Super Bowl 2010 Commercials: Remember When We Cared?

Remember when we looked forward to Super Bowl commercials?  When I was younger, I used to space out during the actual game and tune in once a commercial break began (believe it or not, there was a time when I actually ENJOYED commercials).  Who didn’t enjoy watching the Budweiser frogs or the Clydesdales for the first time?  However, at least in my opinion, the past few Super Bowls have aired mediocre advertisements.  Most of them are visually-appealing enough, but there doesn’t seem to be the same element of humor or wittiness that there was once upon a time.

If you’re wondering which companies you may expect to see advertising during this year’s Super Bowl, then wonder no more because I’ve done my research!  According to a recent post by Advertising Age, the following companies are set to snag commercial time for Super Bowl 2010:

Anheuser-Busch InBev, Audi of America, Bridgestone, Cars.com, Coca-Cola, Denny’s, Diamond Foods’ Pop-Secret, Dockers, Doritos (part of PepsiCo’s Frito Lay), E-Trade, Electronic Arts, GoDaddy.com, HomeAway, Honda, Hyundai, Mars, Monster, Motorola, Teleflora, U.S. Census Bureau, Universal Pictures, Viacom’s Paramount Pictures, and Walt Disney Pictures.

Have you noticed certain companies absent from that list?  I know I did – Pepsi, one of the constants in Super Bowl advertising over the past decade, has “made the decision that 2010 Super Bowl ads were just too expensive, and that they could go in a new direction that would be more cost effective in the coming year”, according to an article on Associated Content.  Despite the fact that PepsiCo technically owns Doritos, which will probably advertise during the Super Bowl, it’s surprising that they would choose to avoid buying air time for their cola.  This means that Coca-Cola will have pop-guzzling audiences all to itself during the 2010 Super Bowl – but does that really matter?  One of my favorite comedians, Lewis Black, once said: “Can somebody explain to me why Pepsi and Coke advertise? Are we missing something? Seriously, everyone in this room has drank enough Pepsi and Coke in their lifetime they could piss it for a week.”  And he’s right.  Most soda-drinkers are either completely faithful to their brands or completely indifferent to them.  Will expensive commercials during the Super Bowl really sway people to drink Coke over Pepsi, or vice versa?  I doubt it.

Similarly, I hate to be a downer, but will expensive commercials during the Super Bowl convince people to buy anything?  Many of the companies on Advertising Age’s list deal in cars; I can’t recall a time in which I’ve seen a commercial for a car and then made the decision to go out and buy it.  I can’t help but wonder if car companies are advertising for the sake of new-product-awareness or simply for the sake of branding.  Brand recognition is important, and I’d probably be more aware of a car company if they wowed me with a breathtaking or a touching commercial.  However, other than making people more conscious of their brand and logo, I don’t think advertising for 30 seconds during a football game is going to sway many people to go out and buy a $50,000 luxury car - and definitely not in this economy.

Anyway, I honestly hope that 2010’s Super Bowl commercials don’t suck.  I can’t expect that they’ll stand up to the high-quality advertisements of past years, but I definitely want them to be better than what they’ve been in the past decade or so.  I don’t think that’s too much to ask, especially since there are so many well-known companies on the list this year.  Here’s to a new year, new beginnings, and new commercials that actually entertain us!

What are your all-time favorite Super Bowl commercials?  Do you agree or disagree about my comments regarding Pepsi and Coke?  Comment below and let all your advertising preferences break free!  Thanks for reading the Quality Logo Products blog.