SuperBowl LX saw the Seattle Seahawks defeat the New England Patriots. But, for those of us working in marketing, the real competition unfolded in the adbreaks.
There was an undeniable battle amongst the brands to entertain at all costs. Advertisers sought to go big, but go safe this year. Similar to past years, it seemed that brands were seeking to create cognitive relief for viewers, using key hooks like celebrities, silly stories, loved music and nostalgic references.
But does all of the fun and scale of Super Bowl mean that the true campaign objectives get missed? Are brands making ads that drive brand impact, or are they just pretty fluff? And is that fluff enough?
We’ve now conducted our 12th add+impact® Super Bowl effectiveness study to assess not just which ads got attention, but which delivered impact.
What are we seeing from our add+impact® study
To understand effectiveness we assess the ads across two critical dimensions:
Ad Attention – Did the ad capture andsustain viewer focus in a cluttered environment?
Brand Bonding – Did it build brand feelings, perceptions, and consideration to strengthen long-term equity?
The key insight:
Attention is the entry ticket. Brand Bonding is the return on investment.
While many ads performed strongly on attention and entertainment, fewer brands successfully translated that attention into durable brand impact.
Oakley Meta – Athletic Intelligence Is Here was one of the most effective ads of Super Bowl LX particularly amongst the 18-34s.
Performance highlights:
- Attention: 6.5 (well above benchmark)
- Strong Bonding (7.3)
The ad cleverly combined high energy and adventure with a strong product story the innovation through a human lens. Unlike some AI-led executions, Oakley Meta didn’t let the tech overshadow the brand. The product was the hero, and the benefit was clear.
Lay’s Last Harvest was another highly effective ad with:
- Exceptional Bonding 8.0
- Highly likeable 8.7 (well above benchmark)
The emotional story about the farmer's last harvest was simply told and well tied to the agricultural heritage of the potatoes. Despite the absence of celebrities in this ad, the real looking casting was the most appealing of all the ads. This helped Lay’s to create an ad that wrapped a rational message in an emotional envelope and it paid off for the brand.
Svedka Shake Your Bots Off
This AI generated ad worked to drive conversation, curiosity and good cut-through. But while people watched the ad, the brand cues were recessive and just half of those surveyed could correctly identify the brand. Memorability was skewed towards AI, rather than the vodka itself. This completely limited its ability to impact the brand in the short or long term.
The Big Takeaway
Super Bowl LX reinforced a critical lesson:
Attention wins the moment - Celebrities, humour, nostalgia, music and AI experimentation drove strong cut-through across the board to entertain viewers.
But only a small selection of ads converted that Attention into brand impact. High entertainment value does not automatically translate into stronger brand feelings, perceptions or consideration. If your ad is not nudging people closer to your brand, can it really be effective? Is the Super Bowl fluff enough?
Want to find out more and see how your competitors performed?
Send us an email at hello@lumaresearch.com to book a meeting and we will share the full story.
