Tom Brady might not have played in this year’s Super Bowl, but we saw some Patriot Games in Sunday’s advertising. Recent CEC research demonstrated the importance of emotional connections in driving advocacy, and at least two dueling Super Bowl advertisers tapped the concerns, pride, and exceptionalism of America to engender such support. Surely patriotism has always been a profitable message but as the economy teeters between growth and gridlock we may be seeing a surge in such sentiments.  Did Sunday offer a lesson to communicators on how to Americanize their messages?  An instant replay follows:

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By Mike Wellman

If not, maybe he or she should.  For the uninitiated, World Cup fever is here once again, and superfans around the world are getting up at the crack of dawn to watch their favorite teams compete on an international stage.  Even in the United States, where Major League Soccer is only 17 years old, conversations around Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, and Robert Green at the water cooler have become ubiquitous.  With all of this passion and chatter in the workplace when one’s team scores a goal, it’s worthwhile for CEOs—and their Comms teams—to ask themselves, “How can we ignite that same sort of support for the company’s goals?”

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For $3 million dollars per 30-second spot, Super Bowl advertisers gave us Betty White, talking babies (again), Danica Patrick (again), a Google wedding, and more late-night wars (why would Leno appear in a competitor’s commercial?), among other sophomoric hijinks. Those were my favorites in an otherwise uninspiring line-up. But even when our marketing brethren aren’t so funny, I see several ways that communicators can help their organizations get more out of any significant investment in advertising: Read More »