The Budweiser Clydesdales spot was the most engaging
commercial in the 2013 Super Bowl, according to a real-time survey conducted by
Frank N. Magid Associates and React Labs that measured consumer engagement.
Filling out the top five were Kia's "Babylandia", SodaStream,
Dodge/Ram's "Farmer" and one from E-Trade.
Nearly 400 consumers ages 17 to 67 were polled using mobile
technology that measured their "engagement, attitudinal reaction and
activation," according to the survey's authors, throughout the Super Bowl
broadcast. The React Labs technology enables users to react to an event moment
by moment.
The Clydesdale spot, which shows a rancher nurturing the
horse from birth until maturity, followed by an emotional reunion between the
two years later, was easily the top performer in the study. "The strong
emotional connection, driven by a strong musical track, clearly drew in our
respondents," it read.
"This real-time engagement gave us a terrific window
into consumer engagement with the biggest television event of the year,"
says Bill Day, executive director at Magid Associates. "Our panelists gave
us great information about which ads they liked, and which ads made them want
to engage with the brands."
The bottom five spots were, in order, Subway's
"Februhuh"; Samsung's "Next Big Thing," which starred Paul
Rudd and Seth Rogen; GoDaddy.com's "Perfect Match"; Subway's "Jared"
and Wonderful Pistachios' "Gangnam" spot, featuring the Korean
performer Psy.
"Subway's blooper driven 'Februhuh' spot missed the
mark with consumers, eliciting high levels of 'blah' and 'dislike' reactions
across our sample," read the survey. "Samsung's late-game 'Next Big
Thing' spot never quite gained any real traction with our panel, leaving
consumers confused and drifting through the end of the spot. Neither of these
spots showed any strong effect on driving new sales for either of their brands."
Spots aside, Beyoncé's halftime performance drew a mixed
reaction. "Consumers responded well to the Destiny's Child reunion, but
they appeared put off by the over-the-top graphics and the more extreme staging
elements," said the survey.
