Superbowl Commercial Recap: 1st Half

Below is a recap of the commercials that aired in the first half of the Superbowl. I have scored the commercials on a 1-5 system (five being the best and one being the worst) with an occasional zero for total failure.

Commercial: Bud Light
Aired: 3:35 PM (Pacific Standard Time)
Summary: Two guys reach into the ice bucket at the same time, reaching for a bud light. They decide to play rock, paper, scissors for it. On three one of the guys throws a rock at the other guys head, which knocks him out. He takes the bud light and walks away.

Score: 4 – I don’t drink beer but I often enjoy the commercials. This one was well executed and original.

Commercial: Doritos
Aired: 3:35 PM
Guy is eating Doritos in the car and he spots a hot chick eating Doritos along the sidewalk. As he tries to show off that he’s eating Doritos too he runs into the car in front of him. As she goes to help him she trips along side the car.

Score: 2 – The concept has been done before and this didn’t really bring anything new to the table. Semi funny but not a great commercial overall.

Commercial: Blockbuster
Aired 3:36 PM
Summary: A Rabbit and a gerbil try to use a mouse (a live one) to rent a movie. One says to the other, are you sure this thing helps us get movies online.

Score: 5 – Being an Internet guy I thought this commercial was pretty clever overall. Good use of humor and originality

Commercial: Sierra Mist
Aired: 3:39 PM
Summary: A boss approaches an employee to let him know he has to let him go. The guy obviously has work issues.

Score: 3 – The humor in the commercial was OK. The originality was there but the commercial just didn’t connect with me.

Commercial: Salesgenie
Aired: 3:40 PM
Summary: Just another business commercial that could have run any other day.

Score: 0 – This commercial had zero appeal to me and did nothing to grab my interest in them or their product.

Commercial: Sierra Mist
Aired: 3:40 PM
Summary: Several guys stand around in a Karate class and talk about how to defend their Sierra Mist.

Score: 3 – Mildly interesting commercial. Humor was there but not laugh out loud funny.

Commercial: Toyota Tundra
Aired: 3:48 PM
Truck on test track races to get past gate as voice over talks about the engine. Once past gate it has to stop before plunging off a cliff, as the voice over talks about the brakes.

Score: 2 – Semi original, but putting the truck in such a manufactured (and unbelievable) situation just doesn’t do it for me.

Commercial: FedEx
Aired: 3:48 PM
Summary: Business people are welcomed to their new office on the moon. They go outside in their space suites for a moon walk when one wonders how they will get shipments to customers. Suddenly a fed ex spacecraft approaches. One guy pats the other guy on the back for a job well done, causing him to float up and away. He’s enjoying the “ride” until suddenly meteor rushes past right into and through the guy floating way.

Score: 5 – This reminds me of the prehistoric commercials FedEx ran last year. They used good concepts with excellent humor. This commercial is no different, one that made us pay attention and laugh out loud.

Commercial: Bud Lite
Aired: 3:49 PM
Summary: A fast talking auction guy marries to young people in typical auction speak. The bride and groom are perplexed. We then learn that the minister was paid by the best man in order to get the wedding over quickly so they could all get to the reception and, therefore, the bud lite.

Score 4: Original commercial and concept, good use of humor.

Commercial: Snickers
Aired: 3:55 PM
Summary: Two guys are working under the hood of a car. One opens a snickers and sticks in into his mouth. The other guy then grabs the other end of the snickers with his mouth in Lady and the Tramp style. As they both devour the snickers their lips touch. Both guys are disgusted that they might have kissed so one says that they need to “do something manly” to make up for it.

Score: 1 – No A for effort here. If snickers was trying to appeal to a gay audience I think they failed and if they were trying to appeal to straight males they failed as well. I was disgusted within the first few seconds, which the later humor could not undo.

Commercial: Schick Quatro
Aired: 3:56 PM
Summary: Two scientists stand in a gym and talk about how good the quarto is. A guy and a girl are on a treadmill side by side and when she sees his close shave she falls off.

Score: 0 – Old commercial and some pretty lame humor. Try again.

Commercial: Chevrolet
Aired: 3:58 PM
Summary: Chevy lovers sing as they care for and drive their Chevrolets. Includes famous singers, rappers and other celebrities.

Score: 2 – Interesting idea and decently executed. Somewhat of a “straight commercial and not really that outstanding for a superbowl commercial.

Commercial: Bud Lite
Aired: 3:59 PM
Summary: In an English as a second language class for adults, the teacher is teaching the students how to ask for a Bud Lite in different cities. Each city has a unique way to ask. Then they are taught that when someone asks you for a bud light you say “no speak English”.

Score: 5 – Funny and original all the way around. The different ways to ask for a Bud Lite in each culture was well executed and the kicker at the end was laugh out loud stuff.

Commercial: Go Daddy
Aired: 4:15 PM
An executive walks down an office hallway talking to the camera about how good Go Daddy is. He then enters a room labeled “Marketing” where everyone inside is partying. He closes the door and says “everybody wants to work in Marketing.”

Score: 1 – I didn’t get it. But then I don’t know if I ever got the point of Go Daddy commercials.

Commercial: Coke
Aired: 4:16 PM
Summary: A computer animated commercial meant to look like a Grand Theft Auto video game. A guy races down street, goes into store and gets a Coke. Then instead of going out and carjacking someone he puts a coke in his hand. He then goes on helping other people as he walks down the street. We are introduced to the tag line “The Coke side of life.” (At least I had never heard it before.)

