Super Bowl ad insights

Every year I watch the Super Bowl for the ads and sometimes the game.  This year, I did both. As usual, the ads, and the public's response to them, are a source of marketing insight. After reviewing a few outlets (USA Today's Ad Meter, CSM Worst SB Ads, Washington Post) I have this to share: 

1. Advertising is (still) a service - This is the mantra of ex-Coke CMO Sergio Zyman and he should know...his team made Coke 'refreshing' with good advertising.  Successful Super Bowl ads fall into three areas: They inspire, they entertain and they demonstrate.  An ad is not an interruption or a moving billboard, it should be designed to engage us and be helpful in some way. When you look at the USA Today rankings, this plays out. 

2. Mature brands entertain, Legacy brands inspire and Startup brands demonstrate: Google got it right with their first ever SB ad.  Taking a page from the iPhone commercials, they demonstrated how to use their search engine to run your personal life (from dating to babies).  On the other hand, Budweiser usually focuses on entertaining us. During the first few decades of the brand's national advertising, you saw product usage and the social benefits that come with it. Coke, a bell weather brand, attempts to inspire and rarely talks about customer experience, etc.  Knowing which type of brand you are helps you run the type of ad that gets you noticed, but still drives the business.  

3. There is a fine line between stupid and clever - Ads that degrade women will never score high in total index results. So why does Go Daddy continue to blow the budget on this approach? The worst rated ad according to both above sources is the  Sketchers Shape Up ad. While it is not offensive, the visual that attempts to demonstrate the product benefit is downright goofy and unfashionable. While the Snuggie robe might have worked a direct response ad, looking silly doesn't work on the world's biggest stage. 

NOTE: Most media outlets immediately measure likeability (did you like/dislike the ad) right after the game and later settle in on measuring brand recall. I believe that when they do, there will be different results that catapult Doritos to the top of the pile.  In particular, I love their promotion of airing submitted ads by brand fan producers. McManus Studios "Casket" was my favorite of the bunch. The spot was well produced, funny, a little dark and it showed the product being consumed.  

Comments

[Caroline S]

Ditto on the GoDaddy sentiments.. Is it really such a smart idea to alienate half the market?

[Jagan Nemani]

Hello Tim,
I do agree with you about the ads on SB. I was not sure where GoDaddy was going with those ads and I think Doritos nailed it.

I thought Google's ad was in response to Bing's ads, but failed to create the cool factor that Bing's ad has done. Nonetheless, Google is a household brand name now and Bing has ways to go to reach that. So Google might not have felt the need to do anything beyond what they are.

Thanks
Jagan