Marketing Mavericks Score a Touchdown: How Super Bowl Advertising Turned Squarespace into a Success
This compelling Mavericks showcase centers on the story of Squarespace, a website building and hosting company. Over the last decade, Squarespace has strategically and repeatedly leveraged high-reach, high-exposure TV commercials during the Super Bowl to widen brand awareness, stimulate demand, and inspire growth.
Squarespace's Super Bowl journey began in 2014, marking the company's first foray into that high-profile annual event. In each of the years since, Squarespace has progressively enhanced its daring approach, using audacious concepts and big-name celebrities, culminating in its 2024 presence in the Super Bowl – the 10th time the brand has run in this event. The latest Super Bowl spot will be directed by Martin Scorsese, who has been nominated for an Oscar ten times. This marks Scorsese's directorial debut in the realm of Super Bowl commercials. Squarespace recently released a preview of the 30-second commercial along with a 90-second extended version. Squarespace also produced a teaser featuring Scorsese himself as well as his daughter, Francesca.
In this spotlight, we will transport you back to the genesis of Squarespace’s journey with the Super Bowl, revealing the pivotal moments that propelled the brand into uncharted territories, where only a select few performance marketers have dared to venture.
In 2007, Squarespace's annual revenue was $1 million. By 2015 the company had achieved $100 million in revenue. In 2017, the company was valued at $1.7 billion and in 2021 when the company went public, its valuation at its Initial Public Offering was $6.8 billion.
Squarespace has been skilled at using performance media to boost brand awareness and attract new users. But it was not until 2014 that Squarespace took a bold new step, diving into uncharted waters by airing its first Super Bowl commercial.
The big game was Super Bowl XLVIII, featuring a matchup between the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos, led by veteran quarterback Peyton Manning. The halftime show featured performances by Bruno Mars and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, drawing over 100 million viewers.
The first time Squarespace appeared on the Super Bowl, its ad expenditure was more than 10% of the company’s revenue. The company partnered with Quigley-Simpson, an independent, performance-based advertising agency specializing in brand response. Quigley-Simpson negotiated and maximized the value of Squarespace’s advertising inventory in and around the Super Bowl as well as in other sports programming on the Fox Network which carried the big game that year.
Squarespace's inaugural Super Bowl venture proved to be a resounding success, prompting the company to not only deem a future Super Bowl investment essential, but also to begin adopting a progressively bolder approach each subsequent year. In 2015, NBC carried the Super Bowl and Squarespace's results continued to be successful, using the same media buying approach as the year before. This included enlisting high-profile talent and crafting integrated, elaborate storylines with the potential to resonate well beyond the event itself.
A Look Back at the Milestones and Previous Super Bowl Appearances
2014
Squarespace estimated annual revenue - ~$100M
In 2014, Squarespace introduced a 30-second advertisement named "A Better Web Awaits." This commercial unfolds in an alternate reality, vividly embodying both the positive and negative aspects that people associate with the Internet. The protagonist of the story encounters a diverse array of characters, each representing various Internet archetypes and memes familiar to viewers. The purpose of the ad is to illustrate Squarespace's stance against certain aspects of the web while emphasizing the company's commitment to fostering a superior web experience.
2015
Squarespace estimated annual revenue - ~$200M
In 2015, Squarespace enlisted actor Jeff Bridges for a commercial part of Squarespace's "Build It Beautiful" campaign. Jeff Bridges appeared in a dreamlike sequence where he sat in a recording studio and used Squarespace to create a website for his sleeping tapes. The TV spot effectively conveyed the message that Squarespace could help users build visually appealing and functional websites for a variety of purposes.
Squarespace's inaugural appearances in the Super Bowl had a remarkable impact, fostering heightened awareness and setting new records for website visits immediately after the commercials aired.
This bold foray into a realm where only a handful of performance brands venture, established a trajectory that empowered Squarespace to take even bolder strides in the years that followed.
2016
Squarespace estimated annual revenue - ~$250M
In 2016, Squarespace released a commercial titled "Real Talk with Key and Peele." The commercial featured comedians Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele in a humorous sketch that portrayed the absurdity of traditional sports commentary. In the spot, the comedians provided commentary on a fictional sport called "Flopping," highlighting the comedic aspects of over-the-top reactions in sports. The ad effectively conveyed Squarespace's message about standing out and being different in the online world.
2017
Squarespace estimated annual revenue - ~$300M
Squarespace’s 2017 Super Bowl spot featured actor John Malkovich and was titled "Calling JohnMalkovich.com." In the commercial, Malkovich discovers that someone has bought the domain name johnmalkovich.com on Squarespace, leading to a humorous and surreal interaction. Many viewers and critics praised the creative and unique concept, as well as Malkovich's performance. The commercial went on to win an Emmy Award for Outstanding Commercial. The commercial effectively showcased Squarespace's ability to help individuals create and manage their websites.
