To stand out at Super Bowl LI, ads are going for stunts

Lady Gaga is reportedly entertaining an unusual twist on her Super Bowl halftime show, which though it's not confirmed she could perform from the roof of the stadium. If that comes to pass, she won't be the only one making a big play for attention this year.

Advertisers from first timer 84 Lumber to veteran Hyundai are ramping up the marketing stunts in order to stand out from the crowd during the big game. Some will air live ads, or at least teasers for their campaigns; one will even shoot its commercial during the game. Others are deliberately courting controversy.

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Super Bowl LI, in which the Atlanta Falcons will take on the New England Patriots, is expected to be the biggest live TV event of the year.

War for attention

Every year, more than 30 advertisers vie to create the most-remembered 30 to 90 seconds of the Super Bowl by stuffing commercials with celebrities, slapstick humour and cute animals.

But now that so many ads get pre-released online or teased ahead of the game, advertisers have a harder time making a lasting impression. And with more than 110 million people expected to tune in on Feb. 5 and 30 second spots going for around $5 million US, they need to scramble hard.

So this year, marketers are turning to stunts.

"It used to be, 'We need a Super Bowl spot.' Then, it was, 'We need a Super Bowl spot and program,"' said Mark DiMassimo, CEO of ad agency DiMassimo Goldstein in New York. "Now, it's we need a Super Bowl stunt or event. It needs to be newsworthy, social and surprising and it needs to be much bigger than 30 seconds."

Going live

Snickers said Wednesday it will air a live Super Bowl ad in the third quarter starring Adam Driver (Star Wars: The Force Awakens). The Mars brand will also live stream the set of the commercial for 36 hours ahead of the spot.

"The actual ad is only part of the equation," said Allison Miazga-Bedrick, a Snickers brand director, who promises "over 30 hours of original content" streamed live leading up to the game.

Similarly, Wix an Israeli website hosting service turned to Facebook Live and YouTube Live on Jan. 17 to debut teasers for its Super Bowl ad. The teaser which was prerecorded and only streamed live starred Israeli actress and model Gal Gadot, who plays Wonder Woman in her own film later this year, and the English actor Jason Statham (The Fast and the Furious).

The company said it's the first time a Super Bowl campaign has been launched live.

Betting on rejection

First-time Super Bowl advertiser 84 Lumber pulled a vintage ad stunt when the company went public with claims that Fox rejected its original ad because it was too "controversial."

The Pennsylvania building materials supplier bought a 90 second ad during the game a huge commitment for a regional brand. But Amy Smiley, the company's director of marketing, said its first ad was rejected because some of its imagery, including a border wall that supposedly prevented people from working in the U.S., steered too close to political rhetoric about the Mexican border from President Donald Trump.

Fox declined to comment, ensuring that 84 Lumber got plenty of press well ahead of the game.

Shooting on the fly

In perhaps the biggest gamble, Hyundai is teaming with director Peter Berg (Deepwater Horizon) to actually film a 90-second ad while the Super Bowl is underway. Hyundai said the ad will show "off the field" moments captured during the game, and will air right after the contest ends.

Traditionally, ads that air before or after the Super Bowl itself aren't very successful at drawing eyeballs. But the on-the-fly aspect of this ad could make it hard to ignore.

"The challenge for all of these companies is, 'How do you stand out?"' said Tim Calkins, a marketing professor at Northwestern University. "As a result we're going to see this year people try some very curious approaches."

Dean Evans, Hyundai's chief marketing officer, said the shoot-during-the-game approach is all about buzz.

"We wanted to test ourselves," Evans said. "We thought we would have to do it in a new and nontraditional way to really show the U.S. public that we're back in the game."