Super Bowl 2017: Game Day to Game Changing by Michael Gaizutis, Founder + CXO of RNO1
Ahh, the Super Bowl.
Welcome to the beginning of 2017, where players play, fans fantasize, and ads awe. Yes, it’s that time of year again. And with the Presidential Election now over, we can focus on what really matters: compelling creative and memorable marketing . While our west coast brand and digital agency, RNO1, is usually on the sidelines of crafting connective ad spots aired during the Super Bowl, we’re some of its strongest supporters. It’s definitely game-time.
For the last several years, Squarespace (a website builder and technology platform empowering millions of people with creative ideas to succeed) have gotten themselves into the Super Bowl action, fueling their growth as an online brand. As a digital agency, we lean on the Squarespace Platform working alongside Marketing, Product, and Founding teams of enterprise companies, lifestyle, mid-sized brands, and funded startups. Best explained, Squarespace is a great place to tell a visual story online, selling a product, service or idea with impact.
This year, Squarespace returns to the Super Bowl with John Malkovich with a newly launched campaign and true collaboration between the two, as it’s fourth consecutive Super Bowl commercial. According to a recent Ad Age article, “While Mr. Malkovich is well-known as an actor, his true passion is actually fashion design. The actor, who began his career as a costume designer, has released several collections over the years, but they haven't garnered much buzz. Squarespace recently debuted the short film, "Journey," which explores the challenges Mr. Malkovich faces as he attempts to establish his reputation as a serious designer. In conjunction with the film, Squarespace launched JohnMalkovich.com, which showcases his newest fashion line and allows people to buy items”. "The Super Bowl for us is a clarifying moment for the company to rally around one idea for the new year," said David Lee, chief creative officer, Squarespace. We couldn’t agree more. With a new year comes new possibilities for creativity and connection points.
While Squarespace is a New York City based brand, we feel its movement deeply on the West Coast. Change-agents in Silicon Valley, San Francisco and Seattle, to lifestyle brands in Southern California are looking at Squarespace to reach them (users and customers) on a deeper level, backed by rich imagery, video, and design elements that delight. All while making it extremely easy and effortless to manage content via the back-end of the Squarespace Platform. Think customization is a problem? Think again. With the Squarespace Developers Platform, most agencies like RNO1 can architect meaningful and memorable digital experiences within the Squarespace environment. Concerned about user traffic and load-balancing? Not a problem. A recent eCommerce Client of ours, LOLIWARE, had the opportunity to launch an interim website experience for their upcoming debut on the hit #2 ranked US TV Show, Shark Tank. With a surge of hundreds of thousands of unique users visiting the site within a 24 hour period, Squarespace fit the bill for a custom design solution that could also handle the massive scale and volume anticipated and delivered.
But, for a moment let’s think beyond Squarespace. Let’s talk about how empowering these Super Bowl spots really are, fueling the growth of different industry brands, and reaching people (individuals and groups) on an emotional level. At its core, the Super Bowl is more than just a game, and a battle between teams. It’s a true unification of spirit and energy, of commitment and loyalty, of diversity and commonality. A moment in time to be celebrated, and as we’ve come to know, a place for advertisers and marketers to capitalize on that time.
As brand and digital enthusiasts, we see the Super Bowl as a creative launchpad for the start of the New Year. These ideas and campaigns have been percolating and brewing for many months before airing, yet it frames where we’re headed into 2017 and beyond. What customers are craving and expecting in the realm of their day-to-day lives, to how they’re interfacing and engaging with technology and digital touchpoints.
The key difference in today’s Super Bowl vs. prior years, is the rapidity of change and accessibility to technology outlets. Information is everywhere, so driving an emotional connection is hyper-critical to a brand's success, especially during the Super Bowl. The biggest question is what angle does a brand take: does it promote fun and happiness, or is its undertone serious and factual? Depending on ad campaign goals, it could even be a combination of the two working together. Regardless of the campaign angle, from our perspective, all brands should start to build The Foundation Of A Brilliant Brand Story.
From the west coast to the east coast, and all places in between, 2017’s Super Bowl will likely deliver on its promise to be nothing short of fun, fascinating and fan focused.
Yes, it’s game time.
Posted Posted by Michael Gaizutis, Founder + CXO of RNO1
RNO1 is a brand and digital agency — deep-rooted on the west coast, with a global edge. We’re WEST COAST BRANDMAKERS.