Yes, television ads are getting shorter. Yes, buyers are investing more in digital. But, that doesn’t mean that TV advertising is dying. Brands are still choosing to spend heavily on linear television due to the safety and visibility benefits. More specifically, advertisers like to spend their money on television commercials that air during live sporting events because these broadcasts seem to have higher levels of viewership and prove to be very profitable for brands. Here are the top four TV events and the top two advertisers for each event based on estimated spend.
1. Olympics
This year’s 2018 Winter Olympics aired on NBC between February 9, 2018 and February 25, 2018. The Toyota brand spent the most on this event, followed closely by Visa.
As one of the sponsors, Toyota ran many Olympic-centric ads on television. Some of its commercials highlighted sports like skiing and ice-skating. But, the brand probably spent the most on a snowboarding-themed ad; the estimated spend was over $60,000,000. This 30-second “Drive to Victory” commercial aired more than 1,100 times for 58 days on six different networks, beginning on January 2, 2018.
Another sponsor of the 2018 Winter Olympics was Visa. One of their television commercials during this time followed three Olympians doing normal activities at home and in stores. The 15-second ad aired over 100 times for 16 days on five different networks, starting on February 10, 2018, and its estimated spend was close to $6,000,000.
2. Super Bowl
The 2018 Super Bowl, where the Philadelphia Eagles narrowly beat the New England Patriots, aired on February 4th, 2018 on the NBC network. Once again, Toyota spent the most money on this sporting event. The brand, Ram, followed closely behind.
In one of our favorite TV ads, football brings four different types of male religious leaders as well as a group of nuns together. With the Toyota commercial’s combined hints at religious tolerance and the Super Bowl, it’s no wonder that the slogan read “We’re all one team.” The estimated spend for this 60-second ad was over $10,000,000. It aired more than 20 times for 170 days on 9 different television networks and began the day before the Super Bowl.
On February 4th, 2018, the day of the Super Bowl, Ram aired a television commercial, depicting Vikings rowing and singing the classic Queen song, “We Will Rock You.” The 60-second commercial aired just once on one network. The estimated spend of this ad was just over $10,000,000.
3. AFC Championship
The AFC Championship, one of the two semi-final National Football League playoff games, was broadcast on January 21st, 2018 on the CBS network. Another automaker, Ford, spent the most money during this event. Honda came in second.
For 140 days, beginning on September 17th, 2017, Ford’s 30-second commercial ran about 60 times on eight different television networks. It compared its powerful and smart F-150 to NFL football. The brand spent an estimated amount of more than $30,000,000.
This 30-second commercial depicts a yellow flag, like the one used for signaling penalties in football. For 220 days, beginning on January 17th, 2018, the ad aired just over 60 times on ten different networks. The estimated spend of this Honda Ridgeline ad was over $5,000,000.
4. World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, which happens every four years and which is listed as fourth in this list, aired between June 14, 2018 and July 15, 2018. While it broadcast on Fox, it also broadcast on Telemundo, giving advertisers a great chance to reach Hispanic consumers. 19% of companies who advertised during the World Cup actually ran more than 50% of their ads on the Telemundo network.
This 30-second commercial highlighted different groups of World Cup fans, from Mexico fans to Brazil fans to Argentina fans. It aired over 60 times just on the Telemundo network. The estimated spend of the ad was close to $3,000,000.
For eight days, starting on July 13th, 2018, this 30-second ad ran over 100 times on three different networks. It portrayed excited fans celebrating their team’s win. The commercial’s estimated ad spend was almost $3,000,000.
If you want to learn more about how the biggest brands are leveraging the latest in TV advertising advances to cut through the clutter and reach their target audiences, download MediaRadar’s In-Depth Look Into the Current State of TV Advertising.
