Despite spending the last eight years in the UK, Noel (Hamilton) Bunting – executive creative director at creative communications agency neverland – has retained an American’s eye for advertising and attention-grabbing storytelling.
Here, she breaks down the best bits of this year’s Super Bowl ads – from unexpected partnerships to making important social commentary – that are ripe for UK teams and brands to steal…
“After pond-jumping from New York in 2015, I did what any American creative director in London would do: she unleashed her American advertising tricks on the UK market.
It didn’t work. At least, not every time.
Eventually I collected British nuances and cultural references and audience preferences. I’ve learned what aspects of my American experience might be applied most successfully here in the UK. And every year, I’ve used the Super Bowl as an opportunity to not only reflect on what’s working and not working in American advertising, but to pilfer some creative inspiration.
Here are four things I believe are worth stealing from this year’s Super Bowl ads (aside from some jaw-dropping budgets, which is what we all really want to steal):
Dynamic Duos
Unexpected partnerships is something I wish we did more of in the UK market, (thinking beyond a stunty collaboration or joint PR experience). KFC and Xbox have dipped a toe in this world, but what would happen if they pushed it even further? A big Super Bowl campaign with a true commitment from two brands – could this be one creative way to work around challenging budgets and a timid marketing climate?
General Motors and Netflix teamed up for the Super Bowl to tell the world (via a solid performance from Will Ferrell) that they’re using more EVs across TV and film productions. Heineken 0.0 and Ant-Man joined forces to talk about drinking (and shrinking) responsibly.
To promote its new show Poker Face, Peacock partnered with Google Pixel and M&Ms in a seemingly reactive ad that showed Natasha Lyonne revealing the truth about some of the Super Bowl ads we’d just seen earlier in the broadcast.
Repetition. Repetition. Repetition.
We’ve seen this in previous years with a personal favourite of mine, “It’s a Tide Ad,” but unapologetically repeating the name/benefit of the brand (whilst somehow also entertaining us) seemed to be a real trend for 2023’s Super Bowl spots. One-hit-wonder stars serenade us over and over with different renditions of “Uber One,” met with varying levels of approval from Diddy.
Adam Driver repeatedly contemplates the fact that Squarespace is a website that makes websites. Miller Lite and Coors Light battle it out for screen time, exclaiming product benefits as they pull their punches, only to have their thunder stolen by Blue Moon.
Now, I’m torn on this one. I don’t want to advocate for brand tick-boxing and over-branding to the point that people tune out and the entertainment factor is sacrificed. But I’m fascinated that some brands have been able to pull it off. Because at its best, it’s refreshing. If you take into account Gen Z’s craving for transparency and lolz, the sentiment of “we know you know this is an ad, so let’s just have some fun” has the potential to work quite well. At its worst, it comes across as false self-modesty and everyone has a good cringe while watching it.
Could we pull off this formula in Britain? Maybe, but it needs a very clever idea to make it work. In other words, the repetition is not itself the idea. So if the UK market does steal this, we must proceed with caution.
Having a serious laugh
We can’t ignore today’s most pressing matters and shouldn’t avoid talking about them, but we can look at how we deliver those messages, and deliver them in ways that really resonate. If you make people smile, I believe they’ll pay attention.
NFL’s “Run With It” promoted the participation of women in sports. Hellmann’s stood against food waste. General Motors teamed up with Netflix to talk about lightening the carbon footprint of its TV productions.
And they all did it whilst making us (or attempting to make us) laugh. While these may not have been the “best” ads of the big game, they’re a reminder that humour can be a powerful tool, and that Super Bowl audiences are looking for ways to escape and excuses to smile (“Dumb Ways to Die” is still one of the best examples of this).
Blasts from the past
A popular approach in recent Super Bowl ads has been borrowing from the past, and this year was no exception. Alicia Silverstone reprised her Clueless role for Rakuten, John Travolta sang us a song from Grease (kind of), and Vince Gilligan once again directed Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul in Popcorners’ “Breaking Good.”
The ones that work the best are usually those that honour the original TV show or film, preserving as much of it as possible, but these types of ads are also the most polarising. Is it the ultimate version of selling out? Or is it a fun and harmless romp through the past?
The UK is no stranger to nostalgia, but it’s typically more about brand heritage or British history rather than reprising something popular from the world of TV and film. Maybe it’s time to indulge ourselves? Maybe revisiting happier times is the comfort blanket we’re all after?
In summary…
There are of course plenty of other things we could steal (committing to an idea and dialling everything up to 11) and things we shouldn’t (I’m sorry, Premature Electrification), but these are the Super Bowl trends that I found most interesting in this year’s broadcast.
British advertising is world leading for very good reason – we know how to make work that not just sells but transforms brands. But in uncertain economic and social times we need to think even more innovatively in order for our brands, clients and our own businesses to succeed.
So, as an American, I hereby give you permission to steal our best ideas.
