Committing ad dollars or defining ad concepts for Super Bowl LV "wasn’t top of mind for marketers" for much of '20, but that "changed in September ... as advertisers began to reexamine their plans in the fall," according to Kristina Monllos of DIGIDAY. Plans for major advertisers were "put on the back burner earlier this year," when "retooling ad budgets and managing cash flow to deal with fall out from the coronavirus crisis became the top priority." But by October, Super Bowl shoots "got underway." The "biggest change for Super Bowl advertisers has been figuring out the logistics of doing the commercial shoot." While shoots have "become more stressful overall for production companies and agencies," a Super Bowl campaign is "even more difficult." Super Bowl ads are "generally glitzier," requiring "more shots, locations and actors which means figuring out more locations where coronavirus restrictions will allow what a production needs as well as managing travel." One PR professional who works with regular Super Bowl advertisers said a "lot of agencies have developed Covid-safe ways of filming." Monllos notes aside from logistics, marketers and agency execs will have a "harder time predicting what Super Bowl viewers’ moods will be." As such, marketers are "paying more attention than years prior to what customers are saying" and using that to "inform whether they go for a humorous spot or a more empathic one that addresses the big issues of the past year" (DIGIDAY.com, 12/8).
