Why I Love the SuperBowl...but I don't care who's playing

Superbowl weekend; I love it.  The anticipation, the excitement, the build-up interviews, the leaks and the competitive spirit...but I'm not talking about the game.  In fact, I don't even have a clue who is playing, and if you ask me on Monday I won't know the score.

I think this man supports one of the teams playing...
cc @bostonglobe  (Photo credit: stevegarfield)

What I will be able to tell you is which ad I thought was the best.  Yes, it's the advertising I'm interested in and not the game. Staying up all night to watch a few ads? Sad?  Mm, maybe, but it has become a bit of a ritual.

Of course I know advertising is often sneered at as an industry of money-grabbing, fickle and manipulative 'media -types', and in some cases that may be true, but it's also one of the great creative forms of our time.  I deliberately don't say art as I think there are important distinctions, but the creativity displayed by those in the advertising industry is incredible, and there is no better showcase of this than the Superbowl.  Creating the most memorable Superbowl ad has become a competition between the top agencies that is so fierce it rivals that taking place on the pitch, and I thoroughly enjoy making my own judgements about the quality of the work and posting my reviews on the BrandBowl site each year.

I'm expecting to see lots of macho, male-oriented ads of course (this is the prime TV slot of the year for beer, cars and snack foods), and don't get me wrong, I despise exploitative advertising as much as the next person, so will be giving any 'sex sells' laziness short shrift; but I'm also hoping for some less formulaic, more thoughtful gems like the mini Darth Vader from VW last year (which now has over 50million YouTube views and counting). 

As a marketing lecturer it's part of my job to keep up-to-date with the industry, and I wouldn't be a teacher worth my salt if I wasn't fascinated by my subject. So, tomorrow evening I'll be sitting up with matchsticks holding my eyes open, assessing the likely impact of the big budget productions from the likes of Honda (Matthew Broderick reprising Ferris Bueller) and Chevrolet (the band 'Ok Go' doing some crazy stunts) and picking my own winners and losers.

I'll let you know on Monday...after I've caught up on my sleep...