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Controversy may result in big payoff for Super Bowl ad, professor says
More than 25 advertisers paid approximately $2.6 million for one 30-second commercial spot on the 2007 Super Bowl broadcast, which will be this Sunday (Feb. 4) on CBS. An associate professor of advertising in the University of North Texas Department of Journalism says controversy attached to one ad may help the advertiser, Nationwide Insurance, get its $2.6 million's worth. The Nationwide Insurance ad, created by T:M Advertising in Dallas, features Kevin Federline poking fun at himself and his upcoming divorce from Britney Spears. He is seen working in a fast-food restaurant, with the spot implying that he no longer has any other means of financial support. Dr. Sheri Broyles, who was a copywriter for a Dallas advertising agency before teaching at UNT and other universities, said the National Restaurant Association has said the ad is offensive, but the added exposure from the controversy "is a good way for Nationwide to leverage its investment." "The spot works because it's a good extension of Nationwide's ‘Life comes at you fast' concept. It certainly makes the point that life can change in a heartbeat, so be prepared," Broyles says. "I think that K-Fed does that even better than last year's spot, which featured a young, then old, Fabio in Venice." This year's lineup of Super Bowl commercials has been dubbed "the battle of the beverages" by one advertising journalist. Cadbury Schweppes' Snapple brand has bought its first Super Bowl ad - a fourth-quarter, 30-second spot - to promote its new Green Tea. And while Anheuser-Busch is the only alcoholic beverage marketer with an ad this year, Pepsi, which has had ads for 21 Super Bowls, will not be the only cola company advertising. "Coke is coming back this year for the first time in almost a decade," Broyles says. "The Super Bowl has been a big showcase for PepsiCo, which includes Pepsi and Frito-Lay, for years. It will be interesting to see what kind of an angle Coke takes." Apple Computer's ad during the 1984 Super Bowl to introduce the Macintosh computer is widely considered to have started the phenomenon of showcasing commercials on the Super Bowl. Broyles says the 60-second ad "is still considered one of the all-time greats, as is the Mean Joe Greene Coke spot," which aired in 1979. She also lists a 1993 ad for McDonald's featuring Larry Bird and Michael Jordan in a basketball shoot-out for a Big Mac as one of her all-time favorites. "You see all these pop up periodically in the ‘best of' programs," she says. While Broyles says the teams playing in a Super Bowl don't influence the ads, since ad production is completed weeks before the final two teams are determined, current events have. "After 9/11, the Super Bowl ads were very restrained - well, at least for one year. They were more patriotic with less humor, at least not the explosive-horse-farts-type sophomoric humor," she says. After singer Janet Jackson's breast was exposed during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show, ads were also toned down a bit the following year, Broyles says. "Well, not completely. The GoDaddy woman was back," she says.
UNT News Service Phone Number: (940) 565-2108
Contact: Nancy Kolsti (940) 565-3509
Email: nkolsti@unt.edu
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