Last season, the Super Bowl drew an audience of 99.9 million, but some advertisers are wondering where things will land this season.
Despite the marketing win from running an ad in the 2020 Super Bowl, hummus brand Sabra has decided to sit out the 2021 game, along with past Super Bowl advertisers such as SodaStream and Avocados From Mexico.
Companies don’t seem hip to paying CBS roughly $5.5 million for a 30-second slot when the pandemic has complicated things.
Right now, advertisers are asking: What if there’s a surge in coronavirus cases in the days leading up to the game? How should a company market itself in a specially made commercial for an audience that has been through more than 300,000 pandemic-related deaths in the last year? Will a funny commercial seem insensitive? Will a somber ad come across as merely depressing? And what if the game is canceled?
It’s mid-December and CBS still has dozens of openings.
Fox, the broadcaster of last year’s game, had sold all of its 77 national advertising slots by Thanksgiving 2019.
Besides the huge expense, and the confusion over what type of ad to run, companies are also worried that the Super Bowl broadcast may suffer without the energy of a stadium packed with fans. The virus may also cut into the usual viewing parties, bringing the excitement down another notch.
Anheuser-Busch, Pringles and Toyota have committed to run ads again, but they have money-back stipulations if the Super Bowl is canceled.
Advertisers spent a record $489 million to book slots on the 2020 broadcast.
