Super Bowl Ads: Worth the Big Bucks
With an average price tag of nearly $3 million for every 30-second ad, Super Bowl ads are a tougher sell in this year’s troubled economy, but Wake Forest University marketing professor Sheri Bridges says they are still worth the money.
“Believe it or not, advertising on the Super Bowl can be downright economical,” says Bridges, an expert on branding and advertising. She gives eight reasons the Super Bowl is a unique opportunity for advertisers:
1. Exposure to nearly 100 million viewers of the game itself and to an attractive demographic.
2. Extensive publicity before and after the event in a variety of media and media channels.
3. Engagement levels of the audience in the ads are incredibly high (no zipping or zapping; people want to watch the commercials).
4. Excitement of game day can lead to positive feelings being associated with/transferred to the ads/advertisers.
5. Employee morale can be boosted, especially at a time when workers are looking for a reason to feel proud.
6. Evangelical word-of-mouth after the game (around the office water cooler, on the subway, in the checkout line, etc.) about favorite ads.
7. Extended ad life and exposure via airings on Internet sites devoted to Super Bowls ads, including YouTube and advertiser Web pages.
8. Elite image associated with Super Bowl stimulates an “eagle effect” — if a brand can fly high with the other eagles, it must be good.
“The bottom line…watching Super Bowl commercials is an event in itself,” Bridges says. But, she warns advertisers to steer clear of messages related to the bad economy. “Viewers want ads that make them smile, laugh or get choked up, not those that make them feel depressed,” she says.
Bridges has followed Super Bowl commercials for years and is available to analyze Super Bowl XLIV’s winners and losers.
Source: Wake Forest University
Super Bowl XLIV numbers
Super Bowl XLIV will be played Feb. 7 at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., a Miami suburb. To commemorate this occasion, the Census Bureau has compiled a collection of facts examining the demographics of the host city, as well as the cities represented by the contenders, in this year’s edition of our nation’s most celebrated sporting event.
With the mail-out of 2010 Census questionnaires slightly more than a month away, the Census Bureau will run three ads promoting census awareness during the Super Bowl telecast — two during the pregame show and one during the third quarter.
New Orleans (Saints)
55th
Where New Orleans ranked on the list of the nation’s most populous cities. The estimated population of New Orleans on July 1, 2008, was 336,644. New Orleans’ population climbed by 48,531 from July 1, 2007, to July 1, 2008.
25%
Percentage of New Orleans residents 25 and older who had a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2008; 82 percent had at least graduated from high school. The respective national figures were 28 percent and 85 percent.
23 minutes
Average amount of time it took New Orleans residents to get to work. Sixty-seven percent of the city’s workers drove to work alone, 13 percent carpooled, and 7 percent took public transportation. Nationally, it took workers an average of 26 minutes to get to work.
9%
Percentage of New Orleans residents 5 and older who spoke a language other than English at home. The national average was 20 percent. (The figure for New Orleans is not significantly different from that for Indianapolis.)
$37,751
Median household income for New Orleans. The national median was $52,029.
$194,300
Median home value of owner-occupied homes in New Orleans, not significantly different from the national median of $197,600.
Indianapolis (Colts)
14th
Where Indianapolis ranked on the list of the nation’s most populous cities. The estimated population of Indianapolis on July 1, 2008, was 798,382. Indianapolis gained 3,517 people from July 1, 2007, to July 1, 2008.
28%
Percentage of Indianapolis residents 25 and older who had a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2008; 85 percent had at least graduated from high school. The respective national figures were 28 percent and 85 percent.
23 minutes
Average amount of time it took Indianapolis residents to get to work. Eighty-two percent of the city’s workers drove to work alone, 10 percent carpooled and 2 percent took public transportation. Nationally, it took workers an average of 26 minutes to get to work.
10%
Percentage of Indianapolis residents 5 and older who spoke a language other than English at home. The national average was 20 percent. (The figure for Indianapolis is not significantly different from that for New Orleans.)
$43,652
Median household income for Indianapolis. The national median was $52,029.
$125,500
Median home value of owner-occupied homes in Indianapolis. The national median was $197,600.
Miami (host city)
43rd
Where Miami ranked on the list of the nation’s most populous cities. The estimated population of Miami on July 1, 2008, was 413,201. Miami gained 6,317 people from July 1, 2007, to July 1, 2008. The Super Bowl actually will be played in suburban Miami Gardens, Fla., which had a July 1, 2008, population of 109,346.
25%
Percentage of Miami residents 25 and older who had a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2008; 67 percent had at least graduated from high school. The respective national figures were 28 percent and 85 percent.
27 minutes
Average amount of time it took Miami residents to get to work. Seventy percent of the city’s workers drove to work alone, 9 percent carpooled, and 12 percent took public transportation. Nationally, it took workers an average of 26 minutes to get to work.
77%
Percentage of Miami residents 5 and older who spoke a language other than English at home. The national average was 20 percent.
$28,333
Median household income for Miami. The national median was $52,029.
$313,300
Median home value of owner-occupied homes in Miami. The national median was $197,600.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
NASA astronauts presenting Special Space Veteran Super Bowl Coin
The crew of the space shuttle Atlantis’ STS-129 mission will deliver a specially minted silver medallion to National Football League officials at 10 a.m. EST on Wednesday, Jan. 27, at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.
The medallion will be used for the official coin toss prior to the kickoff of Super Bowl XLIV on Sunday, Feb. 7.
Shuttle commander Charlie Hobaugh, a graduate of North Ridgeville High School near Cleveland, Pilot Barry Wilmore, Mission Specialists Leland Melvin, Randy Bresnik, Bobby Satcher and Mike Foreman, from Wadsworth, Ohio, returned from their 11-day space mission to the International Space Station on Nov. 27.
The crew will present Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys jerseys and a football, inscribed with the name of every member of the Hall of Fame, which also accompanied the crew on their 4.5 million mile space journey last fall. The astronauts will share mission highlights with attendees, which will include local students and community partners.
The STS-129 shuttle mission included three spacewalks and the installation of two platforms to the station’s truss, or backbone. The platforms hold large spare parts to sustain operations after the shuttles are retired. The crew delivered approximately 30,000 pounds of replacement parts for systems that provide power to the station, keep it from overheating, and maintain a proper orientation in space.
For information about the STS-129 mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle