The Superheroes of the Super Bowl- The Big Brands that took on Purpose

Franses team blog of the week.

Sport has often been heralded as apolitical; a chance for people and communities to come together. And while it’s true that sport binds more than it isolates, 2019 has been a year marked divisive politics; with Brexit, Trump’s wall, a hostless Oscars and the wave of #MeToo continuing to roll. 

Nike’s Colin Kapernick ad certainly shook things up in terms of the relationship between advertising, sport and politics. Considering this and the contemporary political climate in America, there was much speculation that the 2019 Super Bowl class of advertisements would be different. 

The ads were undoubtedly the biggest and most expensive to date despite the lowest viewership in 10 years; a 30-second during the Super Bowl would set brands back a cool $5.25 million USD. 

So it was extraordinarily telling then, that most of the big brands like Coca Cola, Toyota, Hulu, Bumble and Microsoft, decided to use their time to take stances on issues they are passionate about, or that are aligned with their brand ‘values’ or ‘purpose’. 

Brands have finally gotten the message; they will do well by doing good. Indeed, in the US, 77% of adults say they feel stronger emotional connections with companies that are driven by purpose, and 79% are more loyal to such brands. 

One of the biggest winners in terms of brand ‘purpose’ was Budweiser. The ad featured a Dalmatian being pulled by the company's famous Clydesdale horses through a wheat field of wind turbines to the sound of Bob Dylan's famous social activism song "Blowin' in the Wind." A voiceover declares that the beer is "now brewed with wind power," "for a better tomorrow”. The short clip reflected Budweiser’s intimate understanding of the social climate in America; speaking to a divided nation, it united both traditional and progressive values. 

Similarly, Coca Cola’s ad “a coke is just a coke”, showed all sorts and types of people enjoying the beverage, and proclaimed that "different is beautiful and together is beautiful, too”. Their message could not have been more on cultural cue. 

Hulu, displaying how truly in touch with social media trends and users it is, paid the creators of the World Record Egg for a 30 second advertisement. The talking egg, that dethroned Kylie Jenner with the most-liked post on instagram (52 M likes), was created by 3 British ad executives who were curious to see if the egg could become a social media star. The Instagram ‘world_record_egg’, teased a big reveal that would follow the Super Bowl, debuting exclusively on Hulu. At 8pm, the egg literally cracked open, seemingly due to the stress of being Instagram-famous — and then directed users to talkingegg.info, a site with links to mental-health orgs around the world. 

Bumble also hit the mark with their ad featuring Serena Williams, who told the audience to “make the first move in work, in love, in life and don't wait to be given power." A year on from #MeToo, and during a year where record amounts of women have been elected to congress in America and where women have become more assertive in general, the ad was powerful and rang true. So did Toyota's ad for its Rav4 Hybrid featuring the inspirational Toni Harris; the first woman who received a college scholarship to play on a mens football team. She proves that like the car, perceptions are meant to be shattered and changed, as she leaves assumptions about her abilities in the dust.

The most touching for many however, with a phenomenal 23M views on Youtube, was Microsoft's ad for its Xbox Adaptive Controller, which is used to play video games. By featuring disabled children and showing that they are nevertheless able to succeed, they sent an important message about the power and necessity of inclusion. The ad proclaims, "When everybody plays, we all win.”

It is an interesting moment; with many unsure if the momentum galvanised by #MeToo and Trump’s election in America would slowly decelerate. While many brands missed the opportunity to connect with how Americans are feeling- the ones likely to stay with you after the game and that received most media attention, were those that spoke to the ideas and values beyond beer and potato chips.

If this year’s Super Bowl was any indication, brand purpose at the Super Bowl is just getting started. So, here’s hoping that 2020 will bring even more allusions to and messages about issues like climate change, empowerment, diversity and human connection- helping to build movements that scale business growth and impact. 

Bumble's Ad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQcXpoWIwxo

Microsoft's Ad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YISTzpLXCY

Coca Cola's ad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Hcrz4Jq9WE

Budweiser's Ad https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/3/18209844/game-of-thrones-ad-bud-light-dragon-mountain-super-bowl-2019

Toyota's Ad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-LRLub6m5A

World Record Egg Instagram https://www.instagram.com/world_record_egg/?hl=en