The Marketing Behind Super Bowl Ads
Emily Artus, Staff Writer
Forget football. From a marketing standpoint, the Super Bowl is about one thing: the commercials.
North Greenville University marketing students explain strategies behind the most expensive and influential commercials.
In 2016, a 30-second spot ran for $5 million, and for a marketer, the pressure is on to reward that investment.
�To have an effective advertisement, you must realize that you are trying to reach people and not just customers,� said Ashleigh Wyatt, a student in brand management.
To reach people, many marketers play on human emotion.
According to Jacob Kern, also a student in brand management, consumers remember iconic Super Bowl ads like Coca-Colas�s �Mean Joe Greene� and Apple�s �1984� because they appeal to emotion.
�Emotional branding causes consumers to remember the brand better,� said Kern. �Whether they laughed, teared up or the hairs stood up on the back of their necks, they related to the ad on a personal level.�
The Super Bowl�s large audience means marketers cater to a wide interest range. So marketing teams also rely on the appeal of the bizarre, such as Mountain Dew�s �Puppymonkeybaby� and Doritos� �Ultrasound.”
�While both commercials are a bit strange,� said Melanie Rice, a brand management student, �They are remembered for being funny and unique.�
Mountain Dew and Doritos created appeal through strangeness, which draws football fans and casual viewers alike.
Though bizarre commercials stand out, standing out too much can be negative.
�Sometimes a memorable commercial is not what you want,� said Benjamin Whitman, president of the Student Marketing Association. �Sometimes it�s memorable for the wrong reasons.�
Whitman explained Doritos �Ultrasound� gained attention from a controversy between pro-life and pro-choice groups.
Similar negative buzz surrounded Nationwide�s 2015 �Make Safe Happen.� Meant to raise awareness of preventable childhood deaths, the ad quickly became known as �The Dead Kid� commercial.
Super Bowl commercials are a high-risk investment for companies, and marketing teams have one shot to create a memorable and iconic commercial.
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