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The Super Bowl consistently draws the largest audience of any sporting event in the United States. In recent years, Over-The-Top (OTT) and Connected TV (CTV) platforms have seen significant growth in viewership, reflecting broader trends in television consumption. About 123.7 million people tuned in for the 2024 edition of the game, and all those viewers spent over $17.3 billion on food, team merchandise, TVs, alcohol, and more. Even though your ads might not be airing over the big game itself, your campaigns can still benefit from it!
A study from Veylix found that the Super Bowl fuels a 16% increase in product demand among viewers, meaning it can be just the right time to boost your conversions. Let’s talk about the things advertisers should keep in mind to take advantage of American football’s biggest game.
OTT/CTV is on the Rise
While most Super Bowl-related consumer spending is on food, approximately 10% is allocated to new televisions. CTV ad spending sharply goes up in February as more people buy and set up their screens in preparation for the big game. Prices for placing OTT ads may increase slightly, but that is balanced by an increase in viewers and market penetration surrounding the event.
The majority of viewers still watch the Super Bowl via traditional broadcasts, but the number of viewers who stream the game are increasing every year. An estimated 11.7 million people watched the 2024 game through various streaming services, up from around 7 million streamers the year before.
Advertising has been a major part of the Super Bowl for years, and the ads have become infamous for the millions of dollars businesses pay for 30 second slots. But these ads are generally tied to the linear broadcast, while ads on streaming platforms are much more flexible. These are programmatically served, potentially allowing advertisers to reach their target audience during the Super Bowl at a much lower price.
Through the Genius Monkey platform, for example, users can enjoy Super Bowl CTV deals with:
- FUBO
- CBS Sports
- Sling TV
- DirectTV
- Many more!
These deals start at $50 CPM; by comparison, the linear broadcast ads deliver approximately $60 CPM without any kind of audience tracking. Programmatic users can use their ad spend to directly target their ideal consumer, rather than casting a wide net to potentially disinterested viewers.
Second Screens are Now Part of the Experience
Mobile shopping is now the most popular method of online purchasing, with 91% of U.S. adults aged 18–49 making purchases through their phones. Many consumers engage with their mobile devices even while watching TV. One survey in 2023 suggested that around half of consumers watching TV will also break out their phones from time to time. This creates a perfect opportunity for cross-device promotion where the consumer sees a product or service on the TV, then more information is readily available at their fingertips.
Delivering this kind of advertising synchronicity requires a multi-faceted campaign that tracks user behaviors across devices: the kind of campaigns that are best achieved through a Meta-DSP platform like Genius Monkey. Our unique view-through tracking lets advertisers track impressions, engagements, conversions, and other important metrics to get a full view of the customer’s journey.
Keep in Mind the Taylor Swift Effect
Football purists may groan, but there’s no denying that the singer has brought even more attention to the NFL. A full 5% of last year’s viewers reported that they watched the game just for the chance to see the star, and the NFL themselves have been more than happy to train a few cameras on her throughout the season.
Besides Taylor Swift herself, this demonstrates that there are many reasons people watch and get hyped about the Super Bowl or sports in general. Logic dictates that advertisements around this time should be directed toward sports fans, but serving an under-represented audience can help your ads stand out.
For example, female viewership of the Super Bowl increased by 9% overall, and a further 24% in the 18-24 category. Product demand also increased among women by about 9%. The Gen Z viewership – 22% of which watched the Super Bowl for the first time – experienced an 11% increase in product demand last year over the 2023 championship.
There is wisdom in giving people what they expect, and sports-themed advertisements traditionally perform well in football season. As you’re planning your campaigns around the Super Bowl, remember that it also pays to be creative and find niche audiences who are also caught up in the excitement.
The Data will Never Lead You Astray
The most successful campaigns are the ones that take advantage of a broad array of programmatic tools and channels. Super Bowl advertising has never had more paths, options, and opportunities than it does now; besides the linear broadcasts and CTV, advertisers can reach their audience through a wide variety of placements.
Audio packages include NFL streaming and podcasts through ESPN, Bleacher Report, and others for as low as $27 CPM. DOOH, display, native, and more are also available through Lamar, Yahoo!sports, DirectTV, and more. All these are backed by detailed engagement reports and the industry-leading behavioral targeting that Genius Monkey offers.
The right platform can get you Super Bowl-level numbers with All-Star quality engagements. If you’re ready to increase your conversions, decrease your wasted costs, and set your marketing strategy up for a brighter future, it’s time to get in touch with the Genius Monkeys. Let’s evolve your advertising to the next level!
