Continuous Ad Strategy Necessary for Super Bowl Advertising Instead of One-Time Spots
Brands now recognize that a successful Super Bowl advertising campaign involves more than just a single flashy in-game spot. Advertisers are increasingly extending their campaigns beyond the game itself, capturing the attention of fans before, during, and after the broadcast.
The cost of 30-second Super Bowl 57 spots, which top $7 million, necessitates making the most of the investment. As David Lubars, chairman and chief creative officer at BBDO, told Adweek, "The Super Bowl is either the biggest, enormous waste of money ever, or it's the best bargain ever."
Tubi's Super Bowl debut this year showcased this strategy, drawing viewers into a Wonderland via a rabbit hole. Brands such as Procter & Gamble (P&G), Coca-Cola, and Budweiser have long used the Super Bowl as a prime platform for highly impactful advertising, with enduring spots like Mean Joe Greene's jersey toss, frogs reciting a beer name, and Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd's memory swapping.
To maximize their Super Bowl halo, brands like P&G are using innovative media plans to generate buzz leading up to the game. In 2018, P&G and agency Saatchi & Saatchi owned the game with the "It's a Tide Ad" series, co-opting the creative of other brands to cleverly fool the audience.
For their Downy Unstopables fabric freshener campaign, P&G released a Super Bowl teaser two months in advance, securing interest and anticipation among fans by unveiling the celebrity spokesperson: Danny McBride.
"You want to be insightful, but you also want to tap into culturally relevant moments," said P&G's senior brand director of North America Fabric Care, Fabric Enhancers, Jenny Maxwell. Brands can create campaigns that win the hearts of consumers by finding the right balance of insights and cultural relevance.
Other brands have also employed creative strategies to engage fans before the Super Bowl. For instance, Mars teased its M&M's ads, generating conversation and boosting visibility as people prepared their Big Game feasts. Meanwhile, Molson Coors took advantage of AB InBev's exclusivity ending last year, offering fans the chance to win chunks of $500,000 by betting on the content of the ad and whether it would be for Coors Light or Miller Lite.
As new platforms continue to emerge and the average consumer is pulled in multiple directions, brands and agencies must expand their media outlet strategies to create effective integrated campaigns. As Mike Valdés-Fauli, chief operating officer of Chemistry and president of its multicultural division, Chemistry Cultura, which counts the NFL as a client, noted, "We're looking at the brand-building more horizontally, more as a continuity more with a platform mentality, and less with the typical big ads a one-off mindset." The Super Bowl may still be the last bastion of traditional media where the world comes together, but brands and agencies must adapt to the changing media landscape to achieve lasting success.
[1] Jeep "Groundhog Day" (2020) - https://adweek.com/creativity/super-bowl-2020-jeep-subjects-bill-murray-to-this-endless-loop/[2] DoorDash "All The Ads" (2024/2025) - https://www.cnbc.com/2025/02/12/doordash-super-bowl-ad-all-the-ads-sweepstakes.html[3] Coca-Cola “Para Todos” - https://www.adweek.com/creativity/coca-cola-coca-cola-s-newest-global-campaign-para-todos-is-a-call-to-unity-for-the-world/
- Brands like Jeep, recognizing the need for an extended campaign, can tap into culturally relevant moments, as demonstrated by their 2020 Super Bowl commercial "Groundhog Day" that leveraged Bill Murray's iconic role.
- In the future, brands may opt for innovative strategies like DoorDash's "All The Ads" campaign anticipated for the Super Bowl of 2024 or 2025, which could offer sweepstakes to engage fans and generate buzz before the game.
- The Super Bowl not only serves as a prime platform for high returns in the finance and business world but also for sports, with brands such as Coca-Cola creating impactful campaigns like "Para Todos," fostering unity and cultural relevance.
