Last week, AKQA’s Group Creative Director, Ginny Golden predicted the “Super Bowl 2017 Advertising Trends” for DIVERGE. After the Super Bowl, we connected with her again to see what she thought about the, advertisements, her predictions, and more.
Here is what she had to say:
What I saw throughout was a story of unity and inclusion. I think brands wanted to show America what the real America looked like.
The commercials that got the most people talking ventured into controversial territories, like 84 Lumber, Budweiser, Air B&B and Audi. These brave brands took the risk of social media warfare by tackling politically heavy topics right now – you either loved it, or took to Twitter to call for a boycott.
The spot in this space that moved me the most was ‘Daughter’, by Audi which promotes gender pay equality. As a female working in a male dominated industry, this particularly hit home.
It asks an important question about one of the biggest social issues of today: “What do I tell my daughter?” I relished in the story juxtaposed to an event known for its hyper-masculinity, especially hearing the question coming from a male perspective since the louder voices on the issue come mainly from women. This ad is a call for progress and I believe it is one of the best this year – a true inspiration.
On the flip side, several brands used comedy, celebrities and anthropomorphic creatures as an antidote to all the controversy. You’ll definitely see some of them listed on people’s favorites list. But, for this year’s Super Bowl, social sentiment ruled over silliness. The risk payed off for brands that stuck their necks out and took a stand for something. Their viewpoints became part of our cultural conversation, earning them both praise and criticism.
