Perfect Play Call for Super Bowl 50 Advertisers: Multiple Screen Plays

The best of the best are getting ready to take center stage this Sunday for an event that will make headlines for days to come. All the preparation, all the planning, all the strategy comes down to one night. But there won’t just be one winner.

Super Bowl 50 is set to invade San Francisco, as well as the homes and mobile devices of hundreds of millions of people. However, as the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers play for football immortality, the real winners will not be determined by point spreads or X’s and O’s. Rather, advertisers have the opportunity to outshine them all.

While the Super Bowl remains the last “Hail Mary” for television to showcase the power of traditional 30-second advertising, it’s play clock is running out of time as social media and digital viewing elements intercepts viewership times. Were those enough puns?

In a world where ad blocking is a default preference, the Super Bowl seems to be immune to this trend. The majority of people tuning in for the game are doing so to be entertained by the commercials. Last year, the National Retail Federation surveyed consumers and found that over 77% of them considered Super Bowl ads a form of entertainment. The entertainment value will only continue to grow as more and more brands marketing during the Super Bowl will embrace a social component that evolves the :30 engagement into a longer conversation.

Facebook, YouTube and Twitter lead the way, as a multi-screen experience is becoming advertiser’s version of “Omaha” as an audible to their Super Bowl marketing efforts.  And it’s no surprise, considering that this past December, in a study done by Shareablee, almost 1/4 of the people watching this year’s Super Bowl will be doing it while engaging with a social media outlet using multiple screens.  But if advertisers really want to step up their game this year, there is one area that marketers need to look towards for a very unique opportunity that will soon become the norm.

Streaming platforms will soon be the MVP (Most Valuable Platform) for sports and marketers need to start embracing this now or soon be stiff armed by consumers.  Standalone viewing on mobile devices will be the secret play that will change the advertising game and, with the NFL fully embracing mobile this year to connect with their fans for Super Bowl 50 , brands have an opportunity to engage and connect with a new, loyal fan base that they may have never reached with their multi-million dollar television commercial.  The television will soon be a secondary option as mobile is quickly becoming the “primary receiver” for brands targeting their customers.

To do this, brands need to think through the customer journey on a mobile device, similarly to the way they think about optimizing their website for mobile engagements.  With CBS now live-streaming the ads they sell and feature in the traditional broadcast delivery, brands have to plan an ad that is no longer only to be seen on a television, but also in the palm of their hand.  If that isn’t taken to consideration, the cost of that commercial could be disastrous for a brand, so much so that it might not even have been worth being included in the game at all.  However, if done correctly, the opportunity for an advertiser to get immediate reaction and action from a viewer through clickable opportunities and social integrations might be the game changer they envisioned this opportunity to be.

There is a saying that, “Life begins at 50.”  For the Super Bowl and it’s advertisers, the integration of a multi-screen experience, including live-streaming opportunities, could be the beginning of a beautiful experience for everyone.  If a brand really wants to win at this year’s Super Bowl, integration into the marketing opportunities associated with the streaming capabilities of the game is the easiest way differentiate the brand and score BIG.