The Real Reason Those Super Bowl Ads Keep Getting Stranger

Every year, I look forward to Super Bowl Sunday. As a lifelong NFL fan, I love the excitement of the big game, but I have to admit — the commercials have become almost as much of a draw. I'm such a marketing geek that I even attend my alma mater Kellogg School of Management's annual Super Bowl Advertising Review webinar to analyze and critique the ads with fellow alumni.

This year, I went in with a particular expectation. If you're like me, your regular TV viewing has been increasingly dominated by pharmaceutical ads. It seems I can't watch a single program without being bombarded by commercials for medications with names that sound like they were created by randomly mashing a keyboard — Ozempic, Wegovy, Dupixent, and countless others.

So naturally, I expected the Super Bowl to reflect this trend. But when the big game arrived, the commercial breaks told a different story.

The Real Super Bowl Ad Landscape

As it turns out, those pharmaceutical companies that dominate weeknight TV don't make the same splash during the Super Bowl. Looking at the data from this year's game, consumer goods dominated with a whopping 20.5 minutes of air time — far outpacing any other category:

Media and entertainment came in second with 10.75 minutes, while pharmaceutical ads accounted for just 3 minutes — the same as automotive companies and far less than retail (5.5 minutes) or financial services (4.75 minutes).

This is particularly interesting when you consider that according to Statista, pharmaceutical companies account for about 10.1% of overall advertising spend in the U.S. — making them one of the biggest spenders across all media. Yet during the Super Bowl, they represented only about 5.6% of advertising minutes.

The Economics of Mass Attention

This disparity reveals a fascinating truth about the economics of advertising. That $7 million Super Bowl ad reaches roughly 100 million viewers — meaning it costs about 7 cents per person for 30 seconds of attention.

Contrast this with targeted digital advertising, where reaching an audience of just 10,000 people can cost upwards of $5,000 for the same 30 seconds — that's 50 cents per person. The math explains why consumer goods dominate the Super Bowl: when you're selling products that almost everyone buys (beer, chips, cars), mass marketing is actually more cost-effective than targeted advertising if you can afford the entry price.

But pharmaceutical companies? They need to reach more specific audiences. Even blockbuster drugs like Ozempic are relevant to a smaller percentage of viewers than, say, a Doritos commercial. For them, the Super Bowl's massive but undifferentiated audience doesn't justify the investment.

The Hidden Cost of Getting Noticed

This dynamic isn't limited to Super Bowl ads. The cost of getting customers' attention is skyrocketing across all channels. A decade ago, a small business could run a Google ad campaign for their local area at reasonable costs. Today, they're bidding against national chains with massive budgets for the same keywords.

The result? Even basic digital marketing costs have doubled or tripled in recent years. Social media? What used to be essentially free now requires significant investment to reach even your existing followers. Email marketing? Good luck getting through increasingly aggressive spam filters and crowded inboxes.

A New Playbook for Business Success

For business owners, this means we need to get smarter about how and when we invest in reaching customers. Understanding your customer acquisition costs isn't just about tracking advertising spend anymore — it's about recognizing the true cost of getting even a moment of someone's attention.

Meeting Customers at the Right Moment

The solution isn't just about targeting specific demographics or zip codes. It's about understanding your customer's journey and being present at the moments that matter most. This means:

• Knowing exactly when your customers start looking for solutions like yours

• Understanding where they go for information at each stage

• Being visible in the channels they trust most

• Creating content that answers their specific questions

• Building relationships that turn customers into advocates

The Power of Organic Connection

While big businesses fight over Super Bowl ad spots, small businesses have a unique advantage: the ability to build genuine connections with their customers. This isn't just feel-good advice — it's a practical strategy for surviving in a world where paid attention is increasingly expensive.

Think about how your most loyal customers found you. Chances are it wasn't through an expensive ad campaign. More likely, they came through word-of-mouth, a personal recommendation, or because they saw your consistent presence in their community.

Practical Tactics for Small Businesses

Here are specific ways to leverage organic connections:

1. Systematize Review Collection

   • Create an automated follow-up system to request reviews after purchases

   • Train your staff to ask satisfied customers for reviews

   • Respond thoughtfully to every review, good or bad

   • Highlight positive reviews in your marketing materials

2. Engineer Shareable Experiences

   • Create Instagram-worthy moments in your physical space

   • Design packaging or delivery experiences that customers want to share

   • Develop signature products or services that stand out from competitors

   • Host events that bring customers together around shared interests

3. Build a Community Presence

   • Participate in local events that align with your brand values

   • Collaborate with complementary businesses on cross-promotions

   • Support causes that matter to your customer base

   • Create content that addresses local interests and concerns

4. Leverage Customer Data Effectively

   • Track how your best customers found you

   • Analyze which marketing activities bring your highest-value clients

   • Focus resources on channels with the best return on investment

   • Use customer insights to refine your messaging and offerings

You might never see your business advertised during the Super Bowl, but that's okay. Your success doesn't depend on reaching 100 million people at once. It comes from showing up consistently for the customers who matter most to your business, building trust through genuine relationships, and being there at the moments when they need you most.

That's a game plan any business can execute, no $7 million ad spot required.