Super Bowl Sunday has come and gone, but some of the commercial spots that ran during the broadcast continue to stay fresh in our minds thanks to some great storytelling and truly disruptive messaging.
The following are a few of the commercials we loved, as well as a few that left us scratching our heads.
CHEERS TO CLYDESDALES
Danielle O’Neil, President
This Sam Adams commercial was my favorite. I love that it continues the Sam Adams story about ‘your cousin from Boston’ that they’ve been playing for a little while now. I also love that it takes a subtle, yet classy dig at the competition.
And talk about realtime advertising – they heard that Bud wasn’t bringing the Clydesdales and they jumped on the opportunity to show them up. They preceded it with social conversation about how they were going to bring Clydesdales and they did it in a fun way. In my opinion – well done!
Super storytelling
Chuck McMahon, Content Director
Rarely have I ever seen a television commercial and said to myself…”I think I want to watch that again.” Thus was the case with the “We’re Coming Norway” commercial from GM starring Will Ferrell.
I’m not going to lie…the first time I saw the commercial I had no idea what it was about. But, I was captivated just enough to rewind the broadcast so I could watch it again. It’s hilarious.
So what hooked me? Good storytelling. The commercial wasn’t just an advertisement for GM’s new battery…it was educational and entertaining all in one.
COMMERCIALS FOR A CAUSE
Mark Kaefer, Head of Digital Marketing
As a type 1 diabetes (T1D) parent and advocate, Nick Jonas appearing in the Dexcom G6 commercial struck a chord with me for a couple of reasons.
First, the overwhelming majority of “big time” commercials geared towards diabetics are actually focused on type 2 diabetes. This one was different.
Of course, Jonas being in a Super Bowl ad certainly helps drive mass-awareness in and of itself. He lives with the autoimmune disease personally, uses the Dexcom G6, and is a known celebrity advocate within the T1D community.
Second, Dexcom’s continuous glucose meters (CGMs) are literally life-savers for many who live with the disease. More people need to know about them! That said, the price point of a product like the Dexcom G6 is quite costly for the uninsured. It’s also not exactly cheap for those who are. But the fact that this ad – along with the wider conversation around T1D – hit the Super Bowl stage was encouraging to see.
Similar to the national discussion around the costs of insulin, my hope is that this Dexcom campaign will drive further awareness and ultimately help get more CGM products in the hands of those who need them.
Confusing CELEBRITY CAMEOS
Miranda Dow, Digital Marketing Intern
The Uber Eats commercial starring Cardi B, Mike Myers, and Dana Carvey was a weird one.
I was surprised at the somewhat forced celebrity cameos because any Cardi B fans likely aren’t familiar with Myers and Carvey (and vice versa).
As a member of Gen Z, I was personally very confused about who those men were the whole time. 🤷🏼♀️
DORITOS DOESN’T FALL FLAT
SARAH RAFFELT, SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGER
The Doritos “Flat Matthew” spot provided some much-needed comic relief from a year with more lows than highs.
Though some viewers were creeped out by a flat Matthew McConaughey, I thought the spot was entertaining and did a nice job leveraging the current cultural environment to deliver the product. It was simple and memorable.
Doritos further amplified the spot by creating a TikTok filter that turns people flat and a Snapchat AR filter where you can buy the product straight from a virtual vending machine.
5 SECOND success
SARAH FILIAULT, ASSOCIATE DIGITAL MANAGER
The Reddit spot was the most clever ad of the event, IMHO. They trolled Super Bowl viewers with a simple hacking joke and made us flock to Twitter to see if it was legit.
The real kicker (pun intended) was tying the stunt to their latest viral controversy – when regular people teamed up on Reddit to mess with Wall Street – to drive home the idea that anyone can create a significant impact with the right platform to connect and amplify your message to people like you.
AND, they did it in only five seconds.