For the week ending August 18^th, McKayla Maroney, the gold medal gymnast – who has been on the publicity circuit and making headlines for hanging with celebrities and the “Not Impressed” Meme – saw an increase in ten percentage points and claimed the top searched U.S. Olympian, accounting for 22.5% of searches. As we noted in our previous post, McKayla stayed on this list from the first week of the games and her share of searches grew a total of 222% since then.

Last week, appearing in the top were Serena Williams and Kobe Bryant, two Olympians who have popular professional athletic careers outside the Olympics and are considered very marketable. With the buzz from the U.S. Open which began earlier this week, Serena dominated the number one spot accounting for more than one-third of the U.S. Olympians searched. Serena maintains huge endorsement deals with companies such as Nike and Gatorade and has appeared on several Forbes lists – Top 100 Celebrities and Highest Paid Female Athletes.

Also of note, swimming medalist Ryan Lochte appeared back in the top ten for the first time since the week one of games. For the weeks ending August 18 and August 25 he held his position at four and five while others around him fluctuated. He had some buzz pre-games in the number two spot the week before the games stared – this could indicate people will remain interested in news about him moving forward. Search terms around Lochte seem to be skewed towards a heavy interest in his personal life, as many are related to having a girlfriend and his sister who recently made headlines for a controversial interview.

The Olympics are a great stage for athletes and marketers, and this year’s summer games were more digital than ever before. Many fans went online and to social networks for news about their favorite athletes, which is a great opportunity for all marketers, not just official sponsors. Marketers should see athlete endorsements as a huge opportunity to expand their reach, as well as put products in front of new audiences, so it is important to evaluate who would be a good candidate. Even if athlete endorsements don’t fit with your brand, search intelligence can help you identify consumer trends and opportunities that arise from big events, like the Olympics, in order to benefit from terms that drive traffic in your industry.

The week before the Olympics started, 17-year-old swimmer Lia Neal held the first spot with 21.71% of searches among all the 2012 U.S. athletes. During that same time, hurdler Lolo Jones leaped into the top ten with 1.93% of searches.

Source: Experian Hitwise

During the week of the opening ceremonies, Jones jumped 21 percentage points to the number one spot, accounting for 22.75% of searches among the athletes. With the mounting build-up set to take place over the next week at the aquatic center, swimmer Ryan Lochte took second over his teammate Michael Phelps in the race for most popular online, with 8.6% and 7.79% of searches respectively during the week ending July 28.

Source: Experian Hitwise

After the first week of competition was over and Phelps made Olympic history as the most decorated Olympian ever, just like his medal count his online popularity rose to number one with an increase of ten percentage points from the previous week. Searches for Michael Phelps accounted for 17.86% of searches for U.S. Olympians during the week ending August 4. Despite his popularity with the ladies, Lochte fell off the top ten list; he was defeated by some of the female swimmers who powered their way into the week’s top ten searched.  Also appearing were several members of the “Fab 5” – the women’s gymnastics team.

Source: Experian Hitwise

At the end of the second week of competition, Lolo Jones reclaimed her number one position with 12.54% of searches for the week ending August 11. Swimming events ended and track and field events took over this week, which is reflected in Phelps’ drop from the top ten and sprinter Tyson Gay’s appearance in the number two spot with an increase of 10 percentage points from the previous week. Other stand out performers this week were  gymnast McKayla Maroney – whose “not impressed” photo after winning a silver medal went viral – and Hope Solo from the U.S. Women’s soccer team; both made it in the top five.  Beach volleyball star Misty May-Traynor also held on in the top five, although she dropped from the number three position she held the previous week.

Source: Experian Hitwise

These search results help athletes and marketers alike. Now that the athletes continue onto publicity tours and endorsement deals, they have a chance to make a name for themselves and their sport, and earn a good paycheck. For marketers it’s an opportunity to see who captured the interest of Americans and might be a good candidate for endorsement. Even if you won’t be hiring an Olympian, this kind of search intelligence can help you learn popular terms and benefit from those that drive traffic in your industry.

Which Olympians will sustain popularity as excitement of the games subsides? We’ll continue our coverage to find out.

For more online consumer trends, visit the Hitwise Online Trend Center.

There was never really any question that the Olympics would attract a rich and demographically diverse audience of consumers. A more pressing question for Olympics sponsors and advertisers is “how good of a match is the audience with respect to the characteristics of my potential brand users?” In other words, “to what extent will I be reaching the type of consumer who is most likely to be interested in my brand?” Tools like the Experian Ad Relevancy Score help to answer these questions. The score, developed from television viewing behaviors and purchase data collected by Experian Simmons, is derived from profiles of actual brand users compared to the corresponding profile of the Summer Olympics television viewing audience. The higher the score the more benefit and overall sales lift that can be hypothetically derived by the advertiser from placing spots that reach this audience. Think of the score as a general measure to quantify the degree to which the ad will be seen by an audience that is most appropriate and relevant for the brand being advertised. Scores are benchmarked against an average of 100.

After applying the Experian Ad Relevancy Score to a subset of key Summer Olympics sponsors and advertisers, we found that the highest scores are attributed to airline brands. The top five include United Airlines (142), American Airlines (133), American Express (129), Delta Airlines (128), and Citibank (126).

