Social Media Gets the Gold for the 2012 London Olympics
According to Twitter’s UK Blog, there were more mentions (tweets) on the day of the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics than there were during the entire 2008 Beijing Olympics. The numbers are captivating, but how else have the Internet and social media affected the Olympic games?
If you’re worried about missing coverage of your favorite Olympic event, think mobile! The delay of the event coverage on TV can be irritating for some, but this is the first time that all of the Olympics are being streamed live online. You can watch the games on-the-go via a mobile device or computer without having to be near a TV to see the action.
The social media profiles of the athletes are incredibly influential. There’s no need to wait for an exclusive interview between a member of the media and a decorated athlete – just follow your favorite Olympians on social media to get the inside scoop. Find out when they take naps, how they battle nerves while preparing for big events, and see what they ate for breakfast.
President Barack Obama even congratulated Michael Phelps via Twitter for becoming the most decorated Olympian in the history of the games and gave him a phone call as well. Phelps tweeted about the call:
Just got a pretty cool phone call on the way to the pool from Mr. President @BarackObama !!! #USA
Social media has created an outlet for instant news from direct sources. There’s no need to wait for information to passed along by a news website or TV station – you can find out for yourself before the media gets the scoop. This can strengthen the impact and credibility of news stories on a global scale.
So how does this span beyond the world games and relate to your business or brand? Social media can be a powerful business tool, but if you’re not implementing it strategically you could be missing out on some great opportunities.
Do you think social media will dominate the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro on an even larger scale?
Published on: August 3, 2012