Yesterday was a huge day for sports fans and brands across the nation. Diehard football fans wait all year for this special game and hope that their team (or at least a team they support) hits the turf for the big game.
Let me preface my next statement by saying I mean absolutely no offense to the amazing athletes that played their hearts out yesterday. But if you’re like me, the day is really about the cheesy/gooey/delicious food, the Puppy Bowl and of course, the ads.
On this day, brands hope that their creative and entertaining ads will reach an engaged and attentive audience as they’re glued to the television. In fact, the average commercial costs approximately $5 Million for a mere 30 seconds of airtime during the Super Bowl. That is some serious cheddar!
While some companies choose to invest in airtime, others choose to spend efforts on another channel with an engaged audience, social media. Some great brand creative, an attentive community manager and some budget to boost posts is a great way to catch the attention of consumers glued to a 2nd and 3rd screen.
Below are examples of brands that capitalized on a great opportunity to be social and share some great content during the 2017 Super Bowl.
Heartwarming & Inspired
Each year during the Super Bowl there are a handful of brands whose message gives you all the feels and this year was no exception.
Coca-Cola
Honda
Here’s to the #PowerOfDreams and the amazing things it has led to, like the all-new 2017 CR-V. pic.twitter.com/sfNNwJPnxn
— Honda (@Honda) February 2, 2017
Budweiser
Clever & Creative
On a day where an enormous amount of social content is being created by brands and consumers alike, these companies stood out by taking a clever and creative approach to their message.
NASA & NFL
Houston, we got a message from 250 miles above in the @Space_Station. #SB51 pic.twitter.com/Gac3kZ8LBt
— NFL (@NFL) February 5, 2017
Snapchat
Loving the @Gatorade lens on @Snapchat today! Last years filter gained more impressions than the # of people who saw the #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/tWb6YeZE2O
— Carlos Gil ???? (@carlosgil83) February 5, 2017
PetSmart
Bite Squad
There is no I in guac. pic.twitter.com/i5bMh7l8QS
— Bite Squad (@BiteSquad) February 5, 2017
General Mills
Quick to Respond
Kudos to the content teams, social teams and community managers for the following brands. Events like the Super Bowl create the perfect opportunity to respond quickly.
Buffalo Wild Wings
.@SnoopDogg We’re not sure we know what you’re referring to here, Snoop… #HitTheButton
— Buffalo Wild Wings (@BWWings) February 5, 2017
Grumpy Cat
Glad you finally cleaned yourself up, @TerryBradshaw#BradshawStain #SB51 #Partner #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/1tFkxQDVSO
— Grumpy Cat (@RealGrumpyCat) February 6, 2017
Febreeze
Aw, shucks, @bristei, thanks. Just doing our business ?
— Febreze_Fresh (@Febreze_Fresh) February 5, 2017
GNC
#TFW you find out your ad was pulled 6 days before the big game….#SB51 #NoFunLeague https://t.co/DADmbYoSPw pic.twitter.com/Sh7dN146nf
— GNC (@GNCLiveWell) February 5, 2017
Social Contests
Although I didn’t see as many social contests today as I had expected, these two brands garnered a lot of engagement from their various posts promoting live social contests during the Super Bowl.
T-Mobile
Big Game, big moves. Show us your best #UnlimitedMoves & @JustinBieber will RT his fave. pic.twitter.com/5VrIQq9jrg
— T-Mobile? (@TMobile) February 2, 2017
Pepsi
Hey #PatriotsNation, RT for #Entry, because you could win 1 of 6 mini helmets signed by #DevinMcCourty #ForTheFans! https://t.co/T8ddyXGhkn pic.twitter.com/Vz5eo0GnCS
— Pepsi™ (@pepsi) February 5, 2017
Just Plain Entertaining
The brands in this category had some of the most entertaining and funny content during Super Bowl Sunday.
Skittles
Bai
Doritos
Buick
Frozen
turbotax
BONUS: Teams with Low Rankings
The opening video featuring Rob Riggle and other celebrity guests was probably one of the funniest moments of the Super Bowl. If you didn’t get a chance to see it live, I’ve included the video below.
For two teams the #SuperBowl is everything. The other 30 “Lowly Teams” are waiting & wishing. @RobRiggle explains. #RigglesPicks pic.twitter.com/Hva3ojVhuS
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) February 5, 2017
Create Your Game Winning Social Content
While it’s clear that some of these brands invested big bucks in content for Super Bowl 51, others simply jumped on the opportunity to showcase some clever content. A special thank you to members of the Social Media Masterminds group on Facebook for helping me uncover some great Super Bowl content!
These 20 examples showcase only a fraction of the brands that created and promoted great content during Sunday’s game. Please share your favorites below!
