The big game is over. According to an analysis by Kantar, Super Bowl LV generated $434.5 million in in-game ad revenue, higher than the World Series and NBA finals and second only to the Olympic Games. Unfortunately, 99% won’t lead to more sales of the advertised product.
I took two things away from the Super Bowl ads. First, there is a massive gap in advertising agency talent, and second, the “business” of advertising is still alive and well.
It’s a lot easier to hire celebrities for a commercial than to sell the product. The only TV spot that made me notice is that NBC is bringing back Law & Order. There wasn’t one spot that made me say, “I want to try that product.” It s a failure on a massive scale that shows advertisers are too far removed from consumers.
Advertisers tried to put the pandemic in the rearview mirror as people have COVID fatigue. Still, journalist Matt Stoller estimated that 60% of brand price increases that ordinary Americans are paying are going directly to corporate profits, not to compensate for global supply issues or higher-priced goods some consumers are getting angry.
Increased profits from corporate America comprise 44.7% of the inflationary increase in costs. That means corporate profits alone are absorbing a 3% inflation rate on all goods and services in America (44.7% of 6.8% annual inflation), with all other factors causing the remaining 3.8%, for a total inflation rate of 6.8%.
That’s likely to be talked about more than the commercials.
Creative Directors tend to be frustrated Steven Spielberg’s who love to pat themselves on the back and then just to France for awards while VPs are left to explain what their vast Super Bowl spot earned the brand in tangible assets.
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The business of marketing is alive and well and damn the actual results. Ad ge rated our commercials as number one and now the rush to link it to more sales,
