I love seeing businesses and brands recognize what’s going on outside of their own daily goings on, to incorporate what is capturing the attention and imagination of the world, or even of your neighborhood and group of customers. Integrations of popular memes like Angry Birds, Summer 2012 Olympics and even Toronto’s annual Zombie Walk. When businesses allow themselves (owners, staff & vendors) to show their personalities, share what excites them and integrate the cultural events that bring people together into storefronts, marketing communications and special promotions to drive retail traffic, it helps remind your customers and potential customers that you are human, and that you have things in common with them, that you understand them, not only when it means more money for you.
Olympics are especially sensitive with strict IOC regulations around using any Olympic branding including “Summer Games”, “London 2012” and even “twenty twelve” or 2012. This article from a UK based IP firm talks about the costs of staging the games and the IOC need to strictly enforce businesses who haven’t paid marketing or sponsorship fees from claiming to be involved with the games.
Official Olympics Sponsors
I found this Olympics Sponsors Wiki, but I’m not sure if it’s comprehensive, and I wonder when I see brands like Yasso Greek frozen yogurt completely transforming their Facebook branding to integrate Olympics if they’re doing so with the blessings of the IOC (did they purchase the rights?).
Google & daily “Google Doodles”
If you logged onto Google search any day from Friday July 27, 2012, the day of the Opening Ceremonies, you were treated to neat new daily Google logo interpretations about the Olympics Summer Games in London.
July 27 – Opening Ceremonies
July 28 – Archery
July 29 – Diving
July 30 – Fencing
July 31 – Artistic Gymnastics Men’s Rings
Advance Sneak Preview of Tomorrow?
I found this site called Doodle Collect that has the dates of the Google Doodles advanced by 1 day, and they are showing today’s Google Doodle as on for Artistic Gymnastics Men’s Rings. Maybe it is tomorrow where they are already…. But I LOVE it! I was very impressed on Saturday to watch the qualifying rounds for this event. These men, and all Olympic athletes, seem almost super-human!
August 1 – Field Hockey
August 2 – Table Tennis / Ping Pong
August 3 – Shot Put
London 2012 shot put doodle a first – The sport of shot put involves “throwing” or “putting” (throwing in a pushing motion) a heavy metal ball (the shot) as far as possible. It is common to use the term “shot put” to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting (throwing) action.
The first evidence for stone or weight throwing events date back more than 2000 years in the Scottish Highlands. In the 16th century King Henry VIII was noted for his prowess in court competitions of weight and hammer throwing.
In modern-day open competitions the men’s shot weighs 7.260 kilograms, and the women’s shot weighs 4 kilograms.
August 4 – High Jump
a.k.a. Pole Vault
August 5 – Synchronized Swimming
London 2012 synchronized swimming: 2nd Google doodle of its kind – The first synchronized swimming related Google doodle was posted during the 2004 Olympics held at Athens. The doodle depicted two female swimmers raising their hands to form the two Os in Google’s logo.
Synchronized swimming at the 2004 Summer Olympics was held in the Olympic Aquatic Centre where 104 competitors challenged for 2 gold medals in the duet and team events. Each event was made up of a technical and free routine with the points added together to determine the medalists.
Russia won the gold in both duet and team events. Japan took both the silvers, while United States continued the trend by bagging two bronze medals.
August 6 – Javelin
- The world record for the women’s javelin competition is currently standing on 72.28 meters, and the Olympic Record at 71.53. The world record is held by Spotakova Barbora Czech Republic and the Olympic Record by MENENDEZ Osleidys from Cuba.
- Both world records for men and women currently belong to Czech Republic athletes.
- The world record for men belongs to Czech Republic Zelezny Jan at 98.48 meters and the Olympic Record to Thorkildsen Andreas at 90.57 meters. There is a good chance that we will see the record being broken at the London 2012 javelin event.
I’ll update this post daily to share the new Google doodle.
What do you think?