Today marks the official opening of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, and DAIVID has leveraged its sophisticated content analysis platform to determine which advertisements from the global sports event have generated the most intense positive reactions historically.
Procter & Gamble (P&G) leads the rankings on DAIVID’s list, securing five of the top seven spots, including the top three positions.
Consequently, the broader search and marketing community is keen to decipher what the American multinational consumer goods company, based in Cincinnati, Ohio, has mastered over the past decade and beyond.
1. P&G Thank You, Mom – Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games
A 2014 Winter Olympics campaign by P&G, celebrating the vital support that mothers provide to athletes, has been identified as the most emotionally engaging Olympic advertisement ever.
This recognition is awarded by DAIVID, a platform measuring creative effectiveness, which determined that the “Pick Them Back Up” campaign elicited the most intense positive emotions among viewers.
The campaign, titled “P&G Thank You, Mom | Pick Them Back Up | Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games,” topped the charts with 59.6% of viewers experiencing strong positive reactions. The video’s description captures its essence: “For teaching us that falling only makes us stronger. For giving us the encouragement to try again. Thank you, Mom.”
2. P&G – Thank You, Mom – The Winter Olympics (2018)
Building on the emotional impact of the 2014 campaign, the “Thank You, Mom – The Winter Olympics (2018)” ad followed closely, achieving a high engagement score of 59.5%.
This video takes viewers on a journey, showcasing mothers supporting their children’s dreams and helping them navigate challenges related to race, religion, disability, or sexual orientation.
3. P&G ‘Thank You Mom’ Commercial: “Best Job” (London 2012 Olympics)
The P&G advertisement from the London 2012 Olympics secured third place, with 58.4% of viewers experiencing intense positive emotions.
This 2012 installment of Procter & Gamble’s campaign features supportive mothers who accompany their children to practices and assist them in overcoming challenges on their journey to becoming successful Olympic athletes.
4. National Lottery Funded Athletes – TV Extended Version
The UK’s National Lottery advertisement, titled “National Lottery Funded Athletes – TV Advert Extended Version,” captured fourth place with a score of 56.9%.
Inspired by the story of 800-meter runner Jenny Meadows and her mother, the ad highlights how National Lottery funding aids British athletes in pursuing their dreams.
5. P&G ‘Thank You, Mom’ Campaign Ad: Strong (Rio 2016 Olympics)
Another entry from P&G’s “Thank You, Mom” series, created for the Rio 2016 Olympics, secured fifth place, with 55.9% of viewers responding with intense positive emotions.
This two-minute commercial showcases supportive mothers assisting their children in overcoming challenging circumstances on their path to becoming Olympic champions.
P&G positions itself as the “Proud sponsor of Moms” and uses the tagline: “It takes someone strong to make someone strong. Thank you, Mom.”
6. We’re The Superhumans – Rio Paralympics 2016
Channel 4, a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel, claimed sixth place with its “Superhumans” trailer for the Rio Paralympics 2016. The three-minute video ad achieved a score of 55.7%.
7. Procter & Gamble – Your Goodness Is Your Greatness
P&G’s “Your Goodness is Your Greatness” campaign secured seventh place, with 55.5% of viewers responding with intense positive emotions.
P&G was founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. Do you think this long history has given them a head start on the rest of the field?
DAIVID CEO’s Insights
In a press release, Ian Forrester, CEO and founder of DAIVID, said:
“When it comes to emotional Olympic campaigns, no brand has ever gone faster, higher, or stronger than P&G. The company’s incredible tributes to the role mums play in helping to put future Olympic champions on the path to Games glory really tug at the emotional heartstrings and are capable of turning even the most cynical viewers into emotional wrecks. ‘Pick Them Back Up’ is a worthy gold winner, generating some of the most intense feelings of positivity we’ve ever seen for an ad.”
He added, “It’s also great to see Channel 4’s sensational campaign, ‘We’re The Superhumans’ in the top 6. Generating incredibly intense feelings of inspiration, the ad has played a crucial role in putting the Paralympics firmly in the hearts and minds of viewers all around the world.”
What can I add?
I’ve known Ian Forrester since September 2012, when he joined the Unruly Group as global insight lead. Over the next six years, we frequently discussed Unruly’s Viral Spiral charts, which tracked the most shared video ads.
From these interactions, I’ve come to recognize that Forrester embodies the Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (E-E-A-T) that both Google and discerning journalists and bloggers value.
This is why I’ve quoted him – along with other video experts – in articles such as “What’s The Alternative To Spending $7 Million On A Super Bowl Ad?” and “How To Make A Video Go Viral.”
Additionally, I’ve cited DAIVID’s critical data and strategic insights in articles like “The Best 5 Super Bowl Ads in 2024 (Brands That Got It Right)” and “39 Emotions Digital Marketers Can Use In Advertising.”
If you want to understand what P&G has mastered, it’s worthwhile to spend a few moments learning more about DAIVID’s methodology.
Check Out DAIVID’s Methodology
Based in London, DAIVID employs technologies such as facial coding, eye tracking, and computer vision to help advertisers enhance the emotional and business impact of their campaigns.
Their platform enables marketers to evaluate and optimize ad effectiveness on a large scale using advanced data analysis methods.
DAIVID’s study of the most emotionally engaging Olympic ads utilized its Self-Serve solution, which is trained on millions of consumer data points to predict the emotional reactions and attention levels ads would generate, as well as their potential brand and business impacts.
The analysis included 56 Olympic ads, excluding those from the current Paris Olympics.
Watch For Yourself To See Why These Videos Trigger Emotion
So, watch the seven ads mentioned above and see for yourself what kind of video content triggers intense positive emotions in viewers. You might notice something I missed.
The next time you want to know if your ad creative is effective, test it. I know, talking about testing social videos the way Madison Avenue once tested TV commercials might seem far-fetched.
However, with AI as your co-pilot, creative testing becomes affordable and efficient, allowing you to identify and solve problems faster and easier than ever before.
This may not bring tears to your eyes like “Pick Them Back Up” likely will, but it can help you catch up with P&G, which already has a 12-year head start.
Original news from SearchEngineJournal