Who is winning the pre-Olympic game?

The 2024 Olympic Games in Paris are just around the corner, bringing excitement and competitive spirit. Alongside the athletes' phenomenal performances, there's another competition heating up: advertising. 

With huge investments in video ads in the range of $10 million to $15 million for high-production-value commercials, it's normal to expect a significant return on these creatives. However, achieving this goal requires ads to not only reach a broad audience but also capture and maintain viewer attention, making every second of the video crucial. Moreover, it's not sufficient to merely grab attention; ensuring the message is conveyed effectively and securing brand recall is essential, as otherwise, the effort could be in vain. 

The Olympic Games are a premium event that brands eagerly attach themselves to, often featuring celebrities. But our multidisciplinary experts, with hundreds of tested ads under their belt, have found that too much star power can overshadow the brand and its key message. 

To illustrate this, we assembled a jury to pick a winner from NBC's Olympic Ads series. We gathered three experts from EyeSee, spanning insights and marketing, to evaluate the top four ads and choose the best. Here are the videos, comments, and the final decision from our jury. 

Fourth Place: Emily in Paris starts strong but couldn’t finish  

This, 44 seconds long video and in medias res storytelling is thrilling, but it's unfortunate that the main protagonist isn't universally beloved. A lot of people might not even watch the end of it.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0tZV4JDeqI

Iskra Herak: "Ad opening with the announcement of Men's 100m background cheering clearly sets the Olympic context. Transition to Emily in Paris describing the look, followed by how it would actually look like, is funny and associates the Olympics with a positive mood. The ending joke doesn't fully hit the mark, as it puts focus more on Emily than on the Olympics and Noah, but overall, it is a cute ad."

Sara Radojkovic: "Although the ad starts really well with a great plot twist, I have to agree with Ana and Iskra. I am not sure if Emily’s character is on point regarding the target group."

Third Place: Megan Thee Stallion has the confidence but is that enough 

The rhythm of this ad, reminiscent of a music video, is impressive, and every aspect of its production is exceptional. However, is there perhaps too much "extra" for a sports event?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40zry15i6Z8

Ana Golubovic: "Using celebrities in the ad should be carefully thought through—if they steal the attention away from the main message (in this case: The Olympics), it can be problematic. The typical humor of oppositions yin (Megan Thee Stallion) vs. yang (corporate marketing office) is used and can be perceived as sweet in the US culture. Globally, this ad maybe wouldn’t have that kind of impact." 

Iskra Herak: "Good points: Placing the Olympics logo in the first three seconds is good as it clearly shows what the ad is for; showing the celebrity within the first five seconds helps attract attention; also, Megan clearly repeating what the ad is for (Olympics) and having it in writing should again make it obvious what the ad is for and help with brand memorability."

Sara Radojkovic: "Megan Thee Stallion is a huge star and although I am a fan, I have to be honest—this video is more on-brand for her than it is for the Olympics." 

Second Place: Paris Hilton proves the importance of precision 

In just 20 seconds, this video perfectly captures the elegance of Paris while conveying the spirit and atmosphere of the Olympic Games. It's funny, star-studded, and right on point.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQgHFWIeHSI

Ana Golubovic: "Seeing this after the Stallion video is celebrity usage done right: using the convenience of Paris' name to fit the Olympics location is a goofy wording humor that's getting popular (let's not forget CeraVe ad with Michael Cera for this year's Super Bowl). Having actual footage of the Olympic Games with popular music to convey the message of the Olympics on NBC is also done right. The critique goes for the first three seconds: crucial seconds with no context of the brand (NBC) or Olympics can be a miss." 

Iskra Herak: "I agree, other than revealing who the celebrity is within the first 3-5 seconds to make sure there is no retention dropout, the ad is great. Funny and short." 

Sara Radojkovic: "I love Paris’ ability to be self-ironic. This ad is really funny but you cannot speak about it without mentioning the Olympic Games and the key message—yes, it is THAT Paris." 

Winner: The Minions - They simply never give up and never surrender 

This video starts off low-key, gradually raising its intensity. By the end, it leaves us grinning and dancing to the rhythm of the music alongside the athletes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zelmN-KEIcE

Iskra Herak: "Starting with upbeat music and introduction of athletes clearly shows that the ad is Olympic-related. The appearance of Minions brings the fun element, and the combo of athletes with Minions is entertaining to watch. However, the actual information about the start of the competition is not coming through very clearly due to loud background music." 

Ana Golubovic: "The first three seconds reveal the main theme right away: the Olympics. The suspension grows as we watch them prep for different games. After five seconds, suspenseful music is cut with the sound of trumpets, and Minions take the attention, cheering and supporting all champions. The announcement communicates both the Olympics and the new movie in the closing. The combo of co-branding and using actual Olympic competitors and goofy Minions is sweet, unpredictable, and funny and can be amusing to wider audiences even if the Minions are not on their media channels." 

Sara Radojkovic: "Is there any world where Minions don’t dominate? Joke aside, they are just a wonderful creative device to tell a story and convey key messages whether they are in a feature film or in a short ad, you just have to know how to use their potential right." 

Our jury has spoken, and the Minions have taken the gold for their perfect blend of humor, Olympic spirit, and brand message. But the competition isn't over yet! Stay tuned for our upcoming article, where we'll dive even deeper into the analysis of Olympic Ads and uncover who is truly winning the pre-Olympic game.

Eager to know more about emotional component of your ads? Read Emotional Recognition Demystified: The Expert Guide.