During Super Bowl LIX, I'm going to be a regular consumer.
On most days, I'm not a regular consumer...
... I'm a marketer.
And, as a marketer, I'm often guilty of paying too much attention to marketing efforts.
I'm hyper-perceptive about in-store displays as I attempt to evaluate their effectiveness.
I analyze every promotional email I'm sent, examining the language used, the layout, and the offer.
As I watch advertisements, I ask myself things like, "Who's the target market for this ad?", "What's the primary message being communicated?", and "Will this spot break through?"
Of course, regular consumers don't do any of these things.
Let's face it: most "regular consumers" are annoyed by most marketing efforts.
My children groan when their content is interrupted by an ad on YouTube.
And, just this afternoon, when I asked if I should renew my Disney+ with ads subscription (because my free trial is ending this week), they said no... because they don't want to watch content interrupted with ads.
As a marketer, for the past few years, I've watched every Super Bowl ad made available online BEFORE the big game. I've chosen my favourites and shared my thoughts regularly on this website.
But not this year.
This year, I've only pre-watched ONE ad.
(It was Google's Super Bowl spot; I thought it tried too hard and, as a result, was underwhelming relative to some of the creative they've previously aired.)
Everything else I see (or don't see) tonight will be a complete surprise to me.
Tonight, I'll watch the Big Game with a few friends at a local sports bar.
And I'm going to see which (if any) of the Super Bowl ads aired this year can really capture my attention in an environment where there will be distractions aplenty.
It's pretty easy for marketers to get excited about ads. And if you need proof of that, visit LinkedIn a week or so before each Super Bowl. You'll read things like:
"So excited for our upcoming ad!"
"Congrats to the team who put this amazing spot together!"
"We're thrilled about our partnership with BIG CELEBRITY and we can't wait to show you how they show up for us in the Big Game!"
And all of that is great, really.
As a marketer, I LOVE really creative, really entertaining ads!
But as a consumer... will I even notice?
Creativity for creativity's sake is art.
Super Bowl ads that are creative but don't ultimately drive business results (through increased mental availability, increased brand preference, or increased brand love) aren't worth the time and money spent to develop them.
And if "regular consumers" can't notice your creative ads in a busy environment?
Don't hold your breath for those business results to follow.
I hope I'm wrong.
I hope I notice an ad (or two, or three) that really WOWs me today...
... and either introduces me to a solution I didn't know existed or makes me feel more affinity for a brand I didn't care about before watching the spot.
But I won't hold my breath.
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