The Social Media Revolution: NBC's Winning Formula for the Paris Olympics
How NBC’s real-time social video strategy redefined live event coverage for Millennials and GenZ
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The Social Media Revolution: NBC's Winning Formula for the Paris Olympics
NBC's approach to covering the 2024 Paris Olympics was all about embracing social media and video content. Why? NBC knows audiences–especially younger audiences–are moving away from traditional viewing to social media and video, and new data from Maverix Research and Insights’ Media Identity Graph (MIDG) shows why this change is crucial: the share of aggregate watch time has shifted. The preference for social video over SVOD has grown steadily, with social video accounting for 62.2% of watch time in 2024, compared to 35.2% for SVOD. Let’s dig deeper into NBC’s playbook and how they used this trend to their advantage.
Leveraging Real-Time Video Content Across Social Platforms
NBC’s goal was clearly to meet audiences where they were, creating a blueprint for how brands should market live events moving forward. For Olympics coverage, they focused on engaging audiences across platforms like Facebook, YouTube, X (Twitter), TikTok, and Instagram. By delivering real-time video content, NBC made sure viewers could catch Olympic moments as they happened, meeting the modern demand for instant updates. "Find what satisfies you, and as long as you're with us in some form on some platform, it's a success," said Molly Solomon, executive producer and president of NBC Olympics Production.
This approach specifically targeted Millennials and Gen Z, whose viewing habits highlighted the need for this strategy. Millennials’ total watch time per day increased from 12.06 hours in 2022 to 14.12 hours in 2024, while Gen Z’s watch time rose from 8.73 hours to 9.69 hours over the same period. More specifically, social video watch time among Millennials increased 17% since 2022, with Gen Z showing 11% growth in the same period, while viewing to SVODs stayed flat/ declined slightly.
Using Olympic Athletes as Influencers
Another major part of NBC’s strategy focused on teaming up with Olympic athletes, which, no doubt, boosted social media reach and engagement for both NBC and the athletes. Stars like Ilona Maher and Freddy Richard created exclusive behind-the-scenes content, live Q&A sessions, and personalized video messages with NBC. These collaborations made the athletes more relatable and helped fans connect with both the athletes and their sports, like Women’s Rugby and Men’s Gymnastics. Freddy Richard, for example, used his growing platform to inspire young Black boys to become gymnasts.
Besides Maher and Richard, NBC also worked with A-listers like Simone Biles, Katie Ledecky, and Noah Lyles, who did takeovers on NBC’s social media channels for a day, sharing their unique perspectives and directly engaging with fans. Due to these efforts, the NBC Olympics account has reached 2M followers on Instagram and 4.3M on TikTok. Speaking of TikTok, the platform has seen remarkable YOY growth in watch time among both Millennials (54%) and Gen Z (15%), fully validating a shift in how younger audiences prefer to consume content.
A Solid Blueprint for Future Live Event Coverage
NBC isn’t just hopping on trends; they’re setting them. Their use of social media for the 2024 Paris Olympics shows just how much the media landscape is shifting towards social video. This strategy isn’t only about capturing viewers; it’s packed with insights for brands and advertisers trying to navigate this new terrain. As the media world keeps evolving, NBC's approach provides a solid blueprint for future live event coverage and content delivery that others can and should follow. By understanding and adapting to the changing habits of Millennials and Gen Z, NBC is positioning themselves as a forward-thinking media powerhouse. This proactive approach keeps them relevant and influential in our ever-evolving digital landscape, offering lessons that go way beyond Olympic coverage.
Reach out to Maverix Insights and Strategy for more information on our Media Identity Graph; MIDG tracks digital behavior in real-time. By monitoring every digital media and brand interaction minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day, week by week, and month by month, we ensure a comprehensive understanding of consumers’ digital engagement.
Liz Huszarik is a Global Insights leader with 25+ years’ experience. Previously the Chief Research, Insights & Data Science Officer for Warner Bros. Discovery, she oversaw and advanced the company’s Global Insights, Data Science & Analytics practice – a cross-disciplined group of 120+ researchers, analysts, and data scientists. As co-founder of Maverix Insights, she is spearheading the future of cross platform measurement with the recent launch of Maverix Media Identity Graph (MIDG). With zero-party data from 30 million U.S. consumers, MIDG captures every touchpoint in the consumer digital journey, offering real-time data and insights across streaming, social video, gaming, FAST Channels, virtual MVPDs, Music, Betting, and more.
Alexia Raven is the Co-Founder of Maverix Insights, Strategy & Design, and a seasoned Insights professional and Moderator. She excels at uncovering the emotions and motivations behind people's attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors to drive business innovation. Previously, Alexia was Vice President of Warner Bros. Discovery Global Research & Insights/Fanlab group, where she led qualitative services to develop content, products, services, and marketing strategies across all brands and franchises. Prior to Warner Bros., Alexia held positions at FOX Broadcasting and Lin Television, where she honed her expertise in understanding audience dynamics and shaping successful media strategies.
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Hub Entertainment Research, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2023, tracks how technology is changing the way people find, choose, and consume entertainment content: from TV and movies to gaming, music, podcasts, and social video. Hub’s studies have covered the most important trends in providers, devices, and technologies since 2013. We work with the largest TV networks, pay TV operators, streaming providers, technology companies, and studios to assess the present and forecast the future.
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