Hollywood Studios Prepare To Advertise Upcoming Movies During Super Bowl
Disney "will advertise" two films during Sunday's Super Bowl LI broadcast, "possibly the next installments of 'Guardians Of The Galaxy' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean,'" according to sources cited by Lieberman & Busch of DEADLINE.com. Fox is "expected to advertise the psychological thriller 'A Cure For Wellness' and possibly one other film -- either 'Logan' starring Hugh Jackman as Wolverine or the next 'Alien.'" Paramount "will advertise" with "Baywatch" and "Transformers: The Last Knight" being possible subjects. Universal also has "committed to at least one spot during the game, with Sony in the pre-game show." Warner Bros. is "not in -- but its promotional partners might be" (DEADLINE.com, 1/27).
PREGAME PREP: USA TODAY's Nathan Bomey reports Ford will air a 90-second commercial "immediately before kickoff." This is the "first Super Bowl ad" since '14 for Ford. The automaker will "pair it with stories about its ride-sharing, bike-sharing and autonomous vehicle efforts at FordGoFurther.com." The ad features a "string of humorous footage of people getting stuck in life circumstances" (USA TODAY, 1/30). AD AGE's Michael Martinez noted the spot is "expected to air between the coin toss and opening kickoff." The commercial pod has "become increasingly valued by marketers in recent years in particular." Ford "hasn't run an in-game spot after the kickoff since 'Easy Being Green,' a second-quarter ad" in '06 (ADAGE.com, 1/28).
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? T-Mobile CEO John Legere tweeted on Friday that the carrier would "return for its fourth consecutive big game spot." AD AGE's Jeanine Poggi noted a company spokesperson "declined to provide details on how many spots it will air or to describe the execution" (ADAGE.com, 1/27). ADWEEK's Katie Richards noted there is "no word on when the ad will run or how long it will be just yet." Publicis, Seattle, will "work on the creative" (ADWEEK.com, 1/27). In K.C., Mark Davis noted Sprint will be running an ad as well after CEO Marcelo Claure "posted a teaser about the advertisement on Twitter." The tweet "offered little information about the commercial other than to say it would be 'a real cliffhanger'" (K.C. STAR, 1/28).
UP, UP & AWAY: In N.Y., Sapna Maheshwari notes the average cost of a 30-second ad for the Super Bowl "crept up" to $5M this year. Marketing agency UEG President of Global Integrated Communications Mary Scott said that brands, "eager to get their money's worth, may spend anywhere" from 25% of that cost to the same amount on "marketing tied to the ads themselves." The willingness of companies to "pay record prices for Super Bowl ads while simultaneously spending more to promote them shows how coveted consumer attention has become in the age of smartphones and social media." As recently as '11, it was "relatively novel for companies like Volkswagen to share teasers and full versions of their ads before the Super Bowl." Now, the main question for companies "seems to be how early to start." The hope is that "articles about the ads will drive a flurry of 'earned media.'" Often, companies will "supplement that with 'paid media,' like promotions on YouTube or Twitter, search keywords or display ads" (N.Y. TIMES, 1/30).
