Some of the most intense head-to-head battles in today’s Super Bowl will be between ads for direct competitors.
Schick vs. Gillette razors. MasterCard vs. Visa credit cards. Levitra vs. Cialis erectile dysfunction drugs.
These battles for market share will be fought in airtime costing an average $2.3 million per 30 seconds.
Ad watchers say categories with similar products are ripe for such advertising rivalries: You can’t afford not to show up.
“When brands are pretty much the same, people will reach for the brand with most awareness,” said Thomas Cline, associate professor of marketing at Saint Vincent College’s Alex G. McKenna School of Business, Latrobe, Pa.
The huge Super Bowl audience is the mother lode of awareness. And only Anheuser-Busch, the game’s biggest advertiser, has product exclusivity. It has a deal through 2006 to be the only beer marketer.
Amy Roman, brand manager for Schick’s Quattro, said consumers are the winners.
“Because we’re going after the same consumers it leads to more marketing innovation, better prices and better products.”
Lining up today: Credit cards. Longtime Super Bowl rivals MasterCard and Visa will suit up again. Visa will promote its Olympic sponsorship, while MasterCard’s new “priceless” ad stars Homer Simpson.
MasterCard chief marketing officer Larry Flanagan said getting into the game is about the size of the audience, not the presence of Visa.
“We have a higher standard than just kicking the tar out of Visa. That’s easy,” he said, sounding like a Carolina Panther linebacker.
“We’re competing with all brands. We don’t care how we stack up against Visa, American Express or Discover.””
Razors. Schick and Gillette, currently battling in court over razor patents, will take their fight to the field. Schick has a 15-second ad, but it will run ahead of Gillette’s 60-second pitch. Why is Schick in?
“You never want the competition to have any show all to themselves,” Roman said.
Said Gillette spokesman Eric Kraus: “We’re confident that our campaign will do what we want it to do, regardless of any other spot.”
ED drugs. Of the three rivals, Viagra will sit out, but Cialis and Levitra are in. Cialis promotes its 36-hour duration, while two Levitra ads challenge consumers to test it vs. Viagra.
Both say having two companies advertising is a plus because it will help grow the $1 billion market. “It’s a great investment,” said Paula Garrett, Cialis brand manager. “It gives us a chance to raise awareness for the category and helps us differentiate our brand vs. other treatments.”
