This year’s Super Bowl ads are all about fun and familiarity

Humor and celebrity cameos are in at this year’s Super Bowl, while gambling and cryptocurrency are out.

That’s the game plan for the 50 brands advertising during Sunday’s big game, which features the Kansas City Chiefs going for a historic three-peat against the Philadelphia Eagles. With more than 120 million viewers expected to tune in, the yearly top-rated TV show is a prime opportunity to attract attention, with brands focusing on familiar faces and products.

“It is so hard to get and keep people’s attention — like everything else in the media landscape today — so brands are relying on celebrities, mascots and intellectual property that have ‘pre-awareness’ factor to assure that their message cuts through,” according to Paul Hardart, a clinical professor of marketing for New York University’s Stern School of Business.

One of the biggest examples of this trend is Instacart’s upcoming spot, with the grocery delivery app buying its first-ever Super Bowl ad and filling it with well-known consumer mascots, including Mr. Clean, Cheetos’ Chester the Cheetah and the Pillsbury Doughboy. The 30-second commercial brings them all together to show “one epic delivery that is only possible with Instacart,” per a press release.

Other brands are hiring celebrities for their message, too. Uber Eats has Martha Stewart and Kevin Bacon to promote its alleged conspiracy that football was invented to sell food (after all, the Roman numerals in Super Bowl LIX appear to read “licks”); Stella Artois is bringing back David Beckham and throwing in a Matt Damon cameo; Coffee mate has hired Shania Twain, with the country superstar belting out a custom song promoting its new cold foam.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, as Hardart told CNN, there will “be a fair number of ads” for artificial intelligence. Chris Pratt, Kris Jenner and Chris Hemsworth are starring in a Meta ad promoting AI-powered glasses, while the Muppets use Booking.com’s new AI tool to plan a trip.

“This is a common trend when there is a new product or technology,” Hardart said, pointing to the cryptocurrency ads that dominated the game in 2023 and betting apps that were popular last year — both categories that won’t return en masse this year. “No better way to say we’re the mainstream one than by being featured in the Super Bowl,” he added.

Swift subdued

Beauty brands aren’t making as many appearances at this year’s Super Bowl, despite Taylor Swift likely making another appearance to support her boyfriend, Chiefs player Travis Kelce. Last year’s game featured several female-focused ads because of her appearance, a trend that isn’t continuing this year.

“Surprisingly, beauty brands are also largely absent this year, despite the heightened cultural buzz surrounding the Chiefs and the so-called ‘Taylor Swift effect,’” said John Mercado, data insights design lead for Sprinklr. “Interestingly, NFL broadcasts have featured fewer cutaways to Swift in the stands this season, which could factor in to this shift.”

But Dove, which last year bought its first-ever Super Bowl ad, is coming back with another spot aimed at women. The personal care brand is focusing on the “impact of negative body talk on girls in sports,” according to a press release.

Is it worth it?

With the potential for record-breaking viewership again, prices for a 30-second ad are also making history. Demand to buy a spot has surpassed expectations for Fox’s initial rate of $7 million so much so that the network has sold at least 10 of its Super Bowl slots for upwards of $8 million each, a person with direct knowledge of the matter confirmed to CNN.

Despite that jaw-dropping figure, it’s still worth it for some companies — just as long as the ad is good.

“When done correctly, the Super Bowl is still the most close-to-guaranteed attention a brand can get. It’s the one day a year when people want to watch ads,” said Pedr Howard, head of creative excellence for Ipsos. But he warns that many of these ads “slip by with barely a trace.”

The consulting firm’s research reveals that “over half receive less than 1% brand recall” based on a poll of 1,000 viewers 12 hours after the game finishes. But, the game is about long-term brand building, pointing toward Budweiser’s Clydesdales commercials, “which are the most recalled Super Bowl ad among everyday people who love the nostalgia and look forward to seeing these brand assets during the game,” Howard told CNN.

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