Super Bowl Sunday!

We are only four days away from the most publicized and media covered day of the entire year. That’s right, you guessed it... its almost Super Bowl Sunday! On February 5^th the New England Patriots will be facing the New York Giants in front of nearly 70,000 screaming fans, not to forget the estimated 110 million fans that will be watching from the comforts of their living room. Many individuals may view the Super Bowl as time to create their esteemed 5-layer nacho dip; however as aspiring marketers there is a great opportunity to observe and monitor both the creativity of advertisements and the share of communication from Social Media.

Before I delve into the staggering statistics of the Super Bowl, I would like to take a second and introduce myself. I am currently a fourth semester Business Marketing student at the North Humber College campus. I have been given the opportunity to work on the social media elements for the Marketing program as part of my Internet Marketing course.

The main focus of this blog is to connect with prospective students, current students and alumni in order to offer a helpful hand while also sharing relevant program and course information. On Facebook and Twitter we will be sharing marketing news stories and updates from around the world as well as highlight job postings and industry events. Share your thoughts and opinions - after all Marketing is a conversation, so let’s start one!

Okay, now lets get back to the Super Bowl. Although hot wings are very tasty, they can be extremely messy as you try to Tweet out to all of your followers during the big game. Rather than eating our way into a food coma, lets take a look at some impressive statistics from the US:

• The average cost of a 30- second TV advertisement in the US for Super Bowl 46 is roughly $3.5 Million.  
• All 70- 30-second commercial spots were sold out nearly three months in advance.
• Over $245,000,000 will be spent in advertising for only three hours.

The numbers are simply amazing. My only question relates to the effectiveness of an individual commercial. One of the biggest challenges for a marketer is fighting the sheer amount of advertising clutter. The average individual will be exposed to over 100 different brands throughout the course of the game. Each brand will be fighting to create a lasting impression while gaining the media spot light.

So the question remains: Is the $3.5 Million price tag worthy of the airtime? Yes, in fact statistics show that nearly 50% of viewers tune in almost solely for the commercials. In addition, the level of media coverage extends for weeks preceding the game. With people heading online to watch their favorite ads and to catch the ads that they missed it seems as if commercials and the Super Bowl has truly become a pop culture phenomenon.

In order to set your mood in the right direction and to create excitement, I would like to share a video from CBS which highlights the best and the worst US Super Bowl commercials from 2011.

Best (and Worst) Superbowl Commercials 2011

-Tim