It’s Super Bowl Sunday, and I’ve basically joined the rest of America in front of my TV today. I’m from Indiana, so of course I’m rooting for the Colts. But I’m also a Marketing Lover. So to me, the most interesting part of any Super Bowl can sometimes be the commercials.
Especially if it’s a boring game.
Of course, there’s a reason for this. Everyone knows Super Bowl Sunday is the one day of the year when companies pull out all the stops to and run the biggest, most expensive, most creative ads of the year. The best ones are like little comedy shows or movies all by themselves.
It’s a lot of pressure to perform. And some companies fail spectacularly. You know those ads where you end up just scratching your head and saying “huh?” I’ve seen a few so far.
But what really confuses me are those companies who run the same basic, boring commercials you see every day. Or make more expensive commercials that are just like them, so they just kind of go by like background noise.
I mean, why would any company do that?
Think about it. They spent the same gi-normous amount of money as the companies who ran the amazing, funny, creative commercials. But tomorrow, nobody is going to be talking about them around the water cooler. In fact, if somebody needs to get another beer, they’re probably going to get up and do it during one of their commercials.
What that means is, those companies basically threw their money away.
It’s the same thing with direct marketing. Obviously you don’t have zillions of dollars to spend, and you probably can’t get the cast of The Simpsons to make a special appearance on your behalf.
But whatever money you do have in your marketing budget, doesn’t it make sense to spend it on something that will stand out, that will get noticed, that will give you some bang for your buck?
That way, people will be talking about you around the water cooler.