This week’s marketing post is going to be a marketing campaign/ plan specifically for the Super Bowl. I don’t have a specific company in mind but I outline some broad swatches to narrow down what kinds of companies/products I think this strategy is best for. I used my own personal experience with the Super Bowl as well as these studies:
http://www.communicus.com/topic13.php
http://www.venablesbell.com/news/the-golden-age-of-super-bowl-advertising
http://ssl.gstatic.com/think/docs/winning-super-bowl-insights_research-studies.pdf
There are a couple things to think about when deciding to do a Super Bowl spot:
Cost: a national ad may cost up to three times more than a regional one. Also, the marketers need to consider whether or not they are certain to get a return on their investment. There has been no evidence that companies that choose to not participate in the Super Bowl ad frenzy get penalized (they may not be rewarded as much as other companies, but they won’t be penalized).
Type of commercial: The type of commercial is vital to a company’s Super Bowl ad success. In general people respond best to humor, but the product of service being sold needs to be factored in. Another factor to consider is the branding/product tie in. Commercials that are funny and memorable may not increase sales if they don’t feature the brand or product in a memorable way. Communicus speaks about the Budweiser “Brotherhood” ad and why it was so successful.
This ad is all about friendship and lifelong bonds, and that’s the feeling people want when drinking Budweiser. When taking your own brand and product it helps to think about what you want your customer to feel when using the product, and trying to evoke that feeling in the commercial instead of just trying to be wacky and memorable.
Social Media: Social media is changing the way Super Bowl ads are seen and perceived. This info graphic sums it up pretty well I think.
Making sure that you have someone managing the social side of your company on the big day is vital. Sometimes the most memorable moments (see: Oreo tweet about blackout) are spontaneous. Also, having a post-game plan as to how to continue promoting your advertisement in order to get the most out of the ad, and engage your customer.
Overall, I personally think that for most companies the Super Bowl ad spot is a waste of money, but it can also be incredibly fruitful. It is a high risk, high reward situation, but if you carefully plan your strategy out beforehand, while allowing for some flexibility, you are more likely to succeed.
daily-dally 