Free Essay: 2016 Olympic Games Analysis Related to Other Olympic Games and Marketing

Olympic Games are a phenomenal event that attracts athletes from all corners of the earth and commands international attention. Such attention, of course, brings about scrutiny of the host and expectations from the participating countries are generally high. There are many departments actively involved in the preparation and management of these games, and no coin is spared in the quest to have the most dramatic experiences on earth ("Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games: Current Issues and Problems," 2016). The 2016 Olympic Games were held in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, from 5th to 21st August. More than 11,000 athletes from different countries participated in these games with first-time competitors from Kosovo, South Sudan, and refugees taking part in the event. The games featured a total of 28 games, and 306 medals were up for grab in the competition. New games which were featured in the 2016 Rio Olympics includes golf and rugby with most of the games taking place at 33 venues in the Rio de Janeiro city. However, other cities such as Sao Paulo, Salvador, Brasilia and Manaus hosted some of the games ("How do we know that Rio 2016 was a success," 2016). The lead-up to these games were marked by controversies which included Brazil's federal government instability, economic crisis and the outbreak of Zika virus but despite these fears, the games were a remarkable success.

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The Olympic Games were not only entertaining, but even the planning of the event was spectaculars. The organizing committee of the games had placed its focus at coming up with a plan that entailed sustainability and environmental protection. It is for that reason that the theme of the games was "green games for a blue planet." The organizers introduced a wide range of transport options, infrastructures, access to utilities and improved sewer system aimed at reducing the levels of pollution. They further started a campaign that would see the planting of 24 million seedlings to offset the expected carbon that would be released during the games (Rohde, 2018). Such ambitious plans which needed a lot of money made most critics doubt the financial capabilities of Brazil holding successful events. Nonetheless, the critics were proved wrong.

The international Olympic committee relies on private funding, and since 1896 it has built on contributions from commercial partners to stage the games. Through the sale of the media rights, the Olympic marketing program ensures that there is maximum coverage and that as many numbers of people can view the games as possible ("How do we know that Rio 2016 was a success," 2016). The Olympic revenue for the 2016 games was generated through some programs which include the following.

• Sales of media rights to the Olympic games
• Managing domestic sponsorship, ticketing and licensing programs within the host country
• Generation of revenue through complementary commercial programs

90% of the revenue obtained was redistributed to the broader sporting movement to stage the Olympic Games and promotion of the global development of the sports. Having mentioned earlier that 2016 was the richest Olympic in the human history, it is important to note how much revenue was collected from the event. Television companies paid more than $4bn to air the 19-day-event of the Olympic while several sponsors supporting the games played a crucial role of marketing the Olympic and the capital obtained in marketing revenues was close to $9.3 billion, making the Rio 2016 the most productive event of the Olympic ("OLYMPIC MARKETING," n.d). The graph below shows the comparison of the 2016 games from the previous years

Sponsors also played a crucial role in the marketing and the success of the games due to their immense contribution. In 2016, a Mexican media mogul carols slim who paid the Rio organizing committee $320 million to secure marketing rights for his firm during the game. Comparing such single sponsorship from an individual from those made in the 2012 London Olympic, this figure was on the higher side, and huge profits were inevitable ("How do we know that Rio 2016 was a success," 2016). In return for the support given to the Olympic team, the sponsors were able to enjoy global exposure and marketing of their brands to billions of people watching the sports around the world. This is a unique marketing platform which can only be provided by games like the Olympic. The sponsors were also offered a chance to use marketing programs, showcasing and community outreach initiatives which would help them develop their brands and increase sales by connecting with the public and improving the customer relationship.

The Olympic Partners (TOP) program is the highest level of Olympic sponsorship which grants rights to a specific group of global partners. This program was created in 1985 to attract the best-known multinational companies in the world. Since its formation, TOP has grown in worth from $95 million to $ 1 billion in 2016. For the Rio 2016, Olympic partners helped in this significant growth, and this made the game come to life through global promotional campaigns with a full-scale media activation as well as showcasing venues at Olympic parks around the city ("OLYMPIC MARKETING," n.d). The sponsors also provided critical technology and services which directly assisted in the staging of the games. Below are some of the essential contributions made by the various partners in the Rio 2016 games;

Toyota- the multimillion dollar company joined TOP in 2015 and played a crucial role in the mobility category which included obtaining the marketing rights in Japan with immediate effect. The mobility category in the Olympics is designed to support the sustainability goals of the Olympic movement.

