Superbowl-ads.com Article Archive

Dockers® brand has created an innovative way to provide consumers with relevant content on their terms. Dockers® and Shazam® have developed an integrated program that allows consumers who watch the new Dockers® “Men Without Pants” TV commercial to use their mobile devices to engage at a deeper level with the brand – a world’s first. Once the ad is “shazamed,” viewers will link directly to a branded-content site. This technology is a major step forward in making TV clickable like digital media.

The new commercial debuts during the Super Bowl XLIV broadcast on February 7 on CBS, the first Dockers commercial to air on the Super Bowl since 2002. Viewers who have Shazam® downloaded on their smartphones can tag the spot and are instantly taken to a branded-content page. On this page, consumers can read about the “Wear the Pants™” campaign, learn about and purchase the “I Wear No Pants” track and more. The ad debut will also include a khaki pant giveaway promotion that can be entered immediately via consumer mobile devices with the Shazam® technology. The commercial continues through 2010 on a variety of shows and networks including NBA on TNT, FX, Comedy Central and the Discovery Channel and will also air online immediately following the Super Bowl debut. The khaki give away runs from February 7 – 15, 2010.

Definition 6, an integrated interactive agency, today announced the launch of the Coca-Cola “Happiness Machine” video. Coca-Cola selected Definition 6 to develop a video for viral distribution that would tie into its recently launched ‘Open Happiness’ global advertising campaign.

“We were looking for a creative way to connect with teens outside of the typical TV commercial or online game,” said A.J. Brustein, Global Senior Brand Manager, Coca-Cola. “We wanted to give them something that would spread a bit of happiness and something they could pass on to their friends to keep the happiness flowing.”
The “Happiness Machine” campaign features a Coca-Cola vending machine transformed to deliver small “doses” of happiness for unsuspecting college students, in the form of everything from flowers and pizza, to 6-foot subs and balloon animals.

Focus on the Family will broadcast the first Super Bowl ad in its history Feb. 7 during CBS Sports’ coverage of the game at Dolphin Stadium in South Florida.

The 30-second spot from the international family-help organization will feature college football star Tim Tebow and his mother, Pam. They will share a personal story centered on the theme of “Celebrate Family, Celebrate Life.”

“Tim and Pam share our respect for life and our passion for helping families thrive,” said Jim Daly, president and CEO of Focus on the Family, “They live what we see every day – that the desire for family closeness is written on the hearts of every generation. Focus on the Family is about nurturing that desire and strengthening families by empowering them with the tools they need to live lives rooted in morals and values.”

The Tebows said they agreed to appear in the commercial because the issue of life is one they feel very strongly about.

Daly chuckled at some of the “will-they-or-won’t-they?” speculation in the media about whether Focus would indeed create a Super Bowl ad. Daly added that all the funds to air the ad came from a handful of “very generous and committed friends” who donated specifically to support the project. No money from the ministry’s general fund was used.

“Now that the ad has been shot, we’re excited to tell people it’s coming, because the Tebows’ story is such an important one for our culture to hear,” he said. “You won’t want to miss it.”

Boost Mobile has drafted some of the 1985 Chicago Bears to star in its first Super Bowl commercial as the prepaid-wireless company tries to raise its brand awareness in an increasingly competitive market.

The company, which lets customers pay in advance for wireless service instead of signing a contract, is putting finishing touches on its ad. The ad shows former football players including Jim McMahon, Willie Gault and Mike Singletary re-creating their famous “Super Bowl Shuffle” rap song and video.

The original video was created by the Bears in 1985, just before they won Super Bowl XX. That film showed the teammates dancing to lyrics that included “We don’t mean to cause no trouble, we’re just doin’ the Super Bowl Shuffle.”

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)

The escalating chatter surrounding Super Bowl XLIV is not just about the teams competing for the 2010 championship. The TV commercials that will appear during the game are also the subject of discussion and speculation. And participating advertisers will once again be confronted with the difficult question of whether the Super Bowl is a smart marketing investment or a wasted use of the budget.

