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Advertising Super Bowl

Even in an ad-averse landscape, people still look forward to seeing Super Bowl ads, study finds

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By Minda Smiley, Reporter

February 3, 2017 | 3 min read

This year, marketers are spending roughly $5m to get 30 seconds of airtime during the Super Bowl. While those in advertising circles like to debate over whether or not Super Bowl ads still hold the power they once did, a recent study out of market research firm AudienceProject found that the majority of people who watch the game still look forward to seeing what brands have in store.

Credit: AudienceProject

Credit: AudienceProject

According to the research, while 39% percent of people like regular TV ads and 31% like online ones, as many as 72% like commercials that were made specifically for the Super Bowl.

And even with the rise of cord cutting, many people still plan to watch the Super Bowl the old-fashioned way – on TV. According to AudienceProject, 97% of Americans who watch the Super Bowl this year will watch it on television. However, 15% plan to simultaneously watch the game on another device.

Many brands now choose to release teaser and full-length versions of their Super Bowl ads online before game day, and for good reason – according to the research, 43% of people actively seek out the best ads online during and after the game. When it comes to watching Super Bowl ads online, the study also found that most people (93%) prefer to watch on YouTube. More than half (51%) watch Super Bowl ads on Facebook while 24% check out the spots on news sites.

In terms of social media usage, AudienceProject found that 45% of viewers plan to use Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat for Super Bowl related purposes during the game. According to the research, 87% plan to use Facebook while Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat will be used by 49%, 40% and 29% respectively.

Mountain Dew’s bizarre 'Puppymonkeybaby' Super Bowl 50 spot was voted as the most memorable commercial by survey respondents. Budweiser’s 'Frogs' commercial came in second while VW’s 'The Force' came in third. In terms of brands, respondents said that Budweiser has the most memorable Super Bowl ads.

AudienceProject’s research was based off of online responses from 1,100 US respondents aged 15 to 75.

Check out The Drum's tweetup live blog this Sunday, where we'll be sharing observations, critiques, relevant data and social chatter around the ads.

Advertising Super Bowl

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