Tag: Super Bowl

Super Bowl ads 2012: staff opinions

Posted on by Brian Lee

BRIAN:

I was really underwhelmed by this year’s Super Bowl commercials. Even without the annual build-up, the commercials by themselves were pretty dull. The Chrysler commercial with Clint Eastwood was entertaining, but all it did for me was invoke memories of GM’s “Imported from Detroit” commercial with Eminem. I did notice many spots add a hashtag at the end, which makes me wonder how many conversations they spawned.

STEPH:

In my opinion, a combination of animals and humor make some of the most memorable Super Bowl commercials that are also able to appeal to a wide audience. This year was no exception. One of my favorite ads was the Sketchers dog racing commercial featuring a French Bulldog named Mr. Quiggly. Not only was the commercial creative and funny, but I think people that saw the ad will actually remember what product it was advertising. Good call on Sketchers’ part deciding to ditch the Kim Kardashian commercial for this one instead.

WHITNEY:

Usually the Super Bowl commercials that keep people talking are the ads that no one can remember what the ad was for! This year, my favorite ad fell into that category–the boy peeing in the pool. Call me immature, but it was really cute (especially the look on the boy’s face as the girl jumps into the pee pool). Unfortunately for TaxAct, I had to look up who did the commercial. I’m sure many others will also remember the boy peeing in the pool ad, but what is the point of a great commercial if we can’t remember what was being sold? Second favorite ad–David Beckman for H&M … yum.

EMILIE:

Thoroughly underwhelmed, that’s my feelings on both yesterday’s game and commercials. While I anticipated a boring game, I was taken aback by the lackluster ads. But it wasn’t all bad and if I had to pick a favorite it would be the M&M’s commercial. It had everything I think makes a great Super Bowl ad without trying too hard. Plus, the idea of candy being naked is just silly, and who doesn’t love silly fun? I even like the use of the overplayed “Sexy and I Know It” song, which I have secretly come to enjoy. I think the only thing that put a bigger smile on my face was Bradshaw’s stylishly awkward touchdown.

Not so Super Bowl for fans

Posted on by Brian Lee

Before the Super Bowl kicked off, the TV announcers mentioned that some seats were unsafe and as a result, NFL officials were doing their best to relocate the fans who had those seats.

ESPN.com wrote a detailed story on what happened. Some of the fans did get new seats, while others were offered three times face value as compensation.

Meanwhile, all fans had a difficult time entering the stadium, as some gates were closed due to ice on the roof. Some waited an hour-and-a-half to get in!

Here are some things stadium personnel could have done better:

  • Be more prepared for any situation. Two days before the Super Bowl, some ice fell from the roof and injured some people. Thus, officials had two days to come up with a better plan than just closing four of the 10 gates last-minute and poorly communicating this to the public.
  • Communicate better. One fan said, “Problem was, you didn’t know if you were in the right line or not. Everywhere you looked, there were just fences and screens and you couldn’t get in anywhere.” For one thing, announcements should have been made continuously through the exterior PA system. In addition, staff (including the police) should have been instructed how to better guide people to their (new) gate.
  • Have back-up systems. Ticket scanning devices malfunctioned at one gate, causing fans to get unruly. Did they not test the devices earlier in the day? Why not have back-up devices ready? Since four gates were closed, there should have been plenty of extras.
  • Manage staff better. Since four gates were closed, those ticket handlers should have been reassigned to the closed seating area to be there to explain the situation to the fans. Or, more than likely all those fans would have entered through the same gate. So those staffers could have met them right away and saved the fans the trouble of finding out when they got to their seats (and probably after purchasing food, etc.).