CARY, N.C. -

NOTE: Story has been updated to clarify that Ford's Super Bowl ads are regional. 

In one key aspect, Sunday’s Super Bowl will appear the same as it has for much of the past two decades.

It will involve Tom Brady, who will have appeared in 10 of the last 20 Super Bowls.

But in several other ways, Super Bowl LV will have a completely different look, including one of the event’s biggest draws: the commercials, an area in which the auto industry has traditionally played a huge part.

However, a much smaller group has plans to air Super Bowl spots this year, said PureCars digital advertising expert Lauren Donalson.

In a Jan. 29 Auto Remarketing Podcast interview (which can be found at the bottom of this story), Donalson specifically mentioned General Motors and Toyota as being the only two with Super Bowl ad plans at that point; but since that interview, others have shared plans for ads, including Jeep and Ford, the latter running ads in Southern California, Texas, Florida, Missouri and Michigan only.

In general, the mission of a big-stage ad like that is to, “get one message in front of as many eyeballs as possible,” Donalson said.

“Lots of people would say that the Super Bowl is the premier event to do so. You have a captive audience. We all have friends and family who watch the Super Bowl for the ads, not for the game … Now, the cons to television advertising, in general, are that it’s cost-prohibitive,” she said.

“A Super Bowl ad this year costs north of $5.5 million for 30 seconds. And there’s far less targeting available than you really want. And what I think manufacturers have observed over the last year, the same way PureCars has observed, is that you want to invest your dollars where you know there’s going to be return and there’s no ad wasted.”

In light of this, many automakers and dealers have moved toward advertising through what’s known as other-the-top (OTT) advertising or posts via connected TV devices, she said.

(An example of an OTT ad might be the commercial you see while streaming your favorite show on-demand through Hulu, versus the ad you see during a live broadcast.)

“But with that … it’s the exact same type of ad. It’s airing on a television screen. But you’re able to target folks who are in market for your product today. They’re un-skippable ads and it’s at a far more affordable price to entry,” Donalson said.

“You’re seeing dealers acknowledge that that’s a smarter buy and move that way,” she said. “I think you’re seeing the manufacturers do the same thing at a larger scale.”

Change of pace with messaging

Outside of automotive, Donalson references Super Bowl staple Budweiser, which has chosen to donate to COVID-19 vaccination efforts instead, she said.

Within automotive, Kia, for instance, announced a similar move, bypassing Super Bowl advertising to focus on its “Accelerate the Good” campaign.

And for those automakers who do advertise, look for the messaging to be different.

“It’s not going to be in your face, 0% APR for 72 (months). It’s going to be something that tugs on your heartstrings and addresses the moment. I especially expect that from Toyota,” Donalson said.

For GM, she said, “it’s a little easier” to gauge.

“They’ve put out press statements that the Cadillac spot is going to be specifically introducing the LYRIQ, their new EV SUV. So, that vehicle is expected to hit dealerships early 2022,” Donalson said. “So, this is definitely like the early phases of a longer campaign. Their other spot is going to be an extension of their ‘Everybody In’ campaign, which is really about educating the masses on the value of an electric vehicle. And making sure that Joe Public knows that EVs are not just for the uber-wealthy or the … uber-eco-conscious buyer. It’s for everyone. 

“Toyota, they always have a knack for meeting the moment. I expect that they’ll have something that leaves you, again, with a warm heart, tugging at your heartstrings, maybe a tear or two. 

“I imagine that it will be something that, again, is not necessarily ‘come view our spread of 15 nameplates.’ It’s going to be addressing the moment that we’re in and here’s how we can emerge from this together.”

Turns out, Donalson was spot on, as Toyota would later announce it was launching a Super Bowl ad that “shares an uplifting message of hope and strength, as well as a five-second 'billboard' that encourages people to think about the impact they have on those around them and follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 guidelines.”

Since this interview, GM teased its EV-related Super Bowl ad, then announced Wednesday a 60-second spot with comedians/actors Will Ferrell, Kenan Thompson and Awkwafina.

The humorous “No Way, Norway” spot is part of the “Everybody In” campaign around EV awareness and adoption. In the spot, Ferrell finds out that Norway has a stronger EV market than the U.S. and hilarity ensues as he and his friends embark on a mission.

“I’m excited to be a part of GM’s commitment to EVs,” Ferrell said in a news release. “I’ve been driving an EV since the mid-80s … well, actually it was a regular car with four AA batteries taped to the carburetor, but it felt like an EV! We’re coming for you, Norway!”

Added Deborah Wahl, GM’s global chief marketing officer, “The big game is the perfect venue for the incomparable Will Ferrell to encourage us all to reconsider what we know about electric vehicles, and to invite ‘Everybody In.’ We admire his passion for EVs and share Norway’s pursuit of an all-electric future.”

