Adverts shown during the Super Bowl are arguably one of the highlights for watching the popular American sport. Companies can be willing to spend huge sums of money to obtain a slot in the commercial breaks to reach billions of people in America and worldwide.
Unlike standard television advertising, companies spend more time working to engage the viewer by creating a story line that captures imaginations and creates positive brand association. Some even make sure the story carries on from the year before or target the viewer in a personal way.
Arguably one of the most popular adverts from the Super Bowl this year came from Budweiser. Crowned the best advert in 2013 also, Budweiser continued the story which captured the imaginations of the crowd. In 2013 Budweiser’s advert featured the popular Clydesdale Horses that have been used by the brand since 1933. Budweiser has been creating adverts for the Super Bowl commercials since 1986 and for us their 2014 advert has been the best yet, featuring not only the regular Clydesdale Horse but also adorable puppies! The advert shows the special friendship between a puppy and the Clydesdales that encourages the use of the Twitter hashtag ‘#BestBuds’.
Budweiser has not only shown the special relationship between the animals in this advert but has emphasised the brand loyalty they have built with the Super Bowl and its watchers. After a glance on Twitter of the promoted hashtag, results are full of Tweeters sharing pictures of their pets, screenshots of the advert and the general consensus that the advert is one of the best shown this year – backed up by over 46 million views on YouTube!
For us, Budweiser’s Super Bowl adverts provide the same level of excitement as it does waiting for Coca-Cola’s Christmas ‘Holidays are coming’ features and we look forward to seeing how the relationship grows next year!