With the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris officially opening today, DAIVID used its advanced content testing platform to see which ads from the global sporting event have elicited the most intense positive emotions of all time.
Procter & Gamble (P&G) dominates DAIVID’s all time chart, with five of the top most emotionally engaging Olympics ads – including the top three tear-jerking positions.
So, the rest of the search and marketing community will want to figure out what the American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio has understood for more than a dozen years.
Although for the Olympic Games in Paris 2024, the consumer products maker announced back in May that it was going to focus its marketing at the Games on its individual brands – including Pampers, Ariel, Fairy, Gillette Venus, Gillette, Always, Head & Shoulders, Oral-B, and ZzzQuil.
So, how’s that working out?
Well, let’s just say none of P&G’s brands are at the top of the latest chart, according to a new AI ranking by DAIVID.
Perhaps they might want to return to their tried and tested format that was working and resonating with their core audience. As they say – if it ain’t broke…
Top 3 Most Emotionally Engaging Ads for the Paris 2024 Olympics
1. Powerade | Simone Biles “The Vault” Pause Is Power
In first place, the latest version of the Coca-Cola-owned brand’s “Pause is Power” campaign, inspired by Simone Biles’s choice to prioritize her mental health by stepping back from competition during the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, reached the top spot by evoking the strongest positive emotions (53.8%). Additionally, it achieved a Creative Effectiveness Score of 6.8 out of 10, which measures effectiveness based on attention, emotions, and memory.
In a new press release, Forrester said, “Powerade is a worthy gold medal winner and a powerful reminder for brands of the power of doing something different. While many sports commercials are high-octane and action-packed, with win-at-all-costs messaging, ‘The Vault’ is a notable departure. It’s much slower-paced, reflective and shows a more human side to sport.”
2. Coca-Cola | It’s Magic When the World Comes Together
In second place is Coca-Cola celebrating human connection. According to DAIVID’s new AI-powered tool, which employs a model trained on millions of consumer data points to forecast the emotional and business impact of an advertisement, this video ad has a score of 53.6%.
3. Team GB Team Talk to inspire the nation
In third place is the UK bank NatWest with a score of 52.8%
Top 7 Most Emotionally Engaging Olympics Ads Of All Time
1. P&G Thank You, Mom – Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games
A P&G 2014 Winter Olympics campaign honoring the crucial support mothers provide to athletes is the most emotionally engaging Olympic ad of all time.
This accolade comes from DAIVID, a creative effectiveness platform, which found that the “Pick Them Back Up” campaign evoked the strongest positive emotions among viewers.
“P&G Thank You, Mom | Pick Them Back Up | Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games” led the chart with 59.6% of viewers responding with intense positive emotions. As the video’s description says, “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)
Following the (emotional) success from 2014, Thank You, Mom – The Winter Olympics (2018) was close behind in second place with a score of 59.5%.
This video guides the viewer through moms supporting their kids with their dreams and through their circumstances – whether it be bias over color, religion, disability, or sexual orientation.
3. P&G ‘Thank You Mom’ Commercial: “Best Job” (London 2012 Olympics)
P&G’s ad from the London 2012 Olympics took third place, with 58.4% of viewers responding with intense positive emotions.
In this 2012 edition of Procter & Gamble’s ad campaign, supportive mothers take their children to practices and help the kids deal with setbacks on their way to becoming successful Olympic athletes.
4. National Lottery Funded Athletes – TV Extended Version
The UK’s National Lottery ad, ” National Lottery funded athletes – TV advert Extended Version,” took fourth place with a score of 56.9%.
It was inspired by the story of 800-meter runner Jenny Meadows’ mother and showcased how National Lottery funding supports British athletes in achieving their dreams.
5. P&G ‘Thank You, Mom’ Campaign Ad: Strong (Rio 2016 Olympics)
Another from P&G’s Thank You, Mom series for the Rio 2016 Olympics was placed fifth, with 55.9% of viewers responding with intense positive emotions.
In this two-minute commercial, P&G features supportive mothers helping their children persevere through difficult circumstances on their way to becoming Olympic champions.
The brand 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, took sixth place with its “Superhumans” trailer for the Rio Paralympics 2016. The 3-minute video ad got a score of 55.7%.
7. Procter & Gamble – Your Goodness Is Your Greatness
Your Goodness is Your Greatness from P&G took seventh place, with 55.5% of viewers responding with intense positive emotions.
DAIVID CEO’s Insights
P&G was founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. Do you think this gave them a head start on the rest of the field?
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 Forrester since September 2012, when he joined the Unruly Group as global insight lead. And I talked with him several times over the next six years about Unruly’s Viral Spiral charts, which showed which video ads were among the most shared.
So, I’ve learned that Forrester has the kind of Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (E-E-A-T) that not only Google talks about, but skeptical journalists and bloggers value, too.
That’s why I’ve quoted him – along with other video gurus – in articles like “What’s The Alternative To Spending $7 Million On A Super Bowl Ad?” as well as “How To Make A Video Go Viral.”
And that’s why 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)” as well as “39 Emotions Digital Marketers Can Use In Advertising.”
But if you want to figure out what P&G already understands, then it’s worth spending a few moments learning more about DAIVID’s methodology.
Check Out DAIVID’s Methodology
Based in London, DAIVID leverages technologies like facial coding, eye tracking, and computer vision to help advertisers enhance the emotional and business impact of their campaigns.
Their platform allows marketers to assess and improve ad effectiveness on a large scale using advanced data analysis methods.
DAIVID’s study of the most emotionally engaging Olympics ads utilized its Self-Serve solution, trained on millions of consumer data points, to predict the emotional reactions and attention levels ads would generate, along with their potential brand and business impacts.
The analysis involved 56 Olympic ads, excluding those from the current Paris Olympics.
As the Paris Olympics has progressed, all released advertisements were uploaded to DAIVID’s platform through its API. The platform’s predictive AI then evaluated and ranked the ads based on the anticipated strength of positive emotions they would evoke. In total, 47 ads were analyzed in the study.
Watch For Yourself To See Why These Videos Trigger Emotion
So, watch the 10 ads above and see for yourself what kind of video content triggers intense positive emotions in viewers. You may see something that I might have missed.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results as P&G found out after not having a mention at the Paris Olympics, despite having 5 ads in the top 7 of all time.
Next time you want to know if your ad creative is working, test it. P&G take note.
I know, talking about testing social videos the way that Madison Avenue once tested TV commercials seems like pie in the sky.
Does that guarantee future success? Well, AI can’t be creative like humans can.
So, the heart of every great video is still innovative, surprising, human-led creativity.
But AI can help advertisers to measure and improve the effectiveness of their content at scale. And that can help the creative teams at iconic brands and their agencies to cross the finish line ahead of their competitors.
All data from DAIVID.
More resources:
- The Complete Beginner’s Guide To YouTube Video Advertising
- 20 Confirmed Facts About YouTube’s Algorithm
- Social Media Marketing: A Complete Strategy Guide
Featured Image: Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock
