Social media rocked at this year’s Super Bowl. Many leading brands not only chose not to incur the high expense of a TV commercial but also used the game as a channel for their social media marketing. And Twitter was the ultimate winner at this social game. Check out this infographic from AdWeek, which clearly shows Twitter’s growth as a key component of an integrated marketing campaign based on Super Bowl advertisers.
ABCews.com recapped the best use of social media during the game with these three brands:
Newcastle beer created a hit online campaign spoofing the self-importance of Super Bowl ads.
J.C. Penney generated attention on Twitter by posting nonsensical tweets during the game.
Who kkmew theis was ghiong tob e a baweball ghamle. #lowsscorinh 5_0
— JCPenney (@jcpenney) February 2, 2014
And Esurance grabbed the spotlight by offering to give away $1.5 million in an ad that aired just after the game ended.
Social media is about building customer engagement. But social media at the Super Bowl was different with brands communicating with each other. Playful back and forth chatter and jabs that prompted more consumer tweets and retweets. According to Digiday.com, the numbers speak for themselves. The Coors Light tweet at JC Penney got more than 7,300 retweets and more than 6,000 favorites.
.@JCPenney We know football goes great with Coors Light, but please tweet responsibly.
— Coors Light (@CoorsLight) February 3, 2014
JC Penney, despite not being an official Super Bowl advertiser, was the second-most mentioned brand on social with 120,334 mentions, according to Salesforce data — which may or may not have to do with tweets from other brands, like the Coors tweet. But then, Newcastle’s tweet at Chobani with a spoof of the yogurt brand’s ad got just 90 retweets and 74 favorites.
Hey @Chobani, that bear commercial was HUGE. Check out how we would’ve made it MEGA HUGE: http://t.co/c761OVXHik #IfWeMadeIt #HowMatters
— Newcastle Brown Ale (@Newcastle) February 3, 2014
Newcastle’s brand director, Quinn Kilbury, summed it up quite well by stating, “This kind of interaction with other brands is good for everyone, the consumer included, as long as brands are smart about it and have fun with it. It’s fun for brands to show personality, and I think it’s fresh still — but it has to be fun and entertaining, that’s it.”
