Why Advertisers Are Cutting the Big Game and Drafting CTV Instead

5 Min Read

There aren’t many events as big as the “Big Game.” Around 100 million people watch the biggest sporting event in the U.S. alone, making it one of the most-watched annual sporting events in the world. It’s broadcast in over 130 countries and across 30 different languages. And then there are the ads. Every year, some of the best creatives roll out memorable and iconic ads—catapulting brands into the national discourse and, on rare occasions, going down in history (everyone has a favorite ad).

Unfortunately, entry to this global stage doesn’t come cheap—the average ad this year will cost $6.5 million for 30 seconds of airtime. Worse, the viewership rate has been on a steady decline over the years, with last year’s game drawing the lowest views since 2007. And while the ads might be the talk of the town the next day, they’re impossible to track. Sure, your clever ad might be a hit, but do you know if the people liking the ad are buying—or even remember the brand? What if you don’t have the budget for a Big Game ad to begin with?

Now imagine you could produce a Big Gamel-level ad at a fraction of the cost, target your ideal viewer, and get real-time feedback on the actions viewers take after seeing your ad—regardless of whether you have a super-sized budget or not. What kind of ads would you make? With Connected TV, advertisers are making this reality.

To help brands, the experts from Maximum Effort, MNTN, and QuickFrame are taking a deep dive with MediaPost to explore how Connected TV’s speed, distribution, and technology provide everything you need to be MVP this year. RSVP now to save your seat.

Play-by-Play Analysis

The beauty of the NFL championship game is it makes everyone an amateur creative director. Every February, families and friends across the country dissect their favorite ads, why they think they worked (or didn’t)—and brands follow up on countless social mentions, blogs, and “best of” lists that websites generate to try and find out if their ad was successful. But all of this doesn’t show that it leads to what really matters—conversions, engagement, and even brand recognition—nor does it provide a crystal clear assessment of its impact.

When Adweek showed Super Bowl ads to passersby in Times Square a day after 2018’s game, only two out of thirteen people guessed the correct brand. And Ad Age found that people who remember seeing Super Bowl ads can remember the brand only 35% of the time. That’s a lot of money spent on ads where the celebrity talent might be remembered more than the brand itself. While linear TV doesn’t offer any precise way to see how ads are performing, CTV gives advertisers the chance to see their ads are performing—in real-time. No guesswork, no armchair quarterbacking, and no waiting. Premium CTV platforms like MNTN Performance TV take the ball even further, with a Cross-Device Verified Visits model that tracks the customer journey from the first time they’re served an ad all the way to when they make a purchase—regardless of what device they use.

Always Find Your Target Receiver

The game may generate a lot of views, but very few brands have a target audience that wide. The result is expensive ads, served to an audience that may not remember the brand—and may not even be interested in the first place. And with ads competing against each other and being viewed in a social atmosphere, the chance is high that your $6.5 million ad might be missed by your target audience anyway. CTV fills the gap by offering robust targeting methods that allow advertisers to pinpoint their audience, serving ads to the right demographic, on the right channel, at the right time.

Best of all with CTV ads, the robust targeting and measurement capabilities allow advertisers to call an audible and change direction on the fly. Famously, viewership for the Big Game is highly dependent on how the game is going. For instance, last year’s already record-low viewership saw a steep decline in views as the game progressed thanks to an uncompetitive game by halftime. For advertisers who bought time slots in the third and fourth quarter, that’s less reach—but for the same expensive rate. With CTV, advertisers can tweak and optimize creative based on audience reception, A/B testing, or external audiences. By leveraging performance data to provide insight into what’s working and what’s not, you are no longer shackled by your ads and can instead quickly change the play to ensure your campaign delivers. 

Cooking Up Creative Plays

Big events have always been great for brands on social channels because they can respond and react in real-time. Linear TV ad buys? Those are written, shot, edited, and submitted anywhere from months to a year beforehand. Once again, CTV offers something else: the best of both digital and TV advertising.

Imagine being able to create and distribute an ad celebrating the victors of the game just days after it airs. Or, thanks to its lower cost and higher flexibility, creating two ads – one celebrating each team as a winner—and then with the click of a button, serving the ad that reflects the actual winner mere minutes after the game is over. CTV and the “fast-vertising” model offered through innovative services like Creative-as-a-Subscription allow brands to quickly and efficiently serve ads that were once unimaginable. From discussing topical content, tapping into the hottest trends, or referencing current events, CTV unlocks a whole new tier of creativity for brands that can’t be matched on linear TV.

We’re Just Getting Starting

We’re not even getting close to covering all of the benefits of CTV. Join us for Keep the Super, Lose the Bowl: How to Quickly Build High-Impact TV & Video Creative to learn more strategies, insights, and insider tips for making all-star ads that maximize your budget and reach. RSVP now to secure your spot.