Indiantelevision.com Team

(11 February 2008 5:00 pm)

MUMBAI: The most popular advertiser during the Super Bowl 2008 in the US was Anheuser-Busch, whose commercials for Bud and Bud Light (including comedian Will Ferrell's offbeat spot) scored well amongst viewers.

comScore, which measures the digital world, has released the results of its annual Super Bowl post-game survey.

The survey of 1,139 US internet users who watched Super Bowl XLII, which featured the New York Giants' improbable victory over the previously undefeated New England Patriots, was conducted from 3-4 February, 2008.

Nearly half of those surveyed indicated that they would most like to see the commercials again. Beverage spots were particularly popular this year, with a large percentage of respondents saying they would also like to see ads for Pepsi (28 per cent) and Coca Cola (25 per cent) again.

1 in 8 viewers watched Super Bowl ads online: The internet has become a key part of following the Super Bowl on game day, for both game-related and ad-related purposes.

For game-related purposes, 11 per cent of respondents indicated they used the internet to monitor stats and stories related to the game, while three per cent said that they went online to place bets on the game.

The Super Bowl has also become an important vehicle for cross-media advertising.

Though the ads are viewed on TV, many of them direct their audience to a web site for related information, content, or promotions.

This year, 13 per cent of respondents said that they watched a Super Bowl ad online after the game. A similar 13 per cent also said that they visited an advertiser web site after the Super Bowl.

Of those who visited an advertiser's web site, 38 per cent said that they visited GoDaddy.com, while 22 per cent visited Coca Cola's site and 21 per cent visited Pepsi's site.

Hyundai Does Most to Help its Brand, SalesGenie.com the Least: Super Bowl ads are often a risky venture for advertisers due to the increased attention and scrutiny they receive, not to mention the reported $2.7 million price tag for a 30-second spot.

Though most ads elicit a highly positive impression of the brand being advertised, in some cases
advertisers can actually incur damage to their brand.

Respondents were asked whether the Super Bowl ads they saw improved or hurt their impression of the brands being advertised, and each of this year's advertisers did see some level of brand improvement.

Hyundai's ad for the Genesis had the most positive impact on its brand, with 46 per cent of respondents indicating it helped the brand, while just one per cent said it damaged the brand, giving it a net improvement score of 45 per cent.

Anheuser-Busch once again got an overwhelmingly positive response, while Bridgestone earned the third highest net
improvement score with its humorous ad featuring Richard Simmons.

Meanwhile, SalesGenie.com had the highest "brand damage" score, but still managed a small net improvement score. Perennially controversial Super Bowl advertiser GoDaddy.com also drew a high negative response with its racy ad featuring race car driver Danica Patrick.

Anheuser-Busch's performance in this study reinforces the persuasive power of combining likeability with the right messaging.

Regardless of how many hits they receive, Sales Genie, on the other hand, missed an opportunity by turning off almost as many people as they turned on.