Score: 4 – Not a fan of Grand Theft Auto, but I liked the way the commercial took the opposite approach, helping instead of hurting. Clever and well done, but a bit cheesy at the end.

Commercial: Budweiser
Aired: 4:23 PM
A dog is walking around the city streets. He’s chased off by other dogs and then later spots another dog he seems to want to meet. Suddenly he’s splashed by an oncoming car driving through a puddle. Then the dog is in a parade with the other dog.

Score: 0 – I just didn’t get the commercial at all. Just plain bad.

Commercial: Garmin
Aired: 4:24: PM
Summary: A guy is in his car pulled to the side of the road fighting with an old-school road map. Suddenly the map turns into a giant map monster bent on destruction. Another guy grabs a device (presumably a Garmin) and turns into a superhero that fights and destroys the map monster.

Score: 1 – apparently Garmin is an in-car satellite map and directions device. The commercial was cheesy and poorly executed in a way that I just wasn’t clear as to what Garmin is. They could have done a lot better of selling their device and why they are better than Onstar or any other similar devices.

Commercial: CareerBuilder.com
Aired: 4:28 PM
Summary: Business people are at a training seminar in the jungle when they are suddenly attacked. They all pick up and run and then run off a cliff.

Score: 3 – There was some definite cleverness here (I liked the water bottles swinging on vines) but ultimately failed to deliver its point at the end.

Commercial: Doritos
Aired: 4:28 PM
Summary: A guy is in the checkout line of a pretty dour checkout woman. She sees his Doritos and perks up, going through different personality types based on the flavor of Dorito that she rings up.

Score: 2 – Commercial was just OK with a pretty lame payoff. Highlighted the different Dorito flavors but not exceptionally funny or clever in any way.

Commercial: Chevy HHR
Aired: 4:29 PM
Summary: Two Women stop at an intersection in a nice looking car when suddenly all the guys around take their shirts off and start dancing and washing the vehicle. The tag line here is guys can’t keep their hands off.

Score: 3 – Original but just kind of silly. The guys were not particularly handsome so it wasn’t a “hot body” type of commercial. That might have helped.

Commercial: Bud
Aired: 4:35 PM
Summary: One guy brings beers to his boys at a pool hall. He goes for the bump when one of the others tell him that the bump is out. He asks what’s in and gets a full on slap. So the three guys all slap each other across the face. The commercial then goes through situations where men are giving the slap instead of the bump. Commercial ends with an executive congratulating a junior employee who then proceeds to slap him.

Score: 4 – I would have given this a three but my nine year old was busting his gut. He’s not their target audience (yet!) but he appreciated the humor.

Commercial: American Heart Association
Aired: 4:36 PM
Summary: Guy in a heart costume is walking down the street minding his own business when high blood pressure, diabetes, overweight and high cholesterol mug him and throw him in the back of a van. They take him to a back alley and beat him up. The commercial highlights beatyourrisk.com.

Score: 4 – For a heart commercial they had a great use of humor and visual elements to get their point across. A bit cheesy but the commercial was effective. Much better than you would expect for this type of commercial.

Commercial: Chevrolet
Aired: 4:38 PM
Summary: Chevy factory with a line of machines putting together cars. One machine drops a screw which causes the line to be shut down. The erring machine is let go from his job. He roams the streets and takes odd jobs and keeps losing them because he’s obsessed with the Chevy cars that drive by. Finally he’s so depressed he jumps off a bridge which suddenly causes him to wake up. We are then fed the line “obsessed with quality.”

Score: 4 – Kind of silly premise but seeing the robot in odd jobs was pretty funny (holding new home signs, speaker in a fast food drive, etc.) The jumping off the bridge part was a bit much.

Commercial: Coke
Aired: 4:39 PM
Summary: Coke celebrates black history month. The commercial goes through different shaped coke bottles corresponding with notable events in Black history.

Score: 5 – A very classy commercial. Seeing the different bottles of coke was a nice aside to notable events by African Americans. Well done and in good taste.

Commercial: Sprint
Aired: 4:46 PM
Summary: A sad business person is noted as having CD (connectile dysfunction) because he cannot connect to the Internet outside of the office. He then sees other happy business people who can and is given a sprint card to make his Internet connection.

Score 3 – The commercial gets its point across but comes across as a bit of a downer overall. I think it could have been much better executed.

Commercial: Lays
Aired: 4:52 PM
People in various settings are seen watching the Superbowl, enjoying quality time with their friends and family. Simple message “enjoy the game” from the Lays family of chips.

Score: 5 – Another classy commercial with a positive, but non-preachy, message.

Commercial: Coke
Aired: 4:54 PM
An old guy in what appears to be a retirement home is given a Coke. He says he’s never had one before! After he takes a sip he wonders what else he’s never done. He goes on a spurge of doing things he’s never done before; Calls an old love and tells her he’s always loved her, does a high-dive, gets a tat and runs with bulls. Back at the retirement home a nurse goes and looks for him but his spot is gone. Flash to him in a speeder bike.

Score: 4 – While unbelievable that someone that age has never had a coke before, the commercial uses humor to make the point of doing things that you’ve never done before and simply enjoying life with a coke. Good use of creativity and humor.

Best commercial of the first half: Fed Ex

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Tags: Business Principles, Marketing, Marketing Methods & Providers
Posted in Business Principles, Marketing