09 Feb Super Bowl: The Toughest Game
While quarterbacks try to score the touchdowns on the field to move them closer to sporting glory, there is another equally fierce competition, that results in winners and losers every year: the Super Bowl advertising battle.
It is not merely one of the most-watched events of all time, but the Super Bowl is capable of generating great profits with the half-time show and more than awaited commercials. 100 million people watch the game each year, and at least 20% of viewers express a specific interest in tuning in just to watch the commercials.
The Cincinnati Bengals, San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Rams, and Kansas City Chiefs will fight yard-by-yard for the trophy at SoFi Stadium this year. Advertisers will also fight for a decisive victory and be one of those memorable commercials that make history.
2022: Another Year of Resilience
The pandemic’s economic effects remain, causing some industries to reassess and become cautious about investing in advertising, while others boldly reinvent themselves seeking maximum returns.
Pepsi will have about 15 minutes of exposure during this broadcast. The brand is not just placing a broadcast commercial this year, but it will be the sponsor of the half-time show, which will feature Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Mary J. Blige, Snoop Dogg, and Dr. Dre.
The automotive industry is also betting on the Super Bowl, with BMW at the forefront of introducing its new electric models, and Nissan, Toyota, and Kia are also confirmed as advertisers. Anheuser-Busch has run ads in all 56 Super Bowls and will continue its tradition this year. Also, there are new faces like Crypto.com, Facebook’s Meta, and the Japanese online retailer Rakuten.
The impact advertising has on its viewers is everything, companies like Ispot have tools such as their AdCenter, that provide real-time information about each spot’s impact, and their Super Bowl LVI final report that provides all the consolidated data.
A Story to Remember
With the levels of investment required for Super Bowl advertising, companies rarely spare any expense when producing these commercials, which usually become instant classics, as in “1984” when Steve Jobs and Apple introduced the world to the Macintosh.
With her sculptural body in a white swimsuit, Cindy Crawford was a postcard that marked the ideal of the sensual woman since its transmission in 1992. Likewise, seeing Michael Jordan and Larry Bird together in a McDonald’s commercial in 1993 was hilarious. Britney Spears starred in a memorable Pepsi commercial in 2002, while the recently deceased Betty White starred in the Snickers commercial from 2010.
There were tender campaigns, like Budweiser’s “Puppy Love,” while others were confrontational, such as Wendy’s “Where’s the beef?”? referring to the composition of their burgers. Who can forget the famous “Wassap?”, the phrase that became a pop-culture mantra following its use in the Budweiser commercial “True” in 2000.
Stars like John Malkovich, Jason Statham, Kevin Hart, and animated idols like Bugs Bunny and Homer Simpson have all had their seconds to shine in the Super Bowl. That’s why, every year when this Sunday approaches we wonder: who will dazzle us this year?