With viewership of Super Bowl XXXII projected at 140
million, the advertising community "is anticipating the big
game perhaps as much as" the Broncos and Packers, according
to Eleftheria Phillips of ADWEEK. The game "has become a
media event like no other. It represents not only the time
of year when football fanatics and the sports-challenged can
commingle in relative peace, but when the advertising
industry, with an estimated 58 spots broadcast during the
game, can revel in its own glory" (ADWEEK, 1/19). George
Rosenbaum, CEO of IL-based firm Leo J. Shapiro & Assoc:
"There's no other way on TV or any other medium in which you
can reach a bigger audience. In one day you can make a
giant imprint on the nation" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 1/21).
WHAT'S NEW? AD AGE's Judann Pollack reports that
packaged foods will "take a bigger bite of the ad time this
year" (AD AGE, 1/19 issue). In N.Y., Pat Winters Lauro
wrote that the "big trend" this year is "a recognition that
many women" watch the Super Bowl, as "traditionally 'female'
advertisers [such] as Hormel chili, Tabasco sauce and Heinz
ketchup" have bought time (DAILY NEWS, 1/18). Nokia becomes
the first wireless marketer to advertise on Super Sunday
(BRANDWEEK, 1/19). Reggie Jackson, Mickey Mantle and Babe
Ruth will appear in the form of clay animation for Pepsi's
Lipton Brisk. Yankees Owner George Steinbrenner's voice and
made-from-clay image also yells, "Your fired" in the spot
(DAILY NEWS, 1/19). USA TODAY's Dottie Enrico writes "One
of 1998's biggest surprises could come from an unexpected
advertiser: FedEx. Industry insiders say the shipping giant
and its agency BBDO New York have cooked up an imaginative
way to show why customers should only use FedEx" (USA TODAY,
1/19). On MSNBC's "The Big Show," Enrico added, "Every year
I think people want to see what Pepsi Cola is going to do.
... I've previewed most of the ads, and ... I've got to say
that Pepsi's got a very interesting round this year" (MSNBC,
1/20). In DC, Eric Fisher wrote that few companies "were
willing to go out on a limb" this year, as many ads "will
rely on tried-and-true pop culture icons" such as Elvis, the
Rolling Stones and Jerry Seinfeld (WASHINGTON TIMES, 1/21).
In Houston, Greg Hassell reported that the "high price" of
$1.3M per 30-second spot "is driving some heavy-hitters out
of this year's game." Among them is McDonald's, which has
been "among the biggest game-time advertisers in years
past." McDonald's execs said that "cost definitely is a
factor in their decision" not to advertise this year. The
ad roster "has a distinctly high-tech ring to it," and
Hassell wrote that the year's "most innovative ad" is from
Intel, whose interactive ad allows fans to select the end of
the spot via the Internet (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 1/21).
CAN THEY DO THAT? Nike will have one 60-second spot
during the game's second quarter. It features athletes such
as Michael Johnson, Suzy Hamilton, Scottie Pippen, David
Robinson, Terrell Davis, Ronaldo, Lisa Leslie and Gabrielle
Reese -- all in the nude (Nike). NBC execs "requested minor
modifications in the commercial, involving shading," and
Nike made them. The ad is for Nike athletic apparel, and is
"an attempt to dramatize" how it "is designed like an added
layer of skin that can help people compete more effectively
in a range of sports" (Skip Wollenberg, AP, 1/17).
NOT ALL MAKE THE CUT: NBC "rejected a low-key" ad for
CA-based Vivus Inc., a male impotence treatment, during the
Super Bowl "because it was not 'suitable'" for the network,
according to Kenneth Howe of the S.F. CHRONICLE. NBC Sports
VP/Information Ed Markey: "The standards people look at
every commercial that comes in and determine whether it is
suitable for a particular time period and show." Bob
Hoffman, President of S.F.-based agency Hoffman/Lewis, which
created the spot: "NBC's rationale was that the ad was
inappropriate for daytime viewing. But just look at the
talk shows and soap operas they air" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 1/21).
