The Super Bowl is one of the most watched sporting events of the year.
Even those who aren't avid football watchers or NFL fans can find something to watch and enjoy tonight, whether it's the halftime show Usher will be performing at this year or laughing at the commercials shown during the breaks of the game.
Why do companies want to advertise in the Super Bowl?
Due to the number of people who watch the event each year, with an estimated 100 million people watching the 2023 Super Bowl, it has become big business for companies to buy one of the rare advertising spots.
“Although a Super Bowl advertising campaign may not generate immediate profits in dollars and cents, if a company can afford to produce one of these stellar ads, it can gain new customers and raise awareness on a scale unmatched by other media,” Peter Koeppel, founder and president of marketing agency Koeppel Direct, said in 2019.
“Yet, good or bad, the shocking Super Bowl ads are the most talked about. What a marketer cannot afford is an ad that is not delivered at all. Because the Super Bowl is also a kind of marketing Super Bowl, competition is fierce: Commercials must be memorable to pay off in the long run.
“An ad that offers nothing to viewers, for better or worse, will not be profitable,” he continued.
What kinds of brands get Super Bowl commercials and what are the rules?
The brands were prepared for the massive participation, since fox sports revealed in September 2022 that it had almost exhausted its commercial inventory. At the time, Mark Evans, executive vice president of advertising sales at fox sportsestimated that Fox I had five or fewer 30-second spots to fill, depending on Variety.
Super Bowl LVIII will be held this year C.B.S. and transmitting in Supreme +. In November 2023, the hollywood reporter reported that the network had sold out all of its Super Bowl commercial slots and had asked for $7 million for a 30-second ad.
However, the 30-second limit hasn't stopped brands from breaking the rules before. In 2021, Reddit spent its entire advertising budget on the shortest commercial in Super Bowl history.
Jennifer Aniston reunited with her Friends co-star David Schwimmer in a 2024 Super Bowl commercial
(Uber eats)
The news and social media platform's commercial lasted just five seconds and urged viewers to pause their televisions to read it.
How much do Super Bowl ads cost this year?
The price of a 30-second ad at the Super Bowl this year was $5.5 million, according to Varietywhich would put the cost of the Reddit ad at $915,000.
“If you are reading this, it means that our bet paid off. Big game hunting grounds are expensive, so we weren't able to purchase a full one. But we got inspired and decided to spend our entire marketing budget on five seconds of airtime,” the ad said, before listing some of the things users can learn on Reddit, such as more information about owls.
“Powerful things happen when people come together around something they really care about. And there is a place for it. It’s called Reddit,” the ad concludes.
Shorter ads have appeared on local networks in the past. In 2009, MillerHigh Life was blocked by Budweiser's exclusive deal for the Super Bowl and generated one-second increases in ad time on regional NBC affiliates broadcasting the game.
Super Bowl LVIII will be played at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, tonight (February 11). Still live here.
