This year’s Super Bowl spotlighted diverse advertisements, which provide significant insights into current consumer spending trends. From industries investing heavily in airtime to first-time advertisers stepping into the limelight, many brands saw the value in paying $7 million for 30 seconds on the Super Bowl LVIII screen.
In terms of industry representation, food, drink, and e-commerce related commercials were particularly prominent. Evident too was a surge in ads geared towards female viewers. This trend was propelled by the likes of NYX Cosmetics and CeraVe, both L’Oreal owned businesses, placing their inaugural Super Bowl ads. Dove made a comeback after 18 years, and E.l.f. Cosmetics returned for the second consecutive year. Several non-beauty brands also featured female stars, including an Oreo ad starring Kris Jenner.
First-time advertisers were varied, spanning industries and products. Among them were BetMGM, an MGM online sportsbook, and consumer brands like Drumstick ice cream, Nerds, Lindt chocolate, and Starry Silk almond milk. Fast-food chain Popeyes and e-commerce platform Etsy also debuted.
Looking back over the past five years, some brands consistently seized Super Bowl ad opportunities. These include Bud Light, Michelob Ultra, Doritos, Pringles, Squarespace, TurboTax, T-Mobile, Universal Pictures, Hellmann’s, E*Trade, and Skechers. However, for the first time since 2014, WeatherTech, a car mat manufacturer, did not secure an ad spot.
The financial technology (fintech) sector has seen a fluctuating presence in the Super Bowl ad space since 2020. Notably, Crypto.com, Coinbase, eToro, and FTX all placed Super Bowl ads for the first time in 2022. However, the industry later faced turbulence with Bitcoin’s crash and FTX’s collapse.
The collection of the data was from several sources, such as lists of Super Bowl commercials and web articles announcing ad spots. Notably, political or religious campaigns and local/regional commercials airing in select major markets were excluded.