From the advertiser's perspective, it doesn't matter who wins or loses the Super Bowl -- but it definitely matters how they play the game, says a new study from Oregon State University to be published in the spring issue of The Journal of Advertising.
The researchers expected the outcome of the game to affect the viewer's attitude to the advertisements, but found that it was the gameplay more than the final score that influenced their opinions.
“Games with high excitement levels result in a transfer of that emotion to the ads – particularly to ads shown at the end of the game that also have a lot of energy and excitement built in,” said Colleen Bee, an Oregon State marketing expert and author of the study in a press release. “We expected the outcome of a game to affect a viewer’s attitude toward the brand and the ad itself, but we found that whether the favored team won or lost had no real impact.
The researchers had 112 participants watch college basketball games classified as either high-suspense or low-suspense, then asked them their opinions on the ads they saw afterwards. High-suspense correlated with favorable opinions towards all the ads, though more so with the exciting ones that had a tone to match the game itself.
It makes sense -- I watched the Saints and the 49ers until the last second and hung on every heartbreaking pass. I wouldn't have dreamed of leaving the room during a commercial break -- who knows what might have happened?
But when the Patriots annihilated the Broncos later that night, I started tuning out around halftime.
“The idea is that excitement from watching the game is then transferred to a greater feeling of excitement for the ads and brands at the end of the game,” Bee said. “We also found that the more stimulating the content of the ad itself, the greater impact the exciting game had on the viewer.”
At an estimated $3.5 million for 30 seconds of airtime, every last bit counts.