2018
Squarespace estimated annual revenue - ~$390M
In 2018, Squarespace returned to the Super Bowl with a commercial titled "Make It Happen”, featuring actor Keanu Reeves. The ad showcased Keanu Reeves riding a motorcycle through different scenes, emphasizing the idea of making your dreams a reality and using Squarespace to create a website for your business or personal project. The reception to Squarespace's 2018 ad was mixed, although overall, it generated discussions about the use of celebrities and storytelling in Super Bowl commercials.
2020
Squarespace estimated annual revenue - ~$620M
Squarespace took a break from the Super Bowl in 2019 but returned in 2020 with a commercial that featured actress Winona Ryder and was titled "Winona in Winona." The ad showcased Winona Ryder creating a website for her hometown of Winona, Minnesota. It highlighted Squarespace as a tool for small businesses and local initiatives. Viewers appreciated the nostalgic and heartwarming approach of featuring Winona Ryder and her connection to the small town of her birth.
2021
Squarespace estimated annual revenue - ~$784M
Listed on the NYSE This Year
In 2021, Squarespace tapped singer-songwriter and CEO Dolly Parton for Super Bowl LV to rework her country classic for the modern day. The commercial begins in a mundane setting of an office space where employees struggle to get through the workday, but when the clock strikes 5, these everyday employees transform into passionate entrepreneurs, with Squarespace enabling them to take on the world. Dolly Parton’s classic song, 9-5 is reworked as “5 to 9”, to celebrate the entrepreneurial spirit. A call to action at the end of the spot encourages viewers to visit Squarespace.com to listen to the entire reworked song.
2022
Squarespace estimated annual revenue - ~$867M
During Super Bowl LVI, actress Zendaya played the role of Sally, an entrepreneur selling “seashells by the seashore”. After failing to acquire customers, Sally uses Squarespace to create an online store, which turns the business into a huge success as Sally diversifies and expands her seashell business. The commercial is narrated by Andre 3000 and retains hints of the tongue-twisting storyline from the original nursery rhyme.
2023
Squarespace estimated annual revenue - ~$1B
In Super Bowl LVII, Squarespace adopted a darker comedic approach in its commercial, titled "The Singularity," showcasing the talent of actor Adam Driver. The ad opens with the enigmatic idea that Squarespace is a website that creates other websites. Adam Driver contemplates this curious notion in isolation within a desert landscape, where his presence begins to multiply. As his duplicates increase, reality warps around him, leading to a singularity event. This innovative concept seamlessly extended to a dedicated landing page, urging users to explore a limited-edition singularity template or to "build a website with Adam Driver.“, which featured an interactive website-building program centered around the concept of the TV commercial.
With a market capitalization of approximately $4.5 billion as of January 2024, Squarespace has firmly established itself as a bona fide Software as a Service (SaaS) entity. Of course, several factors beyond its notable appearances in the Super Bowl have contributed to Squarespace’s success.
But it is primarily the unwavering, bold attitude and taking on challenges like advertising on the Super Bowl, combined with the courage to follow through with its marketing efforts that have contributed to Squarespace's remarkable growth. It is a reminder that thinking outside the box often means taking calculated risks. It is not by being reckless but by being strategic based on marketplace insights that propel marketers to new heights.
For brands, it is crucial to envision the growth they want and then take outsize steps to achieve it. In today's marketing landscape, focusing on short-term goals, marketers sometimes overlook the enduring impact of insight-based brand building with performance as a key underlying variable — and that can create new industry leaders.
As we tune in to Super Bowl LVIII on February 11, 2024, to witness Squarespace's 10th appearance with a commercial directed by Martin Scorsese, we will do so with a new sense of appreciation for the brave choices that the company has made. It prompts us to think: What if Squarespace hadn't made its first step to appear in the Super Bowl in 2014, working with an independent, performance-based media agency?
Which new brands, taking their first bold steps on the big game in 2024 will emerge as market leaders and be successful businesses a decade from now?
The Super Bowl, beyond its spectacle, is a stage for audacity and potential industry game-changers. Remember, the Super Bowl is where Apple launched the Macintosh in 1984 – exactly forty years ago. And that's a whole other remarkable case study.
© 2024 The Continuum
About The Continuum’s New Mavericks Series
As a thought leadership platform dedicated to supporting Brand and Demand marketing in today’s dynamic marketplace, this Continuum case study launches our new series “Marketing Mavericks” which will spotlight brands demonstrating the bold thinking needed to cut through the noise and clutter of today’s marketing landscape.
February 1, 2024
