The Most Expensive 30-Seconds

With 106.5 million viewers, the Super Bowl championship football game is the most-viewed event on U.S. television. Sports fan or not, many people will tune in just for the standard, over-the-top new commercials. After all, as the most expensive advertisement space (30-second TV spots for Super Bowl XLV are quoted around $3 million each), and with a potential consumer base numbering in the hundreds of millions, the Super Bowl is when all companies bring out their A-Game material.

This year’s Super Bowl commercials will include a record number of auto ads, including: BMW, Chrysler, Daimler, Hyundai and even General Motors.  Audi and Mercedes-Benz are just two of the advertisers that will be joining the digital age by going beyond the 30-second commercial to include online features, social media and mobile media. According to USA Today, Mercedes-Benz is launching “The World’s First Twitter-Fueled Race,” awarding cars to a two-person team that can get the brand the most tweets and Facebook “likes.” Audi is awarding trips to fans based on who post the best – and most content – on Facebook and Twitter.

Super Bowl advertising has come a long way. According to a recent Adweek article, a 30-second ad during the first Super Bowl in 1967 cost $37,500. This year, it will cost an advertiser about $3 million. The Super Bowl showcases not only America’s best athletic performances; it demands the very same kind of performance in a commercial. For a stroll down memory lane, check out Adweek’s timeline highlighting legendary Super Bowl commercials. This timeline sparked some memorable commercials for our team as well. Some of our favorites are:

• Jennifer: EDS “Cat Herders”
• Brent: Monster.Com “Doubletake”
• Kelley: Careerbuilder.com “Monkey Interview”
• Jamie: Pepsi “YMCA Bears”
• Leslie: Bud Light “Class Mencia”

What’s your all-time favorite Super Bowl commercial?