Ads for Olympics push global, unified themes

Many ad campaigns do not mention host country China.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

MILWAUKEE — Some ads preach unity and togetherness. Some celebrate the spirit of athleticism.

For many advertisers this year, their Olympic spots in the U.S. are more about humanity and athletes and less about national pride. They’re also making less mention of host country China.

It’s a big business advertising for the Olympics. This year’s games in Beijing, which get under way next month, will draw in viewers from around the world, representing a big chance for advertisers to showcase their products.

Many, including Nike Corp. and McDonald’s Corp., say this campaign will be their biggest yet.

But this time around, there’s a slumping U.S. economy to contend with — so advertisers are being more cautious, experts say. There’s also the fear that mentioning China too much could lead to negative associations with the brands, should problems develop at the Olympics.

From Visa Inc.’s “Go World” campaign to unifying themes from Coca-Cola Co. and McDonald’s, major sponsors are calling for harmony and avoiding boasts of patriotism for any one country.

A major spot by Coca-Cola, called “Yao and LeBron — Unity” features animated versions of the two basketball stars, Chinese native Yao Ming and American LeBron James, facing off in a basketball duel. They pull in people and things associated with their home countries, such as cowboys for James and pandas for Yao as they face off. But when they both snag a Coke, they high-five and all is good.

“In this kind of divided time it just feels right for the brand and right for Coca-Cola,” said Katie Bayne, chief marketing officer for the company’s North American division.

The big question for U.S. advertisers is how do they acknowledge China in their domestic advertisements, or do they bother at all, said John Sweeney, an advertising professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

They’ll want to associate themselves with the games, but may be wary of the Beijing connection, he said.

There are human rights issues, worries about political protests and potential efforts by the Chinese government to stifle spectators and media covering the events. There’s also the earthquake earlier this year in Sichuan province that left nearly 70,000 people dead and 5 million homeless.

All seems to be fine now, Sweeney said, but who knows what will happen as the Olympics approach.

“If the negative stuff re-emerges as sort of the framework hanging around the Olympics, it’s going to be a very tough marketing environment,” he said.

But companies are going full steam ahead.

Visa is focusing on athletes and the glory of the Olympics in its “Go World” campaign.

In years past, the company had taken less of a global approach, said Kevin Burke, Visa’s head of global consumer marketing. But he said the current campaign, developed last fall, sought to include both past and current athletes from the U.S. and other countries.

Four years ago at the last summer Olympics, Visa’s most well-known ad featured champion Michael Phelps swimming from Greece — the site of those games — to the Statue of Liberty in a piece called “Lap.”

The tone is different this year. In the flagship ad called “Come Together,” actor Morgan Freeman talks about how the games bring people together, despite their differences.

Images of athletes in rich sepia tones stream as Freeman says, “We don’t always agree. But for a few shining weeks we set it all aside and we come together to stand and cheer and celebrate as one. We forget all the things that make us different and remember all the things that make us the same.”

Burke said this year’s campaign — which features Phelps, gold medal-winning gymnast Kerri Strug, Bob Beamon, who has held the record for the long jump since 1968, and others from countries including Ukraine, Ethiopia, South Africa and Nigeria — wasn’t designed to reflect anything that’s going on in the world. He said viewers like its message of togetherness.