In the days since the Super Bowl, I’ve had many conversations with people about the ads. Most of the conversations are about the entertainment value of the ads – which ones people enjoyed the most. The truth is that Super Bowl ads get evaluated on buzz-worthiness. Sadly, they rarely get evaluated based on how connected they are to the brand being advertised. I wish I had a nickel for every time I heard someone say, “I loved that Brett Favre ad. I don’t remember what it was advertising, though.”
Here’s a test. Do you remember that spot about the kids being fitted for prosthetic legs? Do you remember what it was an ad for? Me either. (Actually, I looked it up. Microsoft.)
To be worth the money, an ad must result in increased sales. And to increase sales, there are two things the ad must do:
1) Communicate what the product or service is. If people can’t remember the brand that was advertised, they’re not going to buy it.
2) Communicate the benefit the user will get from buying the product or the service. If people don’t understand what the product or service will do for them, they’re not going to buy it. The benefit doesn’t have to be functional. Emotional benefits work too. (See luxury goods.)
There are other things that advertising should do, but those two are at the top of the list.
When evaluated on these criteria, most of the Super Bowl ads failed. Some, including ads for Squarespace and Wix.com, failed on both counts. (I’ve watched the Wix.com ads multiple times and I still had to Google it to see if it was Wix or Wiz.) I thought the Jeff Bridges spot for Squarespace was cute, but it had nothing to do with the brand being advertised, and it also did a bad job of branding. Lots of people remember Jeff Bridges. Few remember that the ad was for Squarespace. (In fact, until someone pointed it out to me, I was sure it was for GoDaddy!)
I’ve done a completely unscientific assessment of the Super Bowl ads (minus the movie ads), based on 1) brand communication and 2) benefit communication, and here are the eight spots that win. Why eight? Only eight scored well on both criteria:
1. McDonald’s. I know, I know. The whole idea is hokey. But throughout the whole ad, it was 100 percent clear what brand was being advertised. And whether you believe the benefit or not, the “love” benefit was very clearly communicated.
2. Doritos. I’ve selected my favorite here, but I would give high marks for this campaign in general. I always knew it was a Doritos ad. And the benefit? Crystal clear. Doritos taste so great that you’ll do anything to avoid sharing them.
3. WeatherTech. Not a flashy ad. But very clearly branded, and totally clear on the benefit – high-quality automotive accessories, made in America. (Sorry, I couldn’t find a version without the intro ad.)
4. Always. I struggled with this one, because they don’t identify the brand until the end of the ad. But the message of empowering girls was so clear, and so on brand, that I think it deserves to be on the list. Plus, I hear people referring to it as the “Always ad.” So they got the message.
5. Victoria’s Secret. I knew from the first second that it was a VS ad. And I think you can figure out the benefit for yourself.
6. Subway – Well branded, and effectively uses humor to communicate the benefit: “Stay fit by eating at Subway.”
7. Mountain Dew Kickstart. While I can’t say I enjoyed watching this ad, it’s clearly branded, and communicates the benefit – this product gives you an energy kick. It also gets points for using humor that is directly connected to the product benefit, which is something you can’t say about most Super Bowl ads.
8. Nissan. Watching most of the car ads, I didn’t have a clue what the brand was. But the race car driver spot was very well branded. I’m not sure that “safety” is an ownable and differentiating benefit for Nissan, but if that’s what they’re going for, this ad communicated it well.
What do you think? Did I miss any ads that you think scored well on branding and benefit communication?
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