Learn why advertisers are investing in CTV to leverage the excitement and anticipation around the Super Bowl.
With Super Bowl LIX fast approaching, brands are gearing up for one of the most anticipated advertising events of the year. Beyond the action on the field, the ads themselves are a major draw, with viewers often eagerly awaiting commercials that spark laughter, nostalgia, and conversation.
Last year, Super Bowl LVIII set a record as the most-watched telecast in history, drawing over 200 million viewers across all platforms. In addition, the event became the most-streamed Super Bowl in history, led by a record-setting audience on Paramount+.
For this year’s Big Game, we expect this trend to continue and we encourage advertisers to invest in Connected TV (CTV) advertising to leverage the excitement and anticipation around the Super Bowl — without solely relying on in-game spots. In this playbook, we’re exploring why CTV is an ideal medium for Super Bowl advertising and how brands can maximize impact during this annual spectacle.
Why CTV for Super Bowl LIX?
The iconic Super Bowl ad comes with a hefty price tag. In recent years, Super Bowl spots have hovered around $7 million for just 30 seconds, a figure that only keeps rising. For brands, this cost is a barrier, making it challenging to secure in-game visibility.
Plus, competition is fierce among advertisers and the finite availability of Super Bowl ad slots means many brands miss out on the opportunity to place ads during the game. This is where CTV shines — allowing brands to join the Super Bowl conversation by aligning ads to the broader excitement surrounding the game, even if they aren't in the official lineup.
CTV advertising offers several benefits for brands:
- Cost efficiencies: CTV allows brands to tap into Super Bowl excitement while bypassing the game's high upfront costs, especially if you buy programmatically through a platform like tvScientific. Our outcome-based technology automatically optimizes your campaigns across multiple platforms and streaming services, ensuring that your ad spend is efficiently located.
- Targeting precision: While Super Bowl ads across cable and broadcast television are often a one-size-fits-all affair, CTV allows brands to target specific demographics and regions with precision, ensuring that the right message reaches the right viewers at the right time. With CTV, brands can capture attention by delivering personalized ads tailored to different fan demographics, including those who may not be tuning in live but still engage heavily with Super Bowl content before and after the game.
- Interactive features: With CTV, you can incorporate interactive elements into your ads such as clickable links, polls, or shoppable QR codes, to encourage immediate user action. This could be a game-changer for your sales before, during, and after the Super Bowl!
- Performance measurement: By running your Super Bowl-related ads via CTV, you gain access to a variety of performance metrics, from impressions and clicks to CPA and ROAS. If you’re using tvScientific, you’ll have a centralized hub for aggregating all of this performance data from various networks and channels — streamlining measurement and reporting.
5 Best Practices for CTV Advertising Around Super Bowl LIX
1. Take learnings from the NFL regular season to build your Super Bowl strategy.
If you’ve been running CTV ads throughout this year’s NFL season, you have a playbook of valuable insights ready to shape your Super Bowl approach. Use performance data to see which creative elements truly resonated, whether it’s interactive features, humor, or an attention-grabbing jingle. Did certain calls-to-action work better with this audience? Was engagement higher on particular days or platforms?
Apply these lessons to optimize your ads as you head into the Big Game season. Testing these strategies now will help you refine and execute a winning approach when Super Bowl excitement is at its peak.
2. Capitalize on pre-game and post-game excitement.
The Super Bowl is not just a one-time game — it’s a multi-day event with energy that begins well before kickoff and lingers for days after. Even if your brand doesn’t have an in-game spot, capitalize on the build-up and aftermath of the Super Bowl.
During NFL Playoffs, for example, you can run CTV campaigns that engage fans as they prepare for the game, appealing to their anticipation and team pride. In the weeks leading up to Super Bowl Sunday, craft up engaging creative that builds up to your main Super Bowl ad, telling a story that develops over time and culminates at the Super Bowl.
You can also use CTV to reconnect with fans after the game as they relive memorable moments. Post-game spots allow you to extend the reach of your message by referencing viral moments, trending conversations, or popular game-day themes.
3. Collaborate with influencers and celebrities.
When the stakes are high, familiar faces can boost your brand’s appeal. Partnering with influencers or celebrities who can endorse your message or appear in your CTV ads adds a layer of relatability and recognition. Fans will be excited to see their favorite player or affiliated celebrity (Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift, for example) in an ad spot, amplifying your brand’s presence in an engaging way.
From past Super Bowl ad campaigns, it’s clear that famous athletes, actors, or well-loved social media personalities can help your brand create instant credibility and attract fan followings that might otherwise be hard to reach.
