Independent Studies
Study:
Winter Olympic Viewers “Can’t Beat the Feeling”
At the conclusion of the 1992 Winter Olympics, advertiser and Olympic Sponsor Coca-Cola broke through the Olympic marketing clutter and posted an impressive audience return.
Performance Research, (Newport, R.I. based sports marketing research firm) tested the awareness, association and image of Olympic sponsors immediately before and immediately following CBS’s coverage of the Winter Olympics in Albertville. The study interviewed 700 random adults with 350 interviewed before the opening ceremonies and 350 interviewed after the telecast watching a minimum of four hours of programming.
When asked to recall official sponsors (within hours of the closing ceremonies), almost one-half (47%) of the television audience recalled Coca-Cola. Moreover, Coke’s sponsorship awareness more than tripled from pre-event tests where only 12% of those intending to watch the coverage noted their involvement. Also receiving impressive returns were the U.S. Postal Service, Chrysler/Jeep, and Visa, each more than doubling from pre to post testing consumer “top of mind” recall through their Olympic theme advertising.
And which commercial made lasting impressions? Advertisements for Coca-Cola were recounted by 21% of the audience, followed by Reebok (10%), M&M /Mars (8%), McDonald’s (7%), Chrysler/Jeep (7%), Visa (6%), U.S. Postal Service and American Express (5%).
Among other categories, viewers were asked to identify the official Olympic car company. Because of their Olympic themed advertisements, Official automobile Chrysler, overcame confusion from Buick’s past involvement, and was recalled by 31% of the television viewers (vs. Buicks’s 15%). Subaru, long-time U.S. Ski team sponsor, was identified in the same category by nearly one-fifth (18%) of the respondents.
But not all sponsors utilized the Olympic theme in their campaigns. Some, like JCPenny advertised very little during the telecast and did not take full advantage of the costly Olympic rings they paid for so dearly. When asked to identify the official Olympic retailer, both pre and post respondents incorrectly mentioned KMart and Sears more often than USOC sponsor, JCPenny.
So where does corporate image/goodwill fit into all of this? Olympic sponsors were perceived as both “Friendly” and “Global” according to the 7.1 (out of a possible 10) mean ratings they received. Other, less regarded attributes were “Leaders” (6.7), “Innovative” (6.3), and “Healthy” (5.9).
Performance Research interviewed 350 random adult TV viewers immediately before the TV coverage of the Winter Olympics began and 350 TV viewers, who had watched a minimum of four hours of coverage, immediately following the Games? TV coverage. The margin of error is less than one percent.
Full List of Independent Studies
Consumer attitudes to the oil giant and its marketing
Study of Olympic sponsorship (Albertville)
Study of Olympic sponsorship (Barcelona)
Study of Olympic sponsorship (Lillehammer)
Racestat: a comprehensive analysis of the NASCAR audience
Indy Car Study
America’s Cup sponsorship
Study of Olympic sponsorship (Atlanta)
ESPN X-Games audience study
Consumer attitudes toward corporate sponsorship of the arts
Consumer attitudes to the Olympics following Salt Lake City Scandal
Research at the Daytona 500
America’s Cup
Study of sponsorship at the Indianapolis US Formula One Grand Prix
Study of Olympic sponsorship at Sydney
A look at how visitors connect to the commercial clutter of Times Square.
Study of Olympic sponsorship at Vancouver
The latest report.
NASCAR Winston 500
Consumer reaction to sponsorship of arenas and stadiums
Study explores attitudes to corporate sponsorship among Poles.
Research at the Rugby World Cup
Research among European Formula 1 Grand Prix
Millennium Dome sponsorship awareness study
Research at the British F1 Grand Prix
Attitudes of F1 racing fans to the introduction of US motorsports in Britain
Research into sponsorship effectiveness at Euro
UK cricket sponsorship – beyond awareness
Compares and contrasts opinions of visitors to both the 2000 US and 2000 British Formula One Grand Prix.