As the Paris 2024 Olympics kicked off this week, it is evident that the Games continue to have a massive impact on the digital sphere, reaching millions worldwide.
With the BBC revealing that the opening ceremony for Paris 2024 recorded the highest audience figures since London 2012, we take a deeper look into the footprint of the Games through a digital lens, assessing changes in user engagement over time and trends in the consumption of content.
Here’s a look at the key figures demonstrating the Olympics’ profound digital and marketing footprint across various platforms.
Television
Since 2008, television viewing figures have seen a downward trend attributed to the diversification of platforms users engage with rather than a sudden drop in interest in the Olympics. With the advent of social media, people’s habits have changed, with more turning to these platforms to watch highlights and key moments.
Despite this, Tokyo 2020 still attracted a global broadcast audience of over 3.05 billion people (Paris 2024 Olympics).
Global Television Broadcast Audience per Olympic Games Since 2000
Television viewership remains a cornerstone of Olympic consumption. Although people may not be watching on traditional TV, this has not negatively impacted the need for content production and overall engagement:
- Content Production: Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) produced 10,200 hours of content for Tokyo 2020, which was 44% more than for Rio 2016.
- Consumption: Viewers consumed 23 billion hours of content across TV and digital platforms during Tokyo 2020.
Furthermore, the BBC reported that the Paris 2024 opening ceremony attracted more viewers than the last two Games, Tokyo 2020 and Rio 2016. This increase may be impacted by the proximity to France and the smaller time difference compared to Tokyo and Rio, but it still indicates that television remains a primary channel for Olympic consumption.
Olympic Games Opening Ceremony Viewing Figures on BBC since Since 2004
Radio
While radio plays a smaller role in the modern digital age, it still offers significant reach, especially for live updates and recaps:
- Global Reach: Major broadcasters like BBC Radio and NPR provide comprehensive coverage, offering live updates, interviews, and analysis.
- Engagement: Radio offers a unique, intimate medium for storytelling, especially for recapping events and athlete interviews, driving listener engagement and providing valuable content for commuters and those without access to screens.
SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)
The Olympics generates a massive surge in search queries. Data from Google Trends reveals unsurprisingly huge spikes in search levels for “Olympic Games” every four years, with smaller spikes noticeable around the time of the Winter Olympics.
Other notable figures and facts include:
- Google Searches: During the 2016 Rio Olympics, Google saw a significant spike in searches related to the Games, athletes, and events.
- Search Trends: SEO strategies need to focus on trending keywords such as “Olympics schedule,” “medal tally,” and specific athlete names to capture organic traffic.
- Content Optimisation: Websites optimised content around popular search terms and timely updates to rank higher on search engine results pages (SERPs).
SEA (Search Engine Advertising)
Paid search campaigns see a notable increase during the Olympics as brands aim to capitalise on heightened interest:
- Increased Ad Spend: Brands significantly increase their search engine advertising budgets to capture traffic from Olympics-related searches.
- Targeted Campaigns: Advertisers bid on high-traffic keywords and create targeted campaigns to reach audiences looking for Olympics-related information.
- ROI: SEA campaigns during the Olympics often deliver higher ROI due to the increased search volume and audience engagement.
Social Media
Social media platforms become buzzing hubs of activity during the Olympics:
- Engagement: The Tokyo 2020 Games were the most digitally engaged Olympics ever, with 6.1 billion engagements on social media handles.
- Followers: Social media accounts for Paris 2024 count a total of 6.4 million followers just two days into the Olympics (28/07/2024):
- 691k on Facebook
- 519.22k on X (formerly Twitter)
- 2.9M on Instagram
- 164k on YouTube
- 1.7M on TikTok
- 289k on LinkedIn
- 202k on Threads
- Video Views: The total number of digital video views reached 28 billion, a 139% increase from Rio 2016.
- User Base: The Olympics website and app saw 196 million unique users.
Platform-Specific Trends
- Twitter: Approximately 300 million Olympic-related tweets during Tokyo 2020.
- Instagram: Over 1 billion Olympic-related posts during the Rio 2016 Games.
- TikTok: A 700% increase in Olympic-related video views during Tokyo 2020.
Conclusion
The Olympics provides unparalleled opportunities for brands to connect with a vast and engaged audience across various platforms. From traditional TV and radio to SEO, SEA, and social media, the Games’ digital footprint continues to grow, driving significant engagement and offering unique marketing potential.
As the digital landscape evolves, the Olympics will remain at the forefront of innovation, presenting new opportunities for brands, athletes, and fans alike.
