Newswise — FedEx and General Motors chose not to run ads during the Super Bowl, but those decisions could cost the companies money, says John Antil, a University of Delaware marketing professor. Antil has spent more than 20 years studying and researching Super Bowl advertising.
"The bottom line is the Super Bowl is actually a good buy," Antil says. "It's the nature of the event itself. It's a showcase for advertising."
The Super Bowl is the only broadcast in which viewers eagerly anticipate the commercials " they actually want to see, criticize, and talk about them.
"When you look at it in comparison to other programs it's really a bargain," he says, noting that as many as 130 million viewed last year's game, an audience more than five times that of last week's top-rated show "American Idol." And, he notes, the ads live on via word of mouth and the Internet. Some advertisers see their ads downloaded 10 to 15 million times after a Super Bowl appearance.
Decisions like the ones made by FedEx and GM are very common for companies during bad economic times. But, according to Antil, the decisions by GM and FedEx may be driven less by good marketing decisions and more by political or perceptual motivations. The public is well aware of the cost of a 30-second Super Bowl slot. GM is near the head of the line to receive billions from the taxpayers' bailout. Yet, Antil argues, Super Bowl ads announcing reduced pricing and available financing could be very helpful to jump start GM sales.
Two auto companies, Audi and Hyundai, are taking a different route. Some marketers believe poor economic times, when competitors are cutting back, are a good time to increase expenditures, Antil says. Audi and Hyundai are each buying two slots and feel very confident they have made the right decision.
Other auto-related brands are also advertising this year " Bridgestone Tires, Cars.com, and Castrol Motor Oil all bought Super Bowl spots. Bridgestone is even sponsoring the halftime show.
What Else to Expect-Ambush MarketingMillerCoors will once again try for an end-around by employing "ambush" marketing. Since it cannot get into the game even if it wanted, it has bought regional ads from local NBC affiliates that will cover about 60% of the viewers. They are taking a unique approach by essentially making fun of those companies (especially Anheuser-Busch) who paid so much to be in the game. They are even using "one second" ads or "blinks" promoting their microsite, 1secondad.com.
-First time advertisersKellogg and Pedigree will make their Super Bowl debuts. Both plan ads using "cause marketing," encouraging charity. Pedigree's decision to advertise appears to be a controversial one.
-Cola Wars Combat Resumes Recently, Pepsi has dominated the broadcast with multiple well-received ads. Coke has been in and out of the game and never established itself as much of a competitor. But this year, both beverage companies will be battling with multiple ads.
-3-D AdsThe DreamWorks film, "Monsters and Aliens," will show up in its own spot as will another 60-second ad from SoBe Life Water featuring the SoBe lizards that appeared for the first time during last year's Super Bowl.
-A better showing than the OscarsThe slow economy appears to be hurting the Academy Awards more than the Super Bowl. They have reduced their asking price from $1.7 to $1.4 million for a 30-second spot and will be accepting movie ads for the first. Ratings for the Academy Awards have been declining and has less than a third of viewers that the Super Bowl boasts. Even though many advertisers have been using this broadcast as a way to reach women, the Super Bowl has far more female viewers than the Academy Awards.
Types of AdsThe bad economy has created speculation regarding the type of ads that will be shown. Several experts have suggested that more creative or unusual ads could be a problem given the low level of consumer confidence and worries over employment and the financial crisis. But given the history of Super Bowl ads, Antil says, these concerns are likely unwarranted. The very competitive showcase for ads in the Super Bowl has led to most all commercials being uplifting and most often humorous. People expect Super Bowl ads to be entertaining and deviating from that is risky regardless of the economic environment.
John Antil teaches marketing at the University of Delaware. He has devoted more than 20 years to researching Super Bowl advertising. He is currently completing a research project that has involved interviewing over 50 executives from sponsor and non- sponsoring companies, media buyers, ad agencies, TV networks, and the NFL.
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