10 Aug Three Important Lessons for Event Marketers from Tokyo Olympics 2020
Organizing and marketing Tokyo Olympics 2020 was like walking in unchartered territory. Although it was postponed for the fourth time since its inception, the first three were in 1916, 1940 and 1944 as they coincided with WW-I and WW-II. But this time, the circumstances were different. The pressure and dissent from the residents of the host country were immense. Not to forget that the sponsors and organisers were faced with a major challenge of keeping the hype of the Olympics alive in the market. Modifying the initial advertisements and campaign plans and centering these around the audience turned out to be the only means to survive this disruption.
Now, that the games have ended, I can say that the International Olympics Committee (IOC) managed to do an amazing job. As a marketing enthusiast, I have noted some of the tricks that were used by IOC to ensure high event viewership. These tricks grabbed my attention as they demonstrated how digital mediums can be used to market an event of this scale and significance.
1 – Don’t kill the buzz associated with the event
IOC retained the name of the event as Tokyo ‘2020 even when the release date was pushed back by a year.
Takeaway – Every event small or big has some kind of value associated with it. I understand that you made enormous efforts in building and trending hashtags on social media platforms. Don’t change any of the related aspects such as the event’s name or place to continue leveraging from the buzz that you have created earlier.
2 – Connect directly with your audience
IOC used multiple channels to communicate directly with the audience. They spoke to their visitors directly especially when people were living in isolation. IOC shared behind-the-scenes videos from Olympics village by using the live feature of the social media platforms.
Takeaway – To keep your attendees intrigued, organise small events and add a personal appeal to them. For example, if your event is a culinary workshop, give related challenges. Ask attendees to cook a dish that reflects their special memories. Create landing page(s) to promote the hosts and bridge the gap between the attendees and the hosts. Follow the footsteps of IOC and share real-life stories and experiences of the event hosts to build the much-needed connection.
3 – Urge your sponsors to market the event
Some of the Tokyo Olympics 2020 sponsors didn’t decide to deboard the ship and made their effort to gather as many virtual audiences as they could. Airbnb, the newest sponsor for the Olympics dedicated an entire section on its website to promote the event and hosted an online festival.
Takeaway – Organise insightful discussions with your sponsors where you explain to them the benefits of marketing your event. Give them ideas to host challenges or create videos to promote your event in the digital space.
As Christopher Caroll (Director of Digital Engagement, IOC) says – “Your training phase is only as good as your preparation phase. The preparation phase is only as good as the performance phase. And your performance phase is only as good as your recovery phase.” Agility and flexibility are what allows the marketeers today to ace their game in this challenging time.
Now, that the games have ended, I can say that the International Olympics Committee (IOC) managed to do an amazing job. As a marketing enthusiast, I have noted some of the tricks that were used by IOC to ensure high event viewership. These tricks grabbed my attention as they demonstrated how digital mediums can be used to market an event of this scale and significance.
1 – Don’t kill the buzz associated with the event
IOC retained the name of the event as Tokyo ‘2020 even when the release date was pushed back by a year.
Takeaway – Every event small or big has some kind of value associated with it. I understand that you made enormous efforts in building and trending hashtags on social media platforms. Don’t change any of the related aspects such as the event’s name or place to continue leveraging from the buzz that you have created earlier.
2 – Connect directly with your audience
IOC used multiple channels to communicate directly with the audience. They spoke to their visitors directly especially when people were living in isolation. IOC shared behind-the-scenes videos from Olympics village by using the live feature of the social media platforms.
Takeaway – To keep your attendees intrigued, organise small events and add a personal appeal to them. For example, if your event is a culinary workshop, give related challenges. Ask attendees to cook a dish that reflects their special memories. Create landing page(s) to promote the hosts and bridge the gap between the attendees and the hosts. Follow the footsteps of IOC and share real-life stories and experiences of the event hosts to build the much-needed connection.
3 – Urge your sponsors to market the event
Some of the Tokyo Olympics 2020 sponsors didn’t decide to deboard the ship and made their effort to gather as many virtual audiences as they could. Airbnb, the newest sponsor for the Olympics dedicated an entire section on its website to promote the event and hosted an online festival.
Takeaway – Organise insightful discussions with your sponsors where you explain to them the benefits of marketing your event. Give them ideas to host challenges or create videos to promote your event in the digital space.
As Christopher Caroll (Director of Digital Engagement, IOC) says – “Your training phase is only as good as your preparation phase. The preparation phase is only as good as the performance phase. And your performance phase is only as good as your recovery phase.” Agility and flexibility are what allows the marketeers today to ace their game in this challenging time.
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