TNS Media Intelligence has again combed through its extensive database to report on the past 20 years of Super Bowl advertising. From 1990 thru 2009, the Super Bowl game has generated $2.17 billion of network sales from a total of 210 different advertisers and more than 1,400 commercial messages.

“The Super Bowl remains a singular event for engaging the broadest number of consumers at one time,” said Mark Nesbitt, President, TNS Media Intelligence. “Because it is viewed live and experienced by a majority of the country at the same time, a commercial presence on the broadcast has great significance and impact for a brand, making each not so much a brand message as a brand event. It is why a presence on the broadcast lends itself so effectively to an integrated marketing effort.”

“As an advertising event, the Super Bowl has evolved beyond a vehicle for presenting expensive, stand-alone commercial spots that seek to entertain viewers and generate awareness,” said Jon Swallen, SVP Research for TNS Media Intelligence. “Increasingly, in-game spots are being supplemented by elaborate integrated communications programs that attempt to drive traffic online or in-store, generate positive social media discussion, incorporate public relations effort and ultimately achieve a strong ROI.”

Despite decline, ads remain the most expensive on television

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The economic slump has prices for Super Bowl commercial time falling for only the second time in its history, but they are still the most expensive on television.

TNS Media Intelligence said Monday that 30-second commercials during next month’s Super Bowl on CBS are selling for between $2.5 million and $2.8 million. That’s a drop from last year, when ads averaged $3 million on NBC.

Some big players like Pepsi and General Motors are staying on the sidelines. This leaves holes for smaller companies like Diamond Foods and Dr Pepper Snapple to use the Super Bowl to get their wares in front of 100 million viewers who are practically guaranteed to watch their ads.

The Scottsdale-based domain-name registrar shot its commercials featuring auto racer and Go Daddy spokeswoman Danica Patrick over five days the past week at three sites around metro Phoenix. More than 60 people were involved in shooting material for three commercials, including Internet-only versions, Go Daddy said. The company has purchased commercial spots in the first and fourth quarters of the Super Bowl.

Increased digital word-of-mouth marketing — using social media and other platforms — could shift marketers’ media plan dynamics for next February’s Super Bowl. Pete Blackshaw, executive vice president of digital strategic services, and Randall Beard, executive vice president and general manager of Nielsen IAG, write that “earned media” — material from social-networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook — “will be a huge test, as the new reality of consumer expression” for next year’s big football game. For instance, Tweets embedded in Facebook feeds, blog entries and Google search results can have long-term value. They say these efforts, in conjunction with Super Bowl ads, can have a “latency” effect and provide brands with an almost endless annuity of “earned media.” Nielsen cites the example of Nationwide Insurance, which three years ago ran a Super Bowl commercial featuring ex-Britney Spears husband Kevin Federline that grabbed over $20 million dollars in “earned media.”

He spit up in front of 97.4 million people and “underestimated the creepiness” of a clown he hired, but the 9-month-old in E-Trade’s (ETFC) two Super Bowl ads is a star. Both ads aired late in the game, but ranked 13th and 14th out of 53 game ads with consumers rating the ads in real time for USA TODAY’s annual Super Bowl Ad Meter. Since then, they’ve been two of the most-watched game ads online and finished high in measures of online buzz.

How they made the ads: The crew at agency Grey New York filmed the baby (his name is not being disclosed) sitting in a highchair before a green screen making expressions, mostly in response to his mother. She sat in an adjacent room for the filming and was seen by the baby on a monitor. Added later digitally: the mouth movements of a 5-year-old actor, the voice of a 30-year-old and the keyboard, room items and clown.

The highest rated commercial in Sunday’s down-to-the-wire Super Bowl battle was an ad for Victoria’s Secret, according to Nielsen analysis released today.

The spot was seen by 103.7 million people at 9:44 p.m., near the dramatic conclusion to the game, which aired on Fox. (Viewing numbers provided are based on live plus same day DVR playback viewing.) The average audience throughout the game was a record-setting 97.5 million people in the U.S.