SuperBowl 2009 Commercials
The Best and the Worst of the 43rd GridIron Classic’s Advertising
Feb 1, 2009
Millions of viewers around the world tuned into the 43rd SuperBowl in 2009 simply to watch the commercials. They are at times funny, witty, entertaining, innovative, and in some cases, downright bad.
SuperBowl 2009 Advertisers
Since SuperBowl advertising cost $3 million a minute, only the big names in advertising can afford to buy airtime. Here is a breakdown of who ran commercial ads in the SuperBowl by type.
Alcohol Advertising
Anheuser Busch purchased four commercial spots, three of which feature the ever popular Clydesdales. These commercials have reaped big returns in the past, and they continue to do so.
Car Advertising
Audi used SuperBowl 2009 to promote the R8 sports car in an ad that parodies the Godfather. Hyundai ran an ad for the Genesis and one for their Assurance Program. Toyota purchased air time, and they extended that to YouTube.com and Howstuffworks.com. Cars.com also ran one ad and Bridgestone Tires had two 30 second spots. Castrol Motor Oil bought time in the GridIron Classic.
Entertainment Advertising
Some of the entertainment companies that bought SuperBowl advertising time are Disney/Pixar, Universal Pictures, DreamWorks, NBC, Paramount, Sony, and Hulu.
Food Advertising
Frito-Lay, Sobe, and Taco Bell ran ads, companies that all fall under the big umbrella of PepsiCo, making PepsiCo the mega big spender of the 2009 SuperBowl. Also running commercials were Kellogg, Coca-Cola, and Denny’s.
Other Advertising
Cash4Gold.com jumped into the SuperBowl frenzy with an ad featuring MC Hammer. Other big names included H & R Block, E-Trade, Monster, Teleflora, Sprint, Go Daddy, and General Electric, who used a Wizard of Oz theme.
The Best SuperBowl Commercials
- The 3D commercials for DreamWorks and Sobe Lifewater were the big winners for their originality, creativity, and incredible 3D graphics.
- The Talking Baby for E-Trade stole the spotlight for the second year in a row, and now he’s joined by a singing baby. It’s possible that baby’s new word, “shankopotamus” may sweep American lingo.
- Anheuser Busch came through on top with the commercial where the employee is thrown out the window for suggesting they stop buying Bud Light for each meeting. Likewise, the ad picturing Conan O’Brien in a Swedish commercial leaves the viewer with a memorable, although not necessarily desirable, image. The Clydesdale commercials continue to be popular as well.
- Teleflora’s shocking talking flowers leaves the viewer with exactly the idea they want: flowers in a vase are best, and show you have nothing to hide.
Not the Best Game Day Commercials
- Go Daddy lost out on it’s commercial with the three college students watching the woman and the Dean take a shower. It was too stalker-ish.
- Castrol GX made light of grease monkeys using several bad puns, putting it at the bottom of the pack.
- Pedigree had some funny moments, with unusual pets, but it wasn’t funny enough to put it in the top commercial moments.
- Bridgestone Tires’ use of the Potato Heads was juvenile, with the tired old scenario of a nagging woman getting retribution, and giving the man some relief from her harping.
SuperBowl commercials, while expensive, pay off for advertisers by driving traffic to websites, leading to better branding and product placement. The week following the SuperBowl is a test of the enduring quality of the ad, based on orders placed, online traffic, and consumer purchases. For a breakdown of the full results after SuperBowl week, check with Adage.com, who compiles a table of the results, and keeps an archive of commercials online.
