it's about continuously analyzing popular sentiment and recognizing trend shifts with consumers.
Interested in a ‘Moment Readiness Assessment’?