Why USA Lost in the London 2012 Olympics

Where to start with the 2012 Olympic Games? Not to be overshadowed, the feats of dedication, perservenrance and spirit shown by all the participating athletes was nothing short of amazing.

Leading up to the Olympics, there was a lot of talk about this being the first “social” Olympics. In the four years since Beijing, the online landscape was markedly different. 100 million vs. 900 million Facebook users, 6 million vs. 500 million twitter accounts. Add to that the new darlings of the space, Instagram and Pinterest who weren’t even blips on the population’s radar. In fact, more tweets about the 2012 Olympics occurred in a single day around Olympic trials than ALL tweets surrounding the Beijing Games in 2008.

With those stats and as a marketer, I was beyond exited to watch these games unfold. Unfold they did.

1. In today’s news-now world, NBC couldn’t keep it secret that they cut UK’s tribute to 7/7 victims (their version of 9/11), the ignorance of the announcers who pronounced countries incorrectly, didn’t know who the inventor of the Internet or UK’s final torch bearer was and that even on their own network, spoilers were rampant. Personal Note: Yes, NBC did ruin the Olympics for me. I stopped watching their coverage on Day 3, opting for no TV coverage, because it was so awful.
2. Racist tweets from athletes to threats from fans, social media brought the worst of people into the limelight.
3. Last, but certainly not least, the up close and personal journey of athletes. By far, this was my favorite part. From pictures like this and this to being able to send in the moment personal messages directly to athletes. WOW. What an unforgettable experience. This is the magic of social media. This is why I love i

From a marketer’s perspective, #London2012 had three big lessons:

1. We (aka the World) still do not have the needed technology infrastructures in place. Communication via mobile is still a challenge, no matter how many precautions or preparations are put in place.
2. Better and clearer connection points should be made by Olympic “leaders”. #2012London, #Olympics, #2012Olympics, the list goes on. Sure, you’ll never corral everyone into using the same hashtag, but airing one in the corner like other TV shows would have helped immensely.
3. The majority of the population had no idea about #nbcfail or the Olympic “back channel”. When I shared some of it, my mom was shocked and amazed. She had no idea the coverage was even tape delayed.
4. Forget about ratings and revenue and IOC rules. What #NBCfail really did was rob the world of an opportunity to share and connect with each other that was never before possible.

For the sake of the “next generation” that was showcased in Danny Boyle’s Opening Ceremony, I hope that the 2016 Rio Olympic Games coverage does a better job of representing a united WORLD vs. just USA Athletes.