By Megan Allinson (Account Director)
This coming Sunday, it’s estimated that 110 million people will be watching the Super Bowl, not to mention that the stadium in Houston can seat 72,220 fans.
For advertisers this used to mean at least 110 million eyeballs consuming their ads on TV during the Super Bowl, and based on media costs, this probably meant only 1-2 spots during the game unless you were Coca-Cola, Budweiser, or another large-name consumer brand.
In today’s landscape, advertisers no longer need to rely solely on TV to reach their audience during the game. Today’s viewers consume media on an average of 3.64 digital devices which means that advertisers are able to connect with their audiences in multiple mediums, across multiple devices all at once! That’s a heck of a lot more impressions than 110 million viewers watching the game.
Let’s explore a few trends that we’re seeing leading up to the Super Bowl including: cross-device media consumption, how advertisers are using behavioral science in their ads to influence their audience, and lastly, how brands are saving money by using channels other than TV.
CROSS-DEVICE MEDIA CONSUMPTION
From all that we know about how “addicted” people are to their phones and mobile devices, I’m pretty sure we can safely assume that Super Bowl fans aren’t just watching TV during the game. They’re using their mobile devices, tablets, and computers to engage on social media, check email, text, browse the web, etc.
Having this insight, advertisers can target across device and connect the commercial they’re running during the game to a targeted mobile ad, a sponsored social post, and a digital display ad – all of which can be accessed on multiple devices.
In fact, in 2016, Adobe published a study stating that 1 in 3 consumers watch the Super Bowl on a device other than TV. This trend no doubt continues into 2017, and I wouldn’t be surprised if those numbers increase this year.
Adobe’s study also revealed that 8% of Millennials said they’d re-watch Super Bowl ads on their mobile devices and would be 3.5 times more likely to watch Super Bowl ads on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter than the Gen X or Boomer demographics.
So what’s this mean to brands? Well, for brands without those multi-million dollar budgets, they now have more power and opportunity than ever before to engage with 110+ million consumers via lower cost channels, streaming spots, and variations of the ad in apps, YouTube, or other social media channels.
Meanwhile, brands with the budgets to run those $5 million, 30-second spots can and should be capitalizing on the opportunity to engage across devices by driving viewers from their TV spot to an online experience. Whether it’s a landing page or asking viewers to engage on social media, this extended participation often drives greater awareness and brand recall.
BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE IN ADVERTISING
Commercials aired during the Super Bowl are often thought of as the “best of the best”. Brands and agencies sweat blood, tears, and money to develop and produce their best work.
Why? Because other brands are doing it, but even more so, because of their reach potential. The Super Bowl is the most watched event of the year!
Behavioral science, neuromarketing, and behavioral economics have all become buzz words in the business world, as marketers further tap into their audiences’ mindsets to uncover what motivates behavior and drives action.
So it’s no wonder that leveraging behavioral science in marketing is a fast growing trend. Let’s take a look and see how major brands are leveraging behavioral science in their Super Bowl spots.
FORD – “FORD GO FURTHER”
Behavioral Science Principle Used: Contrasting, which compares a less desirable experience to a more desirable one. In this spot, Ford compares the desire to break free when stuck to the feeling of freedom that Ford customers will experience with their new innovations.
AVOCADOS FROM MEXICO
Behavioral Science Principles Used: Labeling and Social Proof. These two principles are used together to identify or “label” two groups of people that like avocados – suburban moms and hipsters. Therefore suggesting that if you fall into one of these two groups then you’ll like avocados (social proof).
TIFFANY & CO.
Behavioral Science Principles Used: If you watched the spot prior to reading this, you might have a hunch that I’m about to reference a behavioral science principle known as the Status Quo Bias. This essentially states that people are more comfortable doing what they’ve always done, even when a really good offer presents itself. This Tiffany & Co. spot is a teaser with Lady Gaga about being different and breaking away from who you are or what’s expected. Something that both she and the brand are good at.
ALTERNATE CHANNELS
What happens when you’re an avid Patriots fan without cable, living in a remote part of the country where the internet connection is too weak to stream the game?
Let me introduce you to my colleague, Jeff. A few years ago, he was living in upper Michigan, and as a die-hard Pats fan, all he wanted was to watch his team in the Super Bowl. He’d just canceled cable, and much to his surprise, the internet connection for the area he lived in wasn’t strong enough to stream the game. What did he do?
Enter: The NFL App. Jeff was able to watch the entire game in his living room, by himself on his iPhone. Not an ideal situation, but nevertheless, he was still able to see his team take home the trophy.
This is just one example of the different ways in which we can view the Super Bowl. With more people canceling cable, football fans are tuning into the game through online streaming or by way of engaging and following along on social channels.
And for some, they do both. They put the game on, yet “watch” through Twitter or other social media channels. They revel in the communities they’ve built online, and they don’t want to miss out on the jokes, photos, memes, or other cultural moments that occur outside of the official broadcast. Within this time, they may even be creating content themselves, in the hopes of a few extra likes, comments, or shares.
Brands, especially smaller ones with local ties to the game, can benefit from being a part of this conversation. Live-tweeting is a simple way to engage your audience (though be wary of losing a few followers if you upset fans of the rival team).
While you’re unlikely to recreate the magic of Oreo’s famous blackout tweet, the right comment at the right time could get dozens of shares and generate heavy brand awareness. The lesson here is that you don’t need to spend millions to get noticed during the big game.
I don’t know about you, but I’m about ready to watch the Super Bowl – and not just on my TV!
You can put your money on it that I’ll be tuned into the game on TV and engaging in the social chatter via my phone. I might even have my computer pulled up to do a little multi-tasking.
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