Ahh. the Superbowl. The biggest sporting event of the year and the biggest stage for athletes and advertisers alike. The Superbowl is also the ‘Ad Bowl,’ and we the consumers and industry critics determine the winners and losers. I admit, as a consumer, I look for the ads that appeal to me, whether funny or emotionally impactful. I sit and watch to see what our industry titans and diverse mega-brands bring forward. And we know they’re going full-out, because as of Feb. 3, NBC sold out all ad spots for the 2022 Super Bowl. And some 30-second commercials cost $7 million. That’s what we call going big.
So, how’d we do?
Honestly, we only liked a couple of the ads this year. Maybe the bar is too high as we’ve increased the hype and expectations of what Superbowl advertising should be. Or maybe there are different measurements now that are far removed from brand-building, product awareness and preference or even mass exposure. While these positions might be true, we have our own thoughts on the subject – and our perspective is a bit more direct. Advertisers are pursuing the wrong ideas for the wrong reasons. For the Superbowl specifically, and advertising in general, they’ve placed entertainment above communication and believe “clicks” are more important than brand character. Yes, all the above are important ingredients, but the weight given to each seems unbalanced and off the mark. A few areas where we believe this can be seen:
– The ‘be different’ trend seems to have taken the place of the ‘be authentic’ fundamental. And, when every brand is trying to be different, they all kind of seem the same. We’re all for communicating brand and product differences to the market; it’s what we are paid to do. But, when an advertiser tries to ‘out-different’ the competition or the messaging by ratcheting up only the creative elements, they risk compromising the character of the brand.
– Celebrity endorsements have lost their way. Traditionally, celebrity endorsements have been able to boost brand likability and sales. Some of these partnerships have worked extremely well; Michael and Lebron with Nike, the George Forman Grill (Remember Salton Electric Grills? We didn’t think so), and Capital One’s leading spokesperson Jennifer Garner come to mind. These endorsements worked due to the charisma of the spokesperson and their seemingly genuine alignment with the product they were promoting. While there were a couple of strong endorsement calls in this year’s Ad Bowl, many were outright fumbles.
– Relevancy has become irrelevant. While we know every ad isn’t about addressing a real issue or solving a monumental problem (sometimes you just want a good tasting chip… right?), there is an argument to be made for being relevant to the issues influencing our lives and our purchase behavior. Last year many advertisers went heavy on this by addressing the crushing pressures of the COVID lockdowns. So maybe we are ready for a break, but relevancy still counts if your brand and business can help your customers solve an issue or take advantage of an opportunity. That’s just really smart marketing.
So… what did we like?
Of all the ads to air this year, there were only two that we really thought were remarkable in terms of being smart, authentic, and creative. We think Rocket Mortgage’s “Dream House with Anna Kendrick and Barbie” and Expedia’s “Stuff” with Ewan McGregor did a great job of balancing entertainment and solid brand/product marketing. Both ads not only stood strongly on their deep-rooted positioning, but also brought in celebrities that seemed to work well with the messaging and delivered creative spots that recognized our current circumstances – all those elements elevated our top picks to ‘extremely relevant’ status.
For example, “Stuff” had Ewan McGregor walking through the live sets of other productions to point out that it’s time to consider investing in (travel) experiences rather than other materialistic offerings. The stuff that brings temporary and less-meaningful personal reward versus a world full of travel destinations that provide memories that will be with us all our lives. It’s a pretty good pitch considering we’ve been locked in our homes for nearly two years, buying stuff we may or may not even value. We all want to get out and reclaim some of the beautiful moments in life that have been beyond our reach for far too long. Expedia reminded us of the value of what we’ve been missing and provided a path for getting back to where we want to be.
If you’re looking for a big winner though, we feel it’s ‘Dream House’ from Rocket Mortgage. Anna Kendrick is a great storyteller and character wrapped up in one, and it isn’t difficult to believe she is completely comfortable hanging out in Barbie’s world. The barriers to buying a home today are real, and Rocket did an admirable job of illustrating the problem, the cause, and the solutions they can provide to make buying a home easier — all in an entertaining and educational way. The spot didn’t try to re-create or leave behind their positioning, they stood on it. They just did it with a smile and a wink, which provided an energy to the message that is incredibly smart, considering the media environment they were playing in.
Those are our thoughts on the state of Superbowl advertising, and we’d love to hear yours as well. Drop us a comment or an email. We always enjoy a great conversation.