Visa
Global Brand Platform

Since the launch of the brand’s global “Go World” campaign at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, Visa has used the Olympics as a stage to not only support the dozens of international athletes it sponsors, but to celebrate human achievement itself — and the step forward we all take when amazing feats are accomplished.

But as the 2012 Summer Games began taking shape — and it became clear that the IOC would be utilizing social media to make London 2012 more accessible, immediate and participatory for fans everywhere — Visa decided that instead of simply sharing its own appreciation for Olympians, it needed to create a way for the entire world to share its appreciation too.

So in 2011, on the eve of Visa’s 25th Anniversary as an Olympics sponsor, Visa tasked Atmosphere with creating a global digital platform that would make Visa “the most social brand at the most social Olympic Games in history.”

Visa
Global Brand Platform

Our idea began with an insight around what fuels support of the Olympics: a desire to fuel the Olympic athletes themselves. Recognizing that the passion of fans can make the difference between a memorable Olympic performance and an unforgettable one, we created a way for fans around the world to send inspirational “cheers” to the individuals who inspire everyone else.

As part of an integrated campaign, we built the first global cheer engine — a platform that operates in more than 70 markets, helps motivate more than 60 Visa-sponsored athletes, and lives on Facebook, YouTube, VisaGoWorld.com, mobile screens and in rich media advertising across the web.

Whether they choose a simple “one-click” cheer to instantly express their support or a personalized video, photo or text cheer, our platform provides no shortage of reasons to care and share: a custom grid of athletes, countries, sports and content are served up based on a combination of a user’s location and social activity. As part of a second phase of functionality, users will discover what they have in common with the people they’re cheering for through a compelling “connection points” feature. Finally, once the Games begin, users will receive “real-time” reasons to cheer, as the platform will alert them when Team Visa athletes are about to perform.

Visa
Global Brand Platform

Although the platform has just launched, our Global Cheer engine has already registered millions of combined views, likes and, most importantly, cheers. As the Games get closer and more and more people begin to care, share and get engaged, we’re hoping the platform helps Visa breaks social media records — and Team Visa athletes break world records.