Super Bowl advertisers failed to connect viewers to online, especially social media
The reports are in: Not one Super Bowl XLII advertiser sent viewers to any type of social media site. Not one. That's pitiful.
MediaPost blogger Joe Marchese had this to say in response...
Besides making Monday a miserable and unproductive work day, the Super Bowl is a great example of why no media buy can really ever be done in a vacuum. A few times during the big game, fans were prompted to visit MySpace.com to view and share the commercials they see during the game. The idea that is so intuitive, yet so hard to practice, is this: For today’s brands to get the most out of their traditional media buys, they must have a plan to extend those campaigns into social media.
Not that advertisers were completely oblivious to the Web. Some 70 percent purchased search advertising in support of the campaigns, but only six percent used their expensive spots to drive viewers to the Web. None sent their viewers to MySpace, YouTube or Facebook. Again, that's just pitiful.
It makes sense for many reasons, not the least of which is the large outlay of dollars advertisers have to spend to have a presence on TV. Why not extend that to social media or, at the very least, some type of online media. Social media is cost-effective and a great way to leverage brand awareness and buzz created by the ad.
Not only that, but the "same quality content that is supported by advertising on television is content that people consume and share through social media," argues Marchese. "Rather than fight that trend, a social media extension strategy can allow you to embrace the wish to share the content."
That's not suggest the ads themselves aren't getting play on social media sites. YouTube is extending their life, as is MySpace. Plus, viewers TiVo'd the ad and watched them several times, says a , while others shared them via email and on Web sites. It's just that the brands themselves aren't taking initiative themselves.
On the other hand, the little voice in my ear says maybe that's as it should be. Let consumers carry the message sans the advertisers involvement. After all, isn't that how social media is supposed to work?