Over at Ford, the automaker released details this week about its Super Bowl commercial that ties into its #FinishStrong initiative in the fight against COVID-19.

In addition to detailing other measures, Ford said in a news release, “Ford is stepping up its drive to encourage Americans to #FinishStrong in the battle against COVID-19 with the announcement of three new initiatives that include special Super Bowl LV advertising, new mask donations and new solutions to help protect people against the virus.

“First up, the battle continues this Sunday, during Super Bowl LV, where Ford will exhort Americans to come together, protect each other and fight COVID-19 in regions hit hardest by the virus while also planning to distribute more than 25 million free medical-grade masks over the next five weeks alone. The Super Bowl LV message is expected to receive about 325 million impressions in some of the hardest-hit COVID-19 regions.”

The Ford advertising is regional, with the spots appearing in three of the pandemic's most heavily impacted areas (Southern California, Texas and Florida, the automaker said, citing the University of Washington Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation) and two states (Michigan and Missouri) with a “high concentration” of Ford employees not able to work from home, the automaker said in a news release. 

“Super Bowl LV viewers will be able to see Ford’s #FinishStrong film – a 30-second spot and a new 60-second spot – before or during the big game in those places. The campaign will continue across digital and social media channels, delivering an impactful suite of messaging for this important initiative,” Ford said.

Online used retailer makes Super Bowl debut

While Brady and the G.O.A.T heir-apparent Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs are not newcomers to the Super Bowl, one notable automotive advertiser will be Vroom.

The online used-car retailer is making its Super Bowl advertising debut, airing a 30-second spot titled “Dealership Pain” that follows its 30-second “Dealership Deceit” spot that aired during the AFC Championship in January.

“They are a first-time entrant into the Super Bowl ad mix. And of course, their reasons for it are justified in that they’re a brand with a national presence, and as a used-car seller, more people are in market,” said Donalson of PureCars. “You’re not limited to specifically folks who are in market for a new vehicle of your manufacturer. 

“So, it makes sense for them to exercise a reach play like the Super Bowl ad,” she said.

But she shared a word of caution for dealers: the Vroom spot is “taking dead aim at the dealership experience,” Donalson said.

“So, the tips that PureCars has lent to dealers, is make sure that you and your provider are capturing search traffic for Vroom plus the make of the vehicles that you’re selling,” she said. “Because that Super Bowl ad is guaranteed to stimulate interest in your backyard and you don’t want to lose market share to Vroom.”

Auto Remarketing talked with Vroom chief marketing officer Peter Scherr in late January about the campaign.

He said the Super Bowl ad aims to juxtapose the “dissatisfaction” in the traditional car-buying process with the “convenient experience” at Vroom, using a “comedic hyperbolic device.”  

It begins with a shopper being almost cartoonishly tortured at a car dealership, before the experience is flipped with the shopper getting a vehicle delivered to his house by Vroom and pointing out how “painless” the process was.

The spot that aired during the AFC Championship game strikes a similar tone, suggesting that some car-buying websites may not be what the consumer expects, he said.

“In that spot, we’re really conveying the fact that sometimes consumers think they are shopping and buying a car online when they go to certain websites, where they see thousands upon thousands of cars aggregated. But oftentimes they don’t realize … they end up at the same type of traditional dealership experience. Even though they think it’s an online kind of buying and shopping experience,” Scherr said.

Live sports have proven to be a strong advertising channel Vroom, particularly the NFL. And the Super Bowl is certainly the NFL’s biggest stage — and arguably for advertising in general.

And while it’s often the most recognizable brands that are the annual staples of the event, it can provide the chance for a lesser know company to become a household name.

“We absolutely want Vroom to be a household name. That is the ultimate goal, is that we want to be in the unaided consideration set when people decide to buy a new car,” Scherr said.

He added: “And the setup of this event this year is really exciting. It’s probably even more exciting than we expected, quite honestly, because, first of all, the matchup is incredible: Tom Brady versus Mahomes in Super Bowl. Almost like a passing of the baton, if you will, in terms of greatness. 

“And then the interesting thing for us is, the very story that big brands like Budweiser and others, have decided to not advertise in the Super Bowl, has given us an opportunity to probably breakthrough even stronger,” he said. “Because even leading up to the game … we’ve seen the mass press discussing that very phenomenon, (where) in place of some of the traditional advertisers, here have emerged some companies like Vroom and others.

“And, oh by the way, some of these companies have managed, due to their business model, to actually thrive” during these challenging times that have limited consumers from entering physical businesses, Scherr said of the press reports.

“We just see the setup of this particular Super Bowl for us, for our brand, as even better than we expected,” he said

For more on Super Bowl advertising, see the podcast below with Donalson of PureCars.