United’s investment in the Summer Olympics appears to be a match made in heaven. The brand’s top score of 142 means that the Summer Olympics viewing audience is 42% more likely to be comprised of consumers who are United flyers. United has been the official airline of the U.S. Olympic team since 1984 and clearly has a nice marketing match with this global event. Nike and McDonald’s, also official sponsors of the U.S. Olympic Team, had scores of 109 and 107, respectively.

A more in-depth analysis and profile of Summer Olympics enthusiasts provides further evidence of a strong connection between interest in the London Games and airline travel. Experian’s Mosaic® USA lifestyle segmentation solution shows that consumer segments including Kids and Cabernet, Jet Set Urbanites and Silver Sophisticates, are among those with a 50% or greater likelihood to be avid fans of the Summer Olympics. Consumers from all three of these segments also have a high propensity to be frequent flyers.

Interested in ad relevancy? Take a look at posts comparing advertisers to audience for these events:

NCAA Tournament

Academy Awards

Super Bowl

USA Track & Field took the gold in consumer interest with the highest visits from June 21^st to July 1^st, when qualifying trials were held. USA Swimming took silver , as their trials were held at the same time.  The peak in traffic was during the week ending 6/30, when most of the finals and interesting competitions occurred. Traffic to USA Basketball is still rising. Though the team did not have official trials, it held exhibition games against other nations’ teams.

Source: Experian Hitwise

Where else do the fans spend their time online?

Although the USA Track & Field site clocked the most visitors during trials – the USA Swimming site  visitors are more enthusiasts of the sport. Four of the top ten downstream sites from the Olympic swimming site were related to the sport.  After visiting USA Swimming, fans went to the Omega Timing site, the official timekeeper of the Olympic games. The site hosted live timing and the results of the trials. And, one-third of the traffic to Omega’s site was new visitors; a big win for Omega. With a spike in traffic of 57% along with 49% new visitors during the final week of trials, their sponsorship of the games is successfully working as an acquisition channel.  Additionally, there was interest in the USA Gymnastics site as visitors jumped over to this site from the swimming site and about one-third of those visitors were new to the gymnastics site.

Source: Experian Hitwise

The USA Track & Field visitors most often went to search engines and social media sites after the site, with only a few sites related to the sport.

USA Basketball visitors went to a variety sites including, ESPN, Netflix and Culver’s fast food restaurant. Leveraging the sites visited after your site to find sites and products where your audience has an affinity helps to develop a more targeted marketing campaign.

Successful marketers are like Olympic athletes – it takes focus, preparation and knowing your competition to win.  By knowing the interests and site behavior of your customers and having insights into the campaigns of your competitors – you can win the competition in your industry.  Timely, accurate data is invaluable to ensure you can react to changing behaviors and emerging trends in your industry. Hold on to your gold or break out from silver by staying ahead of the competiton and in front of your best customers and prospects.

From archery and athletics (that’s Olympics-talk for track & field) to weighlifting and wrestling, there are 32 medal sports on the Olympic program for the 2012 London Games. It’s a pretty sure bet that the most popular events from a television ratings point of view will include gymnastics, swimming, and track & field. Since Americans would most prefer to watch events where their fellow Americans have the greatest chance of winning (out of 921 all-time Summer Olympics gold medals won by U.S. athletes, 60% have come from these combined disciplines), it’s no coincidence that NBC will devote the lion’s share of primetime network programming to these premiere attractions.

The Olympics craze that is soon to be unleashed has advertisers in the starting blocks and at the ready to launch their own Olympic-size marketing campaigns. The composite television and online audience for the Olympics will span a wide range of demographic characteristics.  It’s one of few sporting events that captures the interest and attention of as many women as men. In other words, lots and lots of people will watch. That means these Games will reach a massive audience and represent an advertising bonanza the likes of which marketers have rarely seen before.

How Should Marketers Capitalize?

Despite its obvious drawing power, a target marketing approach still plays a prominent role in determining the likely success or failure of any Olympic-themed marketing campaign. So, what is an Olympics advertiser to do? What types of consumers are more or less likely to be tuning and checking in?

In keeping with the Olympic spirit, we undertook our own exercise of classifying U.S. households into gold, silver, and bronze categories based on their overall interest level in viewing and following the Games. The analysis is based on television viewing behaviors captured by Experian Simmons.  The segments are drawn from Experian’s Mosaic USA lifestyle segmentation solution.  Topping the podium are such key targets as Platinum Prosperity, Fast Track Couples and Picture Perfect Families.  Here’s a look at six medalist segments (ranked by overall interest in the Summer Olympics), all of which have an above average propensity to be frequent viewers of the Games compared to the overall population.

