The Ultimate Marketing Stage: World Cup 2014

At a glance Explore how savvy marketing during the World Cup can boost your brand's visibility. Learn to leverage the power of social media and engage with millions of passionate football fans globally.

With 3.2 billion people watching the last World Cup, 715 million for the finals alone, the World Cup is the world's largest sporting event. It could be argued it's the world's biggest event period. And in this culture, that means a lot of online conversation. In fact, three separate soccer matches have already achieved higher tweets-per-second peaks than the 2012 London Olympics. In 2012, The Euro Cup Final generated 16.5 million total tweets -- with a viewing audience of about 300 million. The last World Cup Final in 2010 had double that viewing audience. Twitter even has found that one in six viewers retweet football related content. Mike Mikho in AdWeek puts it best, "There will be 64 matches next summer generating hundreds of millions of social mentions. That massive chatfest equates to a greater opportunity for earned media, but it also makes it incredibly difficult to stand out." With fans simultaneously watching the game and their mobile devices, many are influenced by the messages that they see from brands. In fact, Twitter has found that 56% of Twitter mobile users are influenced by content on Twitter when they are buying a product or service. This is perfect news for marketers with savvy brands, tweeting engaging and relevant World Cup content, will be able to connect with fans no matter where they are watching the games. So, how can your brand stand out? One, you need to know the conversation. What are people talking about as it happens? Two, you need to know how your brand fits in. Football fans are passionate -- so your brand needs to ensure your conversation around the event is real and makes sense. Third, you need to know what your competitors are doing. Fourth, you need to understand who is watching. Twitter has eleven facts about Twitter users and the upcoming World Cup:

Getting all the data you need and making sense of it can be difficult. Showing how hard you're working to make it pay off can be even more difficult. And we believe it doesn't have to be that way. So, we've launched World Cup Mission Control Centres for Brands. We want to empower you and your brand to better visually monitor your reputation and online conversation around the World Cup 2014 in real time. The World Cup Mission Control Centre provides live data visualisations around online mentions, share of voice, popular topics, user-generated photos and Vines, competitor standings, and more so you can stay on top of the world’s biggest event this summer. We know data can be simple, beautiful and powerful. And with the World Cup Mission Control Centre, we want to put that in your hands. Brands, like Adidas France, can prominently display the live data and interact in real time, making the tool perfect for any brand taking an active role in the World Cup this summer. With the World Cup Mission Control Centre, marketing teams can be set up in less than 20 minutes to interact with consumers, surface relevant and new content, and share data instantaneously, all in a way that is much more engaging, collaborative and insightful. Want to learn more or get your own Control Centre? Email us at worldcup@buzzradar.com. However your brand gets involved, you don't want to miss taking part in this global event. The World Cup is full of passion and highly active viewers.

Nicky Yates Published on May 24, 2014 8:36 pm

Frequently Asked QuestionsFAQs

How many people watched the 2014 World Cup?

The 2014 World Cup was watched by 3.2 billion people globally, with 715 million viewers tuning in for the finals alone. This makes it the world's largest sporting event in terms of viewership.

How does World Cup social media engagement compare to other major events?

World Cup matches generate significantly more social media activity than other major events. Three soccer matches have already achieved higher tweets-per-second peaks than the 2012 London Olympics, and the Euro Cup Final alone generated 16.5 million total tweets.

What percentage of Twitter users are influenced by brand content during sports events?

According to Twitter, 56% of Twitter mobile users are influenced by content they see on Twitter when making purchasing decisions. Additionally, one in six viewers retweet football-related content during matches.

How can brands effectively market during the World Cup?

Brands need to monitor real-time conversations, ensure their messaging is authentic and relevant to passionate football fans, and track competitor activities. Understanding the audience and engaging with genuine, timely content while fans are simultaneously watching games and using mobile devices is key to success.