Visa Canada was everywhere viewers wanted to be during the recent Rio Olympics, with new research from Toronto-based Solutions Research Group indicating it claimed the title of most noticed brand.
Nearly one-third (32%) of Canadians who followed the Rio Games noticed Visa on an unaided basis, according to SRG’s new Sports Marketing Report – Rio Olympics Edition. The report said unaided recall was also high for Coca-Cola, RBC, McDonald’s and Bell.
Five of the top 10 advertisers/sponsors mentioned by Olympic viewers were Canadian (RBC, Bell, Canadian Tire, Petro-Canada and Tim Horton’s) compared to four of the top 10 for last summer’s Pan Am Games.
SRG found nearly 79% of Canadians followed at least some of the Games either through TV, online or mobile. That’s up from 76% for the 2012 London Games and 74% for the 2008 Beijing Games.
SRG said TV was “king” among 12+ audiences, used by 86% of people who followed the Games, but the company also pointed out some interesting statistical variations.
For example, use of TV and social/digital channels to follow the Games was almost even among millennials (74% versus 71%), while people 50+ relied almost exclusively on TV to follow the action (95% versus 34%).
Social and digital channels also enjoyed what SRG described as a “commanding lead” among cord-cutters, used by 81% of that particular constituency – compared with 62% who followed via traditional TV, either via over-the-air CBC or in public places.
Nearly one quarter (23%) of Canadians who followed the Games used at least one social media channel to connect with athletes or teams, led by Facebook (14%), Twitter (8%), Instagram (6%) and Snapchat (3%). The top 10 sports followed were swimming, track and field, gymnastics, diving, soccer, beach volleyball, volleyball, basketball, tennis and rowing.
Fifty nine per cent of people who followed the Games gave the CBC a grade of either “A+” or “A” for its coverage, while 20% gave it a “B+.” Both were up considerably from its last Games coverage, when 51% gave it an “A+” or “A.”
Just over half (51%) of respondents said they followed the Games either “somewhat” or “very closely,” with many attributing their increased level of engagement to the success of Canadian athletes in marquee events like swimming and track and field. Respondents also indicated Rio’s favourable time zone helped maximize live viewing and added excitement to the events.
