• by Wayne Friedman , February 23, 2010

NBC's media research for the Vancouver Olympics has reaped big rewards across traditional viewership, multiplatform usage and improved metrics for NBC's marketing clients, says its chief research executive.

Looking at advertisers so far, NBC compared 142 Olympic marketers' commercials -- their Olympic advertising versus their regular TV media plans -- and said there was, on average, 24% higher brand recall, 31% more message recall, and 21% better likability for TV viewers.

For advertisers using Olympic-themed advertising, the numbers were higher than for those Olympic advertisers that didn't. Olympic-themed advertising had 18% higher brand recall, 65% improvement in message recall, and 88% more in likability.

Through Feb. 20 major Olympic and NBC sponsor Coca-Cola (according to Nielsen's IAG) saw a 77% brand increase in brand recall; 84% in media recall; and 86% in brand likability.

While NBC has seen soaring ratings in viewership over recent Winter Olympic games, one important result comes with multiplatform consumption.

"Multiplatform consumption is emerging and it's going to become extraordinarily important," says Alan Wurtzel, president of research and media development for NBC Universal. "The mothership will remain with TV; that's where 93% of the use is. [Multiplatform] is not only more important, it's hugely mainstream."

Fifty-five percent of users who visited NBCOlympics.com have been watching TV and the Web site at the same time. Fifty percent of mobile NBC users have been watching TV and on their phones at the same time.

Of those more highly engaged Olympic users, 91% are using TV and Internet versus 64% who only use TV. And 81% of combination TV/ Internet users could be found talking about the Olympics versus 57% of people who only watched TV.

"The more platforms you used, the more engaged you become," says Wurtzel.

Through the first 10 days, NBC notes that 171 million viewers have seen some of the Vancouver Olympic games -- about half of all U.S. citizens. Wurtzel says NBC has made gains among younger demos. "The gains from young viewers have far exceeded gains for older demographics. People 18-24 are up 57%, and older teens 15-17 are up 40%."

NBC also says the Olympics continues to be a big family-viewing experience. In one in four households with kids 6-17, parents are watching the Olympics with their children. Three of four kids 6-17 who are watching the Olympics are doing it with their parents.

Separately, CEA's study found that consumers are partial to HD viewing, as 83% of sports viewers who have watched sports in HD in the past year say they most prefer to watch sports on television in HD.

For those surveyed who have attended a game in the past year, 42% say watching in HD is the way they most prefer to watch sports. With regard to the Winter Olympics, 12% of HDTV owners purchased their set with the specific purpose of watching the Winter Olympics.