Audi is back in the Super Bowl for the first time in 20 years. Why the dramatic change in strategy? Audi is starting a major initiative to position itself as a top-tier luxury brand and they see the Super Bowl as the best way to get there.
"It's time for us to not only let the experts and aficionados know about Audi; we want America to know about Audi," Audi’s CMO Scott Keogh told AdWeek.
To accomplish this, Audi will feature its $100,000+ roadster R8 in a 60 second ad that is intended to "grab into the heart and soul of the American struggle and the American entertainment business." Audi calls the R8 "our ultimate execution". Check out the film on their microsite, this is one serious automobile.
To add to the excitement, Audi only plans to run this ad once. They’ll run teaser across online video sites with subtle messages and hints to build anticipation, but don’t expect to see too much. Here’s more from Scott Keogh:
“We are going to keep our cards close to the vest until Super Bowl day actually arrives, because I think we have a dramatic message”
"I don't see any benefit to let this concept out of the bottle at this stage. I think it's something that is impactful and powerful and we want to get that 'Wow' factor during the Super Bowl."
"We want this to explode on the Web and get people talking,"
With all that Audi expects from this ad, the ad creative better be something pretty special. By “keeping their cards close to their vest” and holding so much back before the game, they are missing out on the best media opportunities. In our analysis of last year’s game, we’ve found that found that media coverage and social media discussions of Super Bowl ads drops off quickly after the game. The advertisers that leveraged the media the most before the game got the most traction in the media afterwards. For more on this analysis, you can download the abstract on our site for free.
In a related note, Toyota has also announced that they’ll be returning to the game. A Toyota spokesperson told Adweek that it will probably be for either the Sequoia SUV or the Tundra. Chevrolet and Hyundai have already announced ads.
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