Fox says it's sold out all 77 of its 30 second Super Bowl ads for a record $5.6-million each. Can that possibly be worth it to companies? What's the return on their investment?
U of H marketing professor Dr. Betsy Gelb says they're buying more than just a Super Bowl ad.
"Do I want them talking about my competitor's commercial, not mine, and you'll begin to see why people spend money."
Dr. Gelb says your ad is seen many times more than just during the game.
"Having people talk about it at work the next week; how often does that happen for commercials? Never."
Years ago, just about every ad was trying to be the funniest, but that's toned down in recent years. Dr. Gelb says research shows not all consumers want humor in ads.
"Marketers always think in segments, that you can't say 'this is what the audience prefers,' you have to say 'which segment at any given moment is more important to us, okay, then how do we get at them?"
Dr. Gelb says many companies are simply trying to stay ahead of the competition, because some of these ads become part of our culture and you can't afford to have a competitor getting that kind of attention while you are not.