S T U D I O 1 2 : 8 Biggest Super Bowl Trends

Not coming through? Click here to view in browser

First Things First

February 03, 2020

By Jess Zafarris

Presented by

The 8 Biggest Advertising Trends of Super Bowl 54

Brands went big, long and cinematic in this year's selection of Big Game ads, spending an estimated $435 million on Super Bowl commercials. In addition to a widespread celebrity presence across many of the 2020 Super Bowl ads—including Martin Scorsese, Rainn Wilson, Busy Philipps (twice!), Chris Evans, Ellen DeGeneres, Chrissy Teigen and so many more—the lineup saw an explosion in ads featuring movie references. Not even the sky was the limit, both in terms of a recurring space theme and the apparently endless budget of conglomerates like PepsiCo, Anheuser-Busch InBev and P&G, which each spent at least $30 million on ads.

The preliminary numbers are in: Super Bowl 54 likely generated a record $435 million in in-game advertising revenue for host network Fox. That's a year-over-year increase of about 29%.
Rather than targeting specific programming, streaming services focused on brand building in their Super Bowl ads. Learn how Quibi and Hulu approached it, and how Amazon Studios was an outlier.
Despite the high price, the number of 60- and 90-second spots during Super Bowl LIV, equaled the number of 30-second spots that aired during the game. Learn why marketers are embracing the potential of longer ads.

Super Bowl Ads Used Humor and Nostalgia to Distract From Today's Divisive Climate

Super Bowl 2020 arrived amid a tense, divisive political and cultural climate, and political ads from both President Donald Trump and Michael Bloomberg running political ads during the game—a first-time occurrence for presidential candidates—didn't do much to ease that tension. But other brands aimed for a more comforting escapism, gravitating toward humor and nostalgia this year.

Pepsi and Frito-Lay utilized a humorous, throwback approach in its ads, including a parody of The Shining starring Bryan Cranston for Mountain Dew Zero and an MC Hammer-centric spot for Cheetos Popcorn. Pepsi Zero Sugar took inspiration from classic Missy Elliott music videos featuring the artist while Frito-Lay enlisted Lil Nas X and Sam Elliott for a Doritos Cool Ranch dance-off. Jeep scored big popularity points with its ad featuring Bill Murray reprising his role from Groundhog Day, and Hyundai's "Smaht Pahk" spot tickled audiences.

Plus: Which Super Bowl ads had the most impact—emotional and otherwise? Microsoft's "Be the One" ad featuring San Francisco 49ers' coach Katie Sowers scored its own sort of win. And the people's choice ratings are in: Discover the most loved—and hated—Super Bowl ads, according to Adweek's Instagram followers.

Here's What Happened Inside Tide's Super Bowl #LaundryLater War Room

Adweek CPG reporter Paul Hiebert took us behind the scenes with a look at Tide's Super Bowl war room. The team of 40, a hybrid of PR and creative teams from Procter & Gamble's Woven agency, gathered in support of the single brand as its Super Bowl ads rolled out. All of these people worked together through the Big Game, aiming at getting people and brands alike to respond with their own spin on the idea "Something Now, #LaundryLater."

These 5 Brands Saw the Biggest Boost on Amazon During and After Super Bowl

In a study of how TV advertising impacts short-term purchasing behavior on Amazon, ecommerce analytics company Profitero found that Super Bowl ads prompted viewers to buy both during and after the game. The products hailed from brands with Super Bowl commercials this year and were available on Amazon at the time the ads aired. Specifically, Big Game advertisers that were ready for in- and post-game purchases on Amazon with strong positioning and well-stocked products saw big gains in market share.

Best of the Rest: Today's Top News and Insights

On the Adweek Super Bowl Ad Podcast: What Worked and What Didn't

To discuss the highs and lows of this year's Super Bowl, Adweek podcast co-hosts David Griner and Ko Im are joined by senior editor Doug Zanger, deputy brands editor Diana Pearl and chief of staff Jameson Fleming.

Promoted Content by OpenText Hightail

How to Be Everyone's Favorite Client

Learn to Advertise with Tomorrow's Technology Today

Join Adweek's Elevate: AI on March 19th in NYC for a day full of sessions about artificial intelligence, machine learning and marketing strategies. One event, thousands of takeaways for your brand and the future of AI.