It was without a doubt, a game to remember. Tom Brady and the Patriots had a comeback to beat all comebacks. With an overtime win, the New England Patriots provided a night of genuine entertainment for the total 111.3 million viewers who watched the 2017 Super Bowl, according to CNN. As exciting as the game was, this year's Super Bowl was also record breaking in the shift of advertising and marketing strategies. The commercials are almost as exciting as the actual game and at $5 million for a 30 second air-time spot, companies are creating cutting edge, buzz worthy commercials.
This year was very unlike others in that several companies and brands disregarded their product features and chose to promote their values and stances on the current political climate. With over 111 million views, companies had the largest viewership to promote and sell their products, however, chose to take a firm stance on several issues and topics sensitive to many Americans.
Coca-Cola made headlines with it's message of equality and acceptance. In a touching tribute to Americans of all nationalities, their rendition of "America the Beautiful" sang in several languages promoted their simple message: Together is Beautiful.
In a similar fashion, Airbnb's 30 second ad buy also promoted a message of unity and acceptance. Showing the faces of many different Americans of different nationalities, orientations, and religions, Airbnb took a strong stance, firmly stating their commitment to acceptance of everyone with the hashtag #weaccept.
There were several other companies like 84 Lumber, Budweiser, and Audi who took firm stances as well, instead of using their air-time to promote their products and generate sales, they chose to promote their image and perception which is equally as important. In this new marketing era, companies can no longer stay neutral on a topic even though the population is roughly split 50/50 on most political issues; the consumer public demands 100% transparency from companies.
Just as most things now a days, the Super Bowl was not immune to the political issues facing the nation today. Many viewers were upset by the invasion of political ads into this major sporting event, but with these issues now affecting more Americans than ever, politics touches almost all national conversations. Unlike years past when the top Super Bowl commercials were the funniest or most dramatic, we are entering a new era where branding and image are what influences the consumer publics.
