A "Super" Opportunity Missed

During the past few days we have witnessed the one time each year that press and advertising meld. The topic which brings these two normally opposing teams together is the commercials aired during the Super Bowl. To many in marketing, including me, the action of press and advertising joining forces is amazing. However, this has become a cultural phenomenon. The "Super Bowl commercial watch" is as big as the game. To some, the commercials are more important than the game.

What's up with that?

When I sold television advertising, clients often commented to me about the cost of the Super Bowl commercials, which this year was three million for thirty seconds. Unable to grasp paying that much for that little a time, these clients were shocked. They thought that the dollar outlay was foolish. They couldn't believe that a business could reap enough from the ad to make spending three million worthwhile. "Why would someone do that?" they asked.

I replied, "Because they get more than the normal thirty seconds."

First of all, they get thirty seconds to sell to the largest audience of the year. Although some viewers may be taking a break during commercials, with that large an audience you have a good chance to reach more people than at any other time.

Second, before the game the press anticipates the commercials and gives them lots of buildup. Last Friday the Today Show had a significant segment previewing the commercials with two experts commenting on them. "In general," one noted, "this year's commercials are more pragmatic. Many are promoting Web sites, such as monster.com and carrerbuilder.com. Denny's has a surprise, which we cannot disclose, and Pedigree takes a different tack on adopting a dog by never showing one in the commercial."

Although they cannot show more than five seconds of any commercial in their sneak peeks, the attention drawn to the commercials by the news segments feeds the viewers’ desire to see them. No other commercials get this buildup. The buildup permeates all media: online, radio, and print. The commercials may air on one network, but all media cover them.

Third, after the game the talk about these commercials continues. Viewers are able to vote online for their favorite. Coworkers debate which one they liked best. The press spends much of Monday reviewing and discussing the fans' favorites, the critics' favorites, and the anchors' favorites. In fact, once a commercial has aired on the Super Bowl, it has the potential to be forever a part of the media's Super Bowl coverage. A television show, The Greatest Super Bowl Commercials, aired for one hour last Friday. This gives a company with a good commercial an opportunity to get that commercial aired again and again and again several times every year around the Super Bowl for no additional dollar outlay.

Think about it. Can you think of any other commercial which receives this amount of attention from all the press and all the country for that amount of time?

In light of this attention, why don't local businesses prepare special commercials for the Super Bowl and get local press coverage about their commercials? The "Super" opportunity is certainly there. Local press would love to pick up a story about a local business which took the extra effort to prepare a "Super Bowl" caliber commercial.

This doesn't happen because local businesses do not know how to use publicity, much to their detriment. Although this is the only "Super" opportunity, local businesses have many other press opportunities that they miss, too.

Which of them have you missed?

What Subjects Do You Have of Interest?

I heard a news report a couple of days ago that “unlike upscale stores, Wal-Mart reported an increase in profits during the past month of 10%.” The reporter made a big deal about how this means that more people are shopping at Wal-Mart, even in this down economy. Since reports of increases are rare these days, this news story continued to be big news and was the lead story of every broadcast, repeated frequently throughout the day.

As the day progressed, reporters felt compelled to explain Wal-Mart’s increase and offered that it was due to more sales of groceries. Now I don't know precisely what contributed to Wal-Mart's increase in profits. I can take a guess. What I can tell you is that these reporters do not know the difference between profit and revenue. A business having an increase in profit does not mean that there was a corresponding increase in revenue. While there could be an increase in revenue leading to an increase in profits, there could just as easily be no increase in revenue. The business may have cut expenses and had profits rise. Since Wal-Mart bases much of its profitability on its distribution system, something as simple as gas prices decreasing could have significantly contributed to a rise in profits. Knowing the margin of grocery items, I strongly doubt that a rise in grocery sales raised profits to that degree.

Whatever the cause for Wal-Mart's increased profitability, take a look at how much Wal-Mart gained from sending out a press release telling the news media about it. Wal-Mart dominated the news for a twenty-four hour cycle, and the message communicated by the news was that more people are shopping at Wal-Mart. According to the implications by the media, during these economic times more shoppers are turning to Wal-Mart. As consumers get this message, they will be inclined to think, "Hey, I'd better shop there, too!"

The publicity personnel at Wal-Mart knew that reporting an increase of anything in this economy would get the news media's attention. They selected the right time to send a press release. They also selected the right subject. Furthermore, they knew that, due to Wal-Mart’s size, when they sent a release, all news media paid attention. I suspect that they also knew that most reporters don't know the difference between profits and revenues. They knew that the news media would get excited about an increase in any figures from any business, especially one of Wal-Mart’s notoriety. Thus, they sent a release.

Most small businesses do not send press releases. They do not tap into what Wal-Mart did. They do not realize that they, too, could get coverage by the press. While the press normally would not cover business increases, in this economy they do because what is happening to businesses is of interest to the public. Right now, the health of businesses is main news. While you may not have an increase in revenues or profits to report, you do have something that is of interest to the public and, therefore, the media. I’m not talking about a subject near and dear to your heart, such as making more sales, but a subject of interest to the public. That includes such subjects as the environment, the weather, and ways to live more easily and simply. Seasonally, the holidays and winter are also of interest. This is a very brief and small list. In reality, the subjects are endless.

Look around your business. What subjects do you have that are of interest to the public? Identify them, write a release, and send it to the media.