Most Consumers Bemoan Brands That Release Their Super Bowl Ad Early

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson starred in a Super Bowl ad in 2013 for "Got Milk?", but consumers want Johnson back in the Super Bowl more than any other celebrity, according to a new survey from The Marketing Arm, an Omnicom agency that works closely with brands to place celebrities in ads, including the Super Bowl. TMA, which also does creative for brands like State Farm and Advance Auto Parts, surveyed Super Bowl viewers about their preferences for the $6 million ads that will run during the game, which is almost sold out already. Earlier this week, Intuit's Turbo Tax was the first advertiser to confirm its presence in this year's Super Bowl. From the survey, a few themes stuck out—viewers want brands to deliver funny ads, chock-full of celebrities that are not released early. Despite the now common practice of releasing ads before they air in the game, 89% of the survey's respondents said they do not want to see ads before the Super Bowl. NBC Has Only ‘a Few’ Super Bowl 56 Ad Units Left, 5 Months Before Game "With 43% of respondents saying they watch the Big Game for the ads it’s not surprising that 89% want to see those ads for the first time during the game," Nancylyn Hogarty, svp of strategy, TMA, told Adweek. "Just like the big plays, the big ads have tremendous talk value." Big Game viewership The Marketing Arm's survey found that 43% of viewers tune-in for the game just to watch the ads. Broken down further, 24% of men and 60% of women are watching primarily for the $6 million spots. In terms of total viewership of the game, the number of women who watch the Super Bowl is typically more than the Oscars, Grammys and Emmys combined. In the 2021 Super Bowl, the celebrities featured in the game didn't represent the motivations of those watching the game, as an Adweek analysis found just 14 of the 67 public figures in the ads identified as women. With 89% of respondents wanting to be surprised by Super Bowl ads, Matt Fleming, vp, celebrity and influencer, The Marketing Arm, said it's more of a business-first decision than a consumer-first decision to pre-release ads as brands want to get the most mileage from their ad buys, with investments pushing well beyond $6 million when factoring in the costs associated with production and celebrities. Fleming said there are alternative ways using teasers to build legitimate and authentic anticipation of a Super Bowl ad. "Teasers are really a smart way to go without putting all your cards on the table and still allowing consumers have experienced the spot in the broadcast," he stated. Celebrities front and center Another key finding from the survey centers around star power. 54% of viewers want to see celebrities in Super Bowl ads, and that number increases for Black (68%), Gen Z (66%) and Hispanic (62%) viewers. In Adweek's analysis of the most recent Super Bowl, only 37% of celebrities in the game were BIPOC. On the flip side, just 42% of Gen X appreciates celebrities in Super Bowl ads. The survey found that celebrities with a music background have the most impact with consumers. "You've got Beyonce, Britney Spears, Michael Jackson, Cardi B, Jennifer Lopez [on the list consumers most remember] and then on the ones that you most want to see, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, Taylor Swift, Drake, Britney Spears," Fleming said. "So four of the top six that people want to see are musicians." With celebrities at the core many brands' strategies now, comedy is most prevailing theme among viewers, with 97% of the audience wanting the ads to be funny, instead of heartfelt tearjerkers. When asked about political ads, the majority of respondents prefer brands to leave hard topics out of the game. Just 29% of viewers are OK with politics being in the game, with no single demographic over or under-indexing on that topic. Sit back and relax Ultimately, fans are watching the game to be entertained by football and the ads, and prefer not to be urged to interact with the ads, as 70% of viewers dislike ads that ask them to participate through posting on social media or voting in a contest. According to the survey no one generation is more likely than the others to prefer interactive ads. While that might seem like bad news, Hogarty thinks that number is encouraging for brands. Only 10% of North American consumers use a second screen to interact with content they're watching, Hogarty said, adding that means "second screen engagement of 30% for Big Game ads is great news for brands investing in that connected journey." Agency Known Went From Making a Super Bowl Ad to Netflix Documentary for Inspiration4