As a follow-up to our 2012 Summer Olympics Preview coverage from last week (“Let The Ad Games Begin,” SHOOTonline, 7/19), SHOOT gained feedback from Bob Liodice, president and CEO of the ANA (Association of National Advertisers), who sees social media carrying increased significance at the Summer Games, which get underway in London on Friday (7/27).
“The use of social media in general during the 2012 Olympic Games is going to skyrocket,” he observed. “In fact, many people have been calling this year’s Games the first ‘social-media Olympics’ or ‘socialympics.’ If you compare the way we engaged during the Beijing Olympics of 2008, social media is a lot more mainstreamed today. Although Facebook and Twitter were around back then, user engagement pales in comparison to what we are witnessing today. At the 2012 Olympics, I think we are going to see the use of social media surpass any sporting event in history.”
As for trends in Olympic advertising, Liodice shared, “Rather than sticking to traditional media outlets, marketers are going to emphasize digital to interact with fans and build momentum for their brands. The biggest trend will be marketers’ use of social media to create online campaigns, drive awareness and generate buzz.
“Given the vast appeal of The Olympics and the vast reach of social media,” he continued, “I expect that marketers are going to want to capitalize on this opportunity as much as possible. In recent years, marketers’ use of newer media has exploded with once unheard of channels really becoming the basis for creative campaigns.”
Liodice went on to cite recently released findings of the ANA’s Digital & Social Media survey, which highlights such trends among marketers as:
o Since last year, the use of online video, such as YouTube, has had the sharpest increase of all media platforms–80 percent are using the channel today compared to just 64 percent in 2011.
o And 90 percent of marketers are using social media today as part of their marketing mix. Here is a look at marketers’ top channels for reaching consumers: Facebook–96 percent; Twitter–89 percent; LinkedIn–49 percent; and Pinterest–33 percent.
For last week’s Olympics Ad Preview feature, which included insights into the work of Procter & Gamble, Liberty Mutual, AT&T and TD Ameritrade, as well as the launch of a social media tracker in the U.K. especially for the Summer Games, click here.
