At 3 million per spot, can marketers afford the Super bowl?

With advertising rates for the Super Bowl running as high as $3 million for a 30-second spot, some marketers are wondering whether during these tough economic times they can afford the big game.

FedEx is concerned that shelling out big bucks --and holding out to see if it can get a bargain. FedEx's hesitation is raising eyebrows on Madison Avenue because it has advertised in 12 of the past National Football League championship games.

Advertisers taking a pass on Super Bowl XLIII altogether include beleaguered General Motors, which has been in 16 games, and Garmin Ltd., the maker of GPS devices, which had advertised in the past two games. A company spokesman for Garmin says its decision to sit out was "unrelated to the economy."

General Electric's NBC had sold most of its Super Bowl ad inventory by early September, prior to the meltdown on Wall Street. Advertisers gobbled up the available slots even though NBC raised its price sharply, compared with the previous Super Bowl.

NBC is in better shape than Fox was during the past recession. In 2002, Fox, whose parent also publishes The Wall Street Journal, had about 10% of its ad time unsold just two weeks before the game.

The Super Bowl has shown no signs of flagging in the ratings. The nail-biter between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots drew 97.4 million viewers, the biggest TV audience for a U.S. sporting event.

Advertisers in 2009 will include Anheuser-Busch, CareerBuilder.com, Hyundai Motor, PepsiCo, Viacom's Paramount Pictures, Cars.com and Coca-Cola.

New marketers include Pedigree, the dog-food brand owned by Mars. Even Monster.com, the online job site owned by Monster Worldwide, is currently in talks to jump back into the game after sitting out the past few years.

Read the details and full article from the Wall Street Journal here:

Super Bowl Ads- Selling at 3M --Despite the Sluggish Economy

NBC reports that the Super Bowl ad slots are 85% sold.

“The Super Bowl is a sure thing,” said Jimmy Burnette, the longtime ad sales executive who oversaw sales efforts for 10 Super Bowls, many while at Fox Sports. “It’s a matter of figuring out how to adjust marketing plans around the Super Bowl.” Larry Novenstern says, “The Super Bowl is not a one-day or a 30-second event for an advertiser. It’s a significant PR opportunity for two weeks prior to the game and two weeks afterwards.”.

Check out the full article here.

NBC Already Racking Up Super Bowl Ad Sales

Back in May, NBC announced a plan to set a record-high rate $3 million for a 30-second spot. The reaction was a mix of skepticism and anger, which has been replaced by a flurry of signed contracts. So far, a dozen 30-second spots have sold.

Returning advertisers include Anheuser-Busch, PepsiCo and CareerBuilder.com. General Motors won't be showing ads this year: the car maker has been in cost-savings mode because of a nose dive in car sales.


Check out the full article from the Wall Street Journal here.

Put your tax stimulus check to work: invest in advertising for your small business.

Wondering where to put that cash from your tax stimulus check? Before you blow it on a steak dinner, consider investing in your small business.

Economic stimulus payments are going out ahead of schedule, and you may be getting a tax stimulus check or direct deposit from the IRS sooner than you think. So what should you do with your windfall?

Turn that tax incentive check into your financial advantage by trying something that makes the payoff more direct. Consider the merits of advertising in an economic downturn, and invest some of that rebate into your small business.

Times of economic uncertainty are the ideal time to advertise.

Cutting from a marketing budget is one of the first mistakes businesses make during times of economic crisis.

The research firm of Meldrum & Fewsmith conducted six studies that offered conclusive evidence that advertising aggressively during a recession increases both sales and profits. Check out their chart that shows how advertising during recession is good for business in the long run.


Advertising can reposition a product to take advantage of timely consumer concerns, give your brand a stable image in a chaotic environment, and give you a chance to dominate the media when your competitors are conveniently quiet.

Look at your marketing dollars as an investment not an expense.

When money is tight, it's tempting to hold on to what you have rather than expanding your brand. But if you stop advertising and marketing, you'll do your business serious harm. "If you cut back on advertising in the face of a recession, then the customers stop, and it's basically a self-fulfilling prophecy," says small-business consultant Karl Paluchuk of Sacramento, California.
A few examples of companies that weathered economic storms and succeeded:

• Proctor and Gamble - During the Great Depression they pushed Ivory soap and made it a household name for the good years to come.

• Intel - In 1990-1991 during economic difficulty they launched the campaign "Intel Inside".

• Wal-Mart launched their "Every Day Low Prices" campaign in the economic turmoil of 2000-2001.

Expand your business during a recession, and reap the rewards from markets that your competitors are too scared to enter because of a bad economy.

Here’s an offer: see what a new tagline can do for your business. Peel off $450 from your tax stimulus check and invest it in creating a smart slogan for your small business. From now until August 1, 2008, I’m offering these services as a special "tax stimulus package" so you can see what a little public image stimulus can do for your business. And you’ll still have $150 left for that steak dinner.

Email me at tagqueen at zagstudios dot com and put “Tax stimulus check special” in the subject line. In as little as two weeks, you could improve your image and start seeing the results of advertising during an economic downturn.

One major business-to-business advertiser summed it up best. "When times are good, you should advertise. When times are bad, you must advertise."

Scoring the 2008 Super Bowl Ads

If the creativity of ads during a Super Bowl is any indication of the economy, then we are surely in a recession. There were a few highlights, however, including:

* Carlos Mencia reprises his role from last year teaching a classroom how to order a Bud Light.
* Procter and Gamble's Tide brand made its first-ever Super Bowl ad appearance and scored a big winner with the Talking Stain spot.
* The Bud Light winning streak continues with Will Ferrell as Semi Pro, Jackie Moon.

Full article and review of Super Bowl ads 2008 here.

What’s the Full Return on a Super Bowl Ad?

Nielsen Online reports the Buzzmetrics of last year's Super Bowl Advertising featuring pre and post- game reactions. The results of the ad returns of the 2007 Super Bowl here.

Two Seconds that Don't Exist

Overheard on CNBC this past Tuesday: the Weatherproof Garment Company was going to run a 2 second Super Bowl commercial, because that's precisely how long it took to say "waterproof." Shenanigans called a few hours later; it looks like just another cheap PR stunt.