Many brands stepped up to spend millions of dollars on Super Bowl campaigns this year, but the online follow up and complementing digital campaigns showed which brands were fully prepared to engage with a complete marketing strategy. Below we’ve analyzed some of the big wins and shortcomings from Super Bowl brands in 2015 so you can help transform your brand’s campaign to drive more results.
Be Visible
The following commercials from Lexus and Loctite drove many customers online to learn more about the products featured in their TV ads. Upon searching for related terms such as “RC-350” or “Glue” in search engines we found that these brands missed an opportunity for increased exposure and relevance by not running paid search advertisements. Echoing campaigns across multiple channels is essential to staying top of mind and nurturing potential customers through the sales cycle. Remove barriers to entry by making information and specialized offers easy to find in all channels.
Be Entertaining
It’s always amazing to watch a great campaign transform a relatively boring product, like glue, into something worth talking about. Despite their shortcomings in paid search campaigns, Loctite did an amazing job revamping their digital presence in a way that makes glue fun, silly, and interactive. Check out Loctite’s website for funny how-to videos, quotes, gifs, contests, and even free downloads of those ridiculous songs used in the Super Bowl commercials. By making your brand engaging with great content you can create a buzz that drives more exposure. #WinAtGlue
Be Compelling
The temptation of Jeff Bridges humming us to sleep was enough to make us put down the wings and pick up our phones to check out DreamingWithJeff.com after seeing the Super Bowl ad from Squarespace. By creating intrigue and curiosity, the brand succeeded in generating awareness and driving traffic to their page. Unfortunately, the mobile website, which most Super Bowl viewers engaged with, does not stack up to the desktop version. That’s a bit underwhelming for a brand selling website design and development.
Be Bold
Go Daddy is notorious for pushing the envelope with their quirky, comical, and edgy TV ads. However, this year it’s Super Bowl commercial featuring a spoof on the now classic Budweiser puppy, was pulled due to complaints from animal campaigners. Go Daddy then replaced the ad with an extremely bland ad that felt off-brand from the usually entertaining and head turning commercials we’ve come to expect. While this is not a complete loss, it is a missed opportunity to captivate audiences and extend the personality of its brand. Both commercials can be seen below, and you can be the judge of what’s more memorable.
Be Timely
As the leverage of digital content continues to grow, many brands leaked their Super Bowl ads before the big game to create an early buzz. While beating other brands to the punch can help create some early awareness, it also ruins the surprise and makes the big game day delivery less special. Snickers, for example, launched their Brady Bunch commercial online, and after great circulation, the excitement was ruined during the previous “big reveal.” Understand what users expect from your brand and stay relevant to delivery and timelines to optimize engagement.
Be Aware
Let’s face it; Budweiser just insulted their audience this last Super Bowl Sunday. Its recent ad not only offended craft beer drinkers and manufactures (including its recently acquired craft partner Elysian Brewing, purchased last week) but also its own customers. The commercial encourages drinkers to not dissect a Budweiser and instead to just drink it, perhaps implying inferiority over simplicity. With a growing audience for craft beer and Budweiser itself becoming more competitive in the space, it is a bad idea to shame those “sipping on Pumpkin Peach Ales” and “making a fuss” over microbrews. Remember that bigger is not always better, and insulting customers is never a good idea. Understand what your audience loves about your product and focus on that without the need to embarrass others, or yourself.
Conclusion
Developing a complete marketing strategy that engages users across multiple channels and compels users to interact can keep your brand memorable and profitable. Understand user expectations and remove all barriers to entry to drive more engagement and create powerfully effective campaigns.
This article was syndicated from Business 2 Community: Digital Dos and Don’ts From Super Bowl XLIX
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- The Most Surprising Superbowl Ad?
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- 6 Thorny Data Problems That Vex B2B Marketers, and How to Solve Them
- The Relationship Between Sales and Marketing in 2015
- Why Content Curators Will Grow Their Influence in 2015 and Beyond
