Everyone’s an Ad Critic

Real value of Super Bowl spots is in the buzz

The only things talked about more than the Super Bowl itself are the commercials that air. The expectation has been built that some fans anticipate the spots more than the game itself. This makes everyone an ad critic. But, everyone isn’t an ad critic. Viewers of Super Bowl ads don’t judge the spots on the value of being effective to the target audience; they judge the spots as if they were reviewing a movie. Did they laugh? Did they cry? Were they moved?

The real value in Super Bowl ads – the part that makes it worth the $3.5 million price tag – is the value of being talked about, and in turn, the viral nature in which the ads can be viewed millions more times, if they earn it.

In today’s real-time world, the funnier you are or the more you’re talked about, the more impressions you’ll get as your spot goes viral, as evidenced by the tens of millions of YouTube hits some brands, like Honda and Acura, are already racking up.

I thought this was a good year for Super Bowl ads, which went back to basics and fell into one of three categories:

• Funny – dogs, babies and silliness consistently win with the S.B. audience.
• Dramatic – two words: Clint Eastwood.
• Effective – Chevy’s “end of the world” spots were a direct hit to Ford.

Here were my favorite spots this year:

• Doritos Sling Baby and Man’s Best Friend: Doritos’ popular crowdsourced spots are back, and they still work.
• Volkswagen The Dog Strikes Back: following VW’s success last year with “the Darth Vader kid,” they stuck with the Star Wars theme. Many brands have success bringing familiar characters into their ads. It’s comforting to audiences to connect with characters they already know.
• Bud Light Rescue Dog: a nice tie-in to a social responsibility matter that you might not expect from a beer brand.
• M&Ms Just My Shell: very clever route for the beloved candy.

What were your favorite Super Bowl ads?

photo credit: Peter McCarthy