XX Commonwealth Games Omnibus Research Report

1. Executive summary

Background

1.1 Between the 23^rd July and 3^rd August 2014, Glasgow^[1] hosted the XX Commonwealth Games, a defining event for the city and for Scotland as a whole.

1.2 In 2012, the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee (OC) and the Scottish Government appointed TNS to undertake a quantitative research programme. The objective of this research was to measure progress against key marketing performance indicators (KPIs), and to generate new insights that would support decision making around marketing activity in the run up to Glasgow2014.

Survey approach

1.3 This report summarises the main results generated from the inclusion of questions on six separate waves of the TNS Scottish Opinion Survey (SOS) and four separate waves of the TNS GB Omnibus Survey.

1.4 Further details on the approach used and the timing of the survey waves can be found in section 2 of this report.

1.5 The key objectives for the research were to:

• Measure and track progress against key metrics including awareness of the Games, recall of promotional activity, interest in and behaviour in relation to the Games.
• Generate sufficient responses to allow for analysis below the population level.

1.6 Further details on the questions featured in each wave, can be found in Appendix 2 (Technical Appendix). Full data tables are available separately.

Measuring awareness

1.7 Awareness of the Games increased significantly between 2012 and 2014 across all of the survey samples. Awareness of the Games amongst Glasgow residents was consistently around 4-5 percentage points higher than the overall Scottish average, with the exception of the final July 2014 wave where the proportions were very similar.

1.8 Amongst the Scottish sample overall and in Glasgow specifically, the proportion indicating that they knew 'a lot/ quite a lot' about the Games rose significantly between October 2012 and October 2013, with decreases in June 2013. Levels of knowledge were lower and more consistent amongst the sample in England/ Wales.

1.9 There was a significant increase in awareness of promotional activity around the Games in June 2014 across Scotland as a whole, with a high level of awareness also recorded amongst residents of Glasgow.

1.10 Across all of the survey waves, there was a clear relationship between awareness of promotional activity and awareness of and interest in attending the Games.

Connection with the Games

1.11 In Scotland, following an initial increase in March 2013, levels of support remained consistent with just over three-quarters of Scots supporting the Games. Levels of support in Scotland were consistently higher than those recorded in England and Wales.

1.12 Expecting to have fun and feeling pride in Glasgow and/or Scotland being the hosts were the benefits most often mentioned across survey waves amongst the Scottish sample. In most of the survey waves a larger proportion in Glasgow indicated that they expected to obtain personal benefits from the Games than did so in Scotland as a whole.

1.13 When the same question was asked of adults living in England and Wales, the expectation for the event to be fun was the most frequently anticipated benefit.

Intentions & behaviour

1.14 In Scotland, across the survey waves around a fifth to a quarter of the population indicated that they had 'no interest at all' in the Games, with around two in five providing this response in England/ Wales.

1.15 By June 2014 a quarter of Glasgow residents, 14% of the overall adult population in Scotland and 2% of people living in England and Wales had purchased or intended to purchase a ticket for a Commonwealth Games event.

1.16 Around two in ten of the population in Scotland indicated an intention to visit the Glasgow and Clyde Valley area during the Games^[2], with attending live sporting events at the Games the most frequently mentioned activity.

1.17 As would be expected, residents of Glasgow were more likely to indicate an intention to visit, most often for work/ education purposes.

1.18 The most frequently provided reasons for not planning to attend the Games across samples were a preference to watch on television and a general lack of interest in sport.

1.19 In both April and June 2014 around one in ten residents of Scotland had watched or intended to watch the Queen's Baton Relay in their area. Across all of the survey waves, around 1 in 20 Glasgow residents indicated that they had volunteered or planned to be involved in volunteering at the Games.

1.20 Residents of Glasgow were more likely than the adult population of Scotland as a whole to have made/ intended to make changes to their plans during the Games by either making trips they would not normally have made or conversely, cancelling or postponing a trip to the area.

Expected Games legacy

1.21 In Scotland overall and amongst residents of Glasgow, the largest proportions of the population expected the Games to leave better facilities in Glasgow, to attract more visitors to the country and for parts of Glasgow to be better to live or work in because of the Games.

1.22 As the Games drew closer, there was a significant increase at the population level in Scotland in the proportion who felt that people in Scotland would feel proud.

1.23 In England/ Wales, a positive impact on tourism was most likely to be expected.