Advertisers are shelling out an average of $3.5 million for each 30-second Super Bowl spot, and they want the most bang for those big bucks. The interactive game plan: Engage the flocks of fans expected to watch the Super Bowl with second screens in their hands - smartphones, laptops, or tablet computers like the iPad. Interactive commercials will ask fans to scan a QR code with their smartphone, join a Facebook page, become a brand’s Twitter follower, or use sound-recognition app Shazam to see bonus content.
For advertisers, interactive ads “extend their brand message,’’ said Geoff Klapisch, a Boston University advertising professor. “This is the only program on television that people are watching for the commercials. It’s very easy to grab your smartphone and pop in a hashtag and see where it takes you. So pay attention!’’
The time is right for such ads, said Suffolk University professor Susan Alessandri, because people are watching television differently than they did years ago. One report by ratings research company Nielsen found that 40 percent of smartphone and tablet owners use their devices while they watch TV.
Alessandri, who watches TV with her iPad by her side, said a QR code or a Twitter hashtag shown during a commercial “raises a level of engagement with people. The more you can get them to interact with your brand, the better the recall. . ..That is just an incredible opportunity [for advertisers.]’’
Take Chevrolet, for example. The carmaker has been inviting Super Bowl fans to download an application called “Chevy Game Time,’’ which can be used to spot clues in its Super Bowl ad for a chance to win a new car or other prizes.
Coca-Cola is placing its computer-animated polar bear mascots in an online video stream during the game. Different groups of bears will be shown cheering for each team, posting updates, and asking viewers to send in personal photos during the game.
