Super Bowl 2019 was a bust for a number of reasons—some of which are in marketers’ control and others of which aren’t. It’s nobody’s fault that there were more punts than touchdowns or that the halftime show didn’t inspire viewers, but the ads and the marketing campaigns around them showed a lack of creativity—many were lackluster and unforgettable. According to Nielsen, this year’s Super Bowl scored a 44.9 overnight household rating, declining 5% year-over-year.
The game was also watched by the fewest number of people in 11 years, with only 98.2 million tuning in. This downward trend shows how difficult it is to succeed in advertising, particularly during large scale live events. The landscape is fractured and as viewers’ eyes flicker from the big screen to the screen in their hand, how are marketers supposed to keep up?