BRIAN:
I’m sure advertisers must have a measure of disappointment when they watch their ad during the Super Bowl … and then see multiple ones just like it. This year, we had numerous electric vehicle commercials, and they were so similar to each other in terms of messaging that I’m certain I can’t name any differences among them. My favorite commercial was Paul Rudd and Seth Rogen reminiscing over a bag of Lay’s. It’s the exact type of humor (e.g., marrying the ghost) I would have used if I wrote the spot myself. A commercial that let me down was the one for Bud Light Seltzer with Guy Fieri. I thought it was a clever concept with the Mayor of Flavor Town, but the execution was terrible—there could have been so much more done in the spot.
JAIMIE:
Sometimes the most effective Super Bowl commercials aren’t the most entertaining. In fact, sometimes they’re downright annoying, like the Coinbase commercial that featured nothing but a QR code bouncing around the screen like an old-school screensaver for a full minute. Apparently, it piqued viewers’ curiosities since it was later reported that traffic from the spot actually crashed the cryptocurrency company’s website. Plus, Coinbase followed up the commercial with a tweet that featured a giveaway to anyone who signs up by Feb. 15. While I didn’t love the commercial, I have to applaud the marketing.
BECCA:
As someone who was only watching the Super Bowl for the commercials this year, it seemed like more companies went the humorous route than in prior years. There was one particular ad in this category that stuck out more to me than the others. It was the Rocket Homes and Rocket Mortgage “Barbie Dream Home” ad, in which they characterize today’s home buying issues with various versions of a classic children’s toy. As someone who got discouraged with their own housing search, it was nice to be able to take a step back and laugh about absurdity of the current state of the market.