4. Build an omnichannel Super Bowl campaign.
During games, an estimated 80% of sports fans use a second screen, such as a smartphone or tablet, to follow stats, participate in live discussions, and interact with other fans on social media while watching games. Take this as an opportunity to retarget these same viewers across various platforms and devices.
By retargeting Super Bowl viewers with ads across social media, mobile apps, and other digital channels, you can keep your message in front of fans wherever they go. Engage viewers with coordinated ads on social platforms, mobile experiences, and CTV ads that follow the game’s real-time pace.
5. Lean into emotional marketing.
The most memorable Super Bowl ads often tap into deep, relatable emotions. CTV campaigns that draw on humor, sentimentality, or nostalgia can create a connection that resonates long after the ad finishes. Craft ads that tell a compelling story and leverage the heightened emotional context of the Super Bowl to connect on a personal level with viewers.
Top 3 Super Bowl Ad Examples
To inspire your Super Bowl LIX creative strategy, here are a few memorable ads from last year that connected with audiences and made headlines.
CeraVe’s “Michael CeraVe” Campaign
In the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl, skincare brand CeraVe launched a playful campaign around the years-running joke that Michael Cera might be the brand’s founder. They sent PR boxes labeled “from Michael” to influencers, complete with “Michael CeraVe” products and quotes, fueling social media buzz. CeraVe stoked the speculation with influencer unboxing videos and even issued a humorous statement denying Cera’s involvement. On game day, a Super Bowl ad finally revealed the truth, featuring CeraVe’s dermatologists debunking the rumor in a lighthearted twist.
This ad campaign was a success because it masterfully built plenty of anticipation and engagement before the big game. Plus, by using humor and influencer-driven content, CeraVe connected with a younger, more social-savvy audience. The blend of mystery and playfulness around Michael Cera’s potential involvement kept people talking, making the eventual reveal during the Super Bowl even more satisfying.
The ad’s mix of light-hearted humor, celebrity tie-ins, and clever storytelling not only entertained viewers but also reinforced CeraVe’s credibility as a trusted skincare brand — ultimately winning over a wide audience.
Google Pixel’s Meaningful Super Bowl Ad
Google’s Super Bowl ad for the Pixel 8 highlighted the phone’s accessibility feature, Guided Frame. The ad follows Javier, a blind man, capturing key life moments — from selfies at his wedding to starting a family — using the Pixel’s technology to help him take photos independently despite his impaired vision.
Google’s Super Bowl ad was a major success, even ranking as the top winner in the 20th Kellogg School Super Bowl Advertising Review. The ad resonated on a deeply emotional level for many around the country, showcasing technology’s potential to improve lives.
Rather than promoting technical specs, Google told a story that demonstrated the Pixel’s meaningful role in helping people connect with loved ones and memories. This human-centered approach, combined with a focus on accessibility, gave the ad emotional depth and made it memorable, standing out in a Super Bowl lineup typically dominated by humor and spectacle.
Dunkin’s Collaboration with Ben Affleck
One week before the Super Bowl, Dunkin' premiered a commercial at the GRAMMYs featuring Ben Affleck and Charli D'Amelio, where Ben humorously attempts to become a pop star with Charli’s help. The ad teased viewers with a “To Be Continued,” building anticipation.
During the Super Bowl, Dunkin' released the follow-up, featuring Affleck, Matt Damon, and Tom Brady in Dunkin' tracksuits as “The DunKings.” The ad promoted Dunkin’s new menu items and merch, including the orange tracksuits, which sold out in just 19 minutes, becoming the brand's fastest-selling collection.
Dunkin’s Super Bowl ad was a hit because it combined humor, star power, and clever cross-promotion across multiple high-profile events. By first teasing the ad at the GRAMMYs with Ben Affleck and Charli D’Amelio, Dunkin’ created suspense and built early buzz, especially among D’Amelio’s huge TikTok following. The Super Bowl follow-up, featuring Affleck, Matt Damon, and Tom Brady as “The DunKings,” was a playful, self-aware nod to nostalgia that appealed to audiences of all ages.
The ad also introduced limited-edition menu items and branded merch, like the popular Dunkin' tracksuits. With a mix of humor, celebrity, and exclusive products, Dunkin' crafted a memorable, multi-platform campaign that kept fans engaged beyond the game itself.
Score Big with CTV During the Next Super Bowl
Super Bowl advertising may be competitive and expensive, but CTV offers a powerful alternative to reach engaged viewers at a fraction of the cost. With thoughtful timing, emotional storytelling, and the right influencer partnerships, brands can effectively leverage CTV to join the Super Bowl conversation. Embrace these strategies to maximize reach and create a memorable impact during Super Bowl LIX!
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