Brand And Demand 3.0: Creatives Weigh In on Advertising’s Biggest Night
Welcome to Brand and Demand 3.0, a new Continuum series where we ask industry leaders to share their thoughts on cultural moments, events, trends, and ideas that matter for brands and marketers. As always, we aim to connect the dots between top-of-funnel brand awareness and day-to-day performance marketing.
We kick off this series (pun intended!) with the Super Bowl – undeniably advertising’s biggest night. With an average cost of 7 million dollars per spot and an audience of over 100 million, all eyes are on the ads, and both brands and agencies know what’s at stake.
This year’s spots featured a lot of familiar faces— Jennifer Aniston didn’t recognize David Schwimmer; Lionel Messi kicked off to Jason Sudeikis while David Beckham admitted he didn’t know what sport was being played; Matt Damon reluctantly rapped with Ben Affleck while Tom Brady looked on; and everyone imitated Christopher Walken.
Days before the Chiefs won in overtime, many spots had already been released on social media, and discussions ignited on what worked, what fell flat, and why. We asked some of the industry’s top creative minds to weigh in on their favorite spot of the night and why. Not surprisingly, many of them chose the same ones. Michael Cera’s play on his own name for skincare brand CeraVe was a clear favorite. Spots from Dunkin, Reeses, and Doordash also made many people’s lists. Here’s what they had to say:
Chris Breen
Chief Creative Officer/Partner
Chemistry
Reese’s, Yes. In what was a relatively ho-hum Super Bowl from advertisers, two things were very apparent to me. One, the actor’s strike is over, and it showed by the oversaturation of celebrity cameos. Two, most spots tried way too hard, and that was evident in what should have been 60-second edits being crammed into 30 spots. That’s why I’m picking Reese’s “Yes” as my favorite spot from the big game. The humor was spot-on and irreverent, and the strategy was simple and unignorable while also allowing viewers a little room to breathe in the edit so they could appreciate the absurdity of the premise of the spot. Hats off to Erich and Kallman on delivering a great spot in a sea of sameness. It reminded me a bit of the famous Betty White Snickers spot from yesteryear. Simple. Dumb. Fun. Yum.
Robin Fitzgerald
Chief Creative Officer
BBDO Atlanta
While Doordash’s hyphenated spot was not my favorite of the night, I’m borrowing their executional device to share my “one” ultimate tippy–top pick: CeraVe – oh, how I soaked up your weird and impeccable wordplay – breaking Verizon’s internet could only be Queen Bey – State Farm, no it’s not a toomah, it’s a soopah ridiculous idea – M&Ms – sigh – you did it again – Yasssssss, Reese’s – let’s pull this whole thing together with some Hellman’s Mayo – right meow.
Jason Harris
Cofounder/CEO
Mekanism
My favorite spot was Disney+. I always like simple and clear. I thought many ads this year tried too hard and were hard to follow. Many brands threw in the Kitchen Sink. Disney kept it simple. Famous lines from their famous properties: “When you wish upon a star,” “to infinity and beyond,” “the force is with you,” “Why did it have to be snakes?” and “ready for it,” which teases Tay Tay’s Eras Tour film coming to Disney. It stood out in a soupy mess of Super Bowl ads.
Katy Hornaday
Chief Creative Officer
Barkley
Like everyone, I thought the Dunkings were great, the DoorDash spot was genius, and the Verizon spot was flawless. But I imagine others will cover those in full. So, I'll give a nod to the spot that felt just so effortlessly right to me: Mountain Dew Blast by GS&P. From the first line to the end, it leveraged Aubrey Plaza's persona so well. Sometimes, the celebrity cameos in Super Bowl spots can get a bit taxing, and it feels like it could have been anyone the casting agency had on a fire sale that day, but this spot felt built for Aubrey and delivered on making the product name unforgettable. It didn't make you think too hard, and it still makes me smile when I think about it a day later.
Will McGinness
Chief Creative Officer/Partner
Venables Bell + Partners
The standout Super Bowl campaign for me this year was Michael CeraVe. Leveraging quirky internet conspiracy theories, Loreal crafted a hilarious campaign suggesting that Michael Cera is the mastermind behind CeraVe moisturizing cream. Generating buzz on social media prior to the game proved effective, as it didn't just tease the audience but actively contributed to developing the concept. While numerous celebrities grace Super Bowl ads annually, this one stood out as flawlessly executed from beginning to end.
Sariah Dorbin
Executive Creative Director
Quigley-Simpson
I have never been able to name my favorite anything—novel, film, food—there is too much greatness in the world. So please don’t make me choose my favorite Super Bowl spot! Would you settle for three? They’re numbered, but only because we live in the physical plane, and therefore, one thing must follow another—but truly, I love them all equally
My main beef with most celeb-based Super Bowl spots (aside from bloated storylines) is the tenuous connection between personalities and brands that makes A-listers come off like total randos. But for CeraVe, only Michael Cera would do. It just hits right. The spot is fun, but what nailed it for me is the wrap line. I love thinking about the team seeing “developed with dermatologists” listed as mandatory in the brief and finding a way to get there that not only made sense but made the spot: “DEVELOPED WITH DERMATOLOGISTS. NOT MICHAEL CERA.” Chef’s kiss.
2. Dunkin’ Donuts. “The DunKings”
Another great fit, starting with a legit connection between Ben Affleck and what we in my family call The Dunk. We’ve all seen the paparazzi shots and know those 32 oz. iced coffees are Ben’s true love—even J.Lo can’t come between them. And you’ve gotta love a spot that opens with a callback to another one we saw a year ago. But mainly what I love is that this is the most fun I’ve seen Ben Affleck have, like, ever. It was definitely one of his finest performances and the most fun 30 seconds of the whole Sunday spectacular. I need that tracksuit. Matt Damon was perfect. Not sure we needed Tom Brady, but I guess he was…available.
This is a beautiful blend of action movies and tearjerkers, taking us inside one boy’s dream made real not just through the magic of Hollywood but through the NFL’s mission to bring possibility and opportunity to the far corners of the world. What begins as a standard—if very well made—spot using star athletes is made profoundly moving when the action is revealed to be the embodiment of the boy’s fantasy life rather than just a ginormous production budget. I know the NFL has needed a bit of a PR shine of late, but I also know the NFL is going to make a bunch of little boy’s dreams come true, and I am here for it.
February 14, 2024
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