Coca-Cola- the marketing complain of Coca-Cola in the Olympic Games focused on celebrating success which was represented by the gold medals and which the company believed that such success could happen far beyond the podium. Coca-cola aimed at celebrating with the fans across the world by indicating that the gold represented a feeling that comes after accomplishing something tremendous but simple in everyday activities. Coca-cola also served as the presenting partner of the Olympic flame after its 95-days journey all across Brazil.

Atos- the Rio Olympic games had more digital coverage than any other Olympic, and it was the role of the worldwide it partners, Atos who made this success possible. In all the events taking place, Atos were responsible for the distribution of the results to the world in less than half a second ("OLYMPIC MARKETING," n.d). This was a technological marvel which was as a result of many years of hard work. Atos managed to succeed in the following areas

• The first use of the cloud at an Olympic game to host the volunteer portal and the workforce
• Used few servers (75% less) than those used at the London 2012 Olympic reducing the cost and energy consumption
• Venues were fitted with IT infrastructure to ensure the events could take place as scheduled
• 300,000 accreditations were processed
• 100 million messages were sent to the media to share results and updates

Bridgestone- it is one of the largest tires and Rubber Company which made its debut in Olympic Games in 2016 by providing financial sponsorship to the organizing committee. The company was granted the rights of activation in Brazil, United States, Japan, and South Korea. The company was allowed to market its products through the use of banners, billboards and street signs in Rio the city that hosted the game (Rohde, 2018). Through such advertisement, enough coverage and exposure to the public were guaranteed, and this would help in the selling of its products. Other significant companies who participated in the sponsorship of the games include Dow, Ge, McDonald's, Omega, Panasonic, P&G, Samsung, Visa, among many others.

The ticket sales at the Rio Olympic Games started on the 31st of March 2015 where the residents of the host nation were able to apply and get tickets from the Rio 2016 official website("How do we know that Rio 2016 was a success," 2016). Towards the end of the first phase, more than 5.2 million ticket applications had been made, and the most sought tickets were for the volleyball, followed by football and then basketball. Fans outside Brazil were able to purchase tickets from authorized ticket Resellers (ATRs) appointed by the respective countries Olympic committee. Marketing of the games was also conducted through the Rio 2016 stores and more than 40,000 authorized point sales across Brazil ("OLYMPIC MARKETING," n.d). The stores sold unique souvenir, pins, pens, t-shirts, and towers among other products which suited the tastes of different fans and this made an enormous profit by generating about $ 300 million in retail sale.

In conclusion, the 2016 summer games can be regarded as a massive success to the organizing committee, the hosting nation which saw a huge boost in tourism, the athletes, the sponsoring companies and the spectators at large. Despite the economic hardship that Brazil was experiencing at that time, the event turned out to be of a success story that will be told for generations to come (Rohde, 2018). During the 16 days of pure sports people were able to witness records getting shuttered, high emotions, personal bests and inspiring sportsmanship that only the Olympic Games can create.

References

How do we know that Rio 2016 was a success. (2016, December 6). Retrieved from https://www.olympic.org/news/how-do-we-know-that-rio-2016-was-a-success

OLYMPIC MARKETING. (n.d.). THE OLYMPIC GAMES EXPLAINED, 98. doi:10.4324/9780203331705_chapter_seven

The Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games: Current Issues and Problems. (2016). doi:10.14526/01_1111_95

Rohde, E. (2018). Created olympic image: The Rio Olympics 2016 from the perspective of international high-quality print media. Journal of Human Sport and Exercise - 2018 - Rio 2016 Olympic Games First Anniversary Special Edition. doi:10.14198/jhse.2018.13.proc1.06