1. Platinum Prosperity. They see themselves as citizens of the world with a strong global consciousness and keen interest in international affairs. How’s that for embodying the Olympic movement? A bit older (mainly in their 50s and 60s) and wiser (they are 4.3 times more likely to have earned a graduate-level degree), these wealthy empty-nesters and retirees are a prime target for marketers of luxury goods, products, and services. Many are also fitness fanatics who belong to health clubs, enjoy aerobic sports and watch professional sports events. More than twice as likely to own a second home, they travel frequently both domestically and abroad.
2. Picture Perfect Families. Due to their mainstream media tastes, you’ll most likely find members of this segment taking in the Olympics parked in front of the family room HDTV. Predominantly in their mid-30s to 50s, married and college-educated, the buying decisions of these consumers are heavily influenced by teenagers who largely rule the nest.
3. Fast Track Couples. Younger, career-focused, upscale couples who have recently started a family or are on the verge of having children, these time-starved households are frequently on the go. Convenience is critical to meeting their discriminating demands. That means they are highly likely to take the Olympics everywhere with them by following the Games online and via their mobile devices.
4. Kids and Cabernet. Highly affluent, well educated, and chock full of moms with kids, these brand-conscious suburbanites are the next best thing to a marketer’s “dream team.” They like their products family-sized. Preferring SUVs outfitted with the latest technology, they make frequent trips to athletic fields and school activities. Parents in this segment also spend a significant portion of their leisure time engaged in athletic pursuits including tennis, golf, skiing, and biking.
5. Wired for Success. An eclectic collection of younger and digitally savvy adults, these consumers will lead the charge to a customized Olympics viewing experience by taking full advantage of online and video streaming options. Without children, these households have plenty of discretionary income to spend on the latest fashions and electronic gadgets. Many plan their shopping trips online before making a purchase decision. They are prime targets for Olympics advertisers planning to utilize social media marketing initiatives.
6. Status Seeking Singles. Highly influential among their peers, these urban, upwardly-mobile singles latch onto the latest fads and fashion trends. Mainly in their 30s and 40s, unattached and childless, they strive to be “in the know.”  Their penchant for a highly social lifestyle and all things digital makes them among the heaviest users of smartphones, tablets, Facebook and Twitter.

Companies whose products and services appeal to users in these key segments – think travel, electronics, financial products, retail and more – can take full advantage of a captive Olympics audience via many touchpoints. Let the Games, and the marketing mania, begin.

Source: Experian Hitwise

Specifically, when the last Canadian-based NHL team was eliminated from the playoffs (the Ottawa Senators on April 26^th), NHL-related searches within Canada decreased 7% when compared with the most recent week. Up until that point, Canadian NHL searches continually increased since the beginning of the playoffs.

Source: Experian Hitwise

Against all categories, share of visits to the Sports – Hockey category have declined 56% since the elimination of Senators (highlighted in red) and 21% year-over-year.

Source: Experian Hitwise

In the US, however, NHL-related searches are up 35% year-over-year. This is a substantial increase and suggests the sport’s increasing popularity in the States.

Source: Experian Hitwise

Is it possible that the NHL is more popular in the US than Canada? Not so fast. As a percentage of total searches in each respective market, NHL-related searches in Canada were 12.8 times more popular than in the US during the 12 weeks ending May 19^th, 2012. While there is much debate in the US about which professional sport is the most popular, there is no doubt that in Canada the NHL reigns supreme.

For the most recent 12 weeks, NBA-related searches were the most popular in the US, followed closely by NFL-related searches. Keep in mind that this likely attributable to the NBA playoffs. NHL-related searches ranked last in the US among top professional sports.

Source: Experian Hitwise

For more information about Experian Hitwise, click here.

On average, advertisers will spend over $1 million for a 30-second spot aired during the men’s tournament championship game.

Because the event is stretched out over a three-week long period and reaches a relatively affluent consumer base, the tournament has broad appeal to advertisers. While perhaps not as impactful as a single sporting event with a much larger audience, such as the Super Bowl, advertisers can still benefit by delivering their message to a healthy-size audience with increased frequency. Based on an analysis of television viewership data tracked by Experian Simmons, the men’s tournament will reach nearly 20% of adults age 18 or over. That’s counting all games over the full length of the tournament.

Several national advertisers targeting men’s tourney viewers can expect to reach a large percentage of their brand users. In fact, the five advertisers with the greatest brand penetration among likely men’s tournament viewers include Coca-Cola (65%), AT&T (50%), Ford (24%), LG (21%) and Honda (15%).

But it isn’t necessarily the biggest brands that reap the greatest reward from advertising during an event with the staying power of March Madness and the NCAA basketball tournament. This is one conclusion from an analysis based on Experian’s Ad Relevancy Score. The score is an estimate of how closely a targeted audience that is exposed to an ad (in this case, the audience that is likely to be viewing the men’s tournament) matches up against the profile of a brand’s existing customer base. A high score indicates that the audience is a strong match and good fit for the brand. In other words, the ad should be particularly relevant to those who are viewing. A low score indicates that the ad could be less relevant because the targeted audience misses the mark relative to the characteristics of the brand’s most likely users. The average Experian Ad Relevancy Score for a brand is set at 100.

When ranking brands based on an analysis of the Experian Ad Relevancy Score for the men’s basketball tournament, we narrowed the advertiser field down to an Elite Eight. Five of the top eight scores are for automotive-related brands. The qualifying brands and their associated scores are as follows:

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