Can’t Run a Super Bowl Ad?
For food brands, the Super Bowl remains the most visible advertising moment of the year. A single 30 second spot can place a brand at the center of popular culture overnight, spark conversation, and generate headlines far beyond the game itself. Super Bowl advertising generates a high level of engagement, with over 123 million viewers in 2024, making it a significant marketing opportunity. Advertisers have typically used Super Bowl commercials to build awareness for their products among a wide audience.
The cost of a 30-second ad during the Super Bowl has increased significantly over the years, reaching around $7 million in 2022. For the 2026 event, a 30-second slot is expected to cost approximately $8 million. NBCUniversal is already sold out of ad space for Super Bowl LX at this price point due to surging demand.
Super Bowl LX will feature a matchup between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots, and will take place on February 8, 2026. The 2026 Super Bowl ads are expected to focus on humor to distract viewers from economic concerns, making Super Bowl LX a major platform for high-profile advertisements and brand visibility.
But that visibility comes at a cost that has become increasingly disconnected from how most food brands actually operate.
Key Takeaways
- Super Bowl ads deliver scale, but at extreme cost
- Food purchases are habitual, not event driven
- Not every Super Bowl viewer is a buyer
- Choosing your days beats choosing 30 seconds on a Sunday night in February
- $100,000 can kickstart / fund a real video strategy
- Retargeting is where efficiency is created driving ROAS
- Growth comes from consistency, not spectacle
Super Bowl media placement alone now typically sits between $8 and $10 million. That figure does not include creative development, production, talent, post production, or extended media amplification. It takes a significant amount of money to secure a Super Bowl ad, reflecting the financial commitment required. Ad slots are sold at premium prices, and in 2026, a 30-second slot can cost as much as $10 million. On average, brands can expect an additional $1–3 million for a modest production, and $3–5 million or more for celebrity-led or cinematic executions, once talent fees, music rights, editing, legal clearances, and distribution extensions are factored in. Advertisers compete intensely for these slots, and all available slots are typically sold out well in advance of the game.
In practice, this means many Super Bowl campaigns carry an all-in investment of $10–15 million, concentrated into a single creative moment. The average cost of a 30-second commercial during the Super Bowl increased from $37,500 in 1967 to around $8 million in 2026, and the average cost increased by 87% between 2008 and 2016.
For small to medium sized food brands, and even for many national challenger brands, this raises a more practical question.
Is one night, one Super Bowl ad, and one burst of attention really the smartest way to grow a food product? The average return on investment (ROI) for Super Bowl ads was estimated at $5.20 for every dollar spent in 2023, driven by increased brand recall and traffic. However, there are concerns that increased sales do not always recoup the high cost of buying the ad time.
The Positives of Running a Super Bowl Ad
Despite the whopping cost, a Super Bowl ad does offer benefits that few other advertising moments can replicate. Super Bowl commercials have become a cultural phenomenon, generating widespread discussions, debates, and even controversies that reflect societal trends and issues. It delivers unmatched reach in a single live event, with audiences that actively watch and discuss commercials rather than ignore them. The cultural significance of the Super Bowl means ads often become shared conversation points, talked about at viewing parties, in workplaces, and in the media in the days that follow. For brands with the budget and ambition, a strong Super Bowl execution can create instant legitimacy, signal scale, and position the brand alongside the biggest players in the market.
Celebrity appearances and endorsements are now a hallmark of Super Bowl commercials, with over 60% of ads in 2024 featuring celebrities—up from about 34% in 2015. These high-profile celebrity endorsements help attract attention and enhance brand recognition. Super Bowl commercials are also known for their high-profile celebrity cameos, which make brief but memorable appearances to boost the appeal and memorability of the ads. The most memorable commercials often achieve high rankings in post-game surveys and media coverage, influencing how viewers remember both the ad and the brand. Ads are often ranked based on their popularity, viewership, and cultural impact, with high-ranking ads achieving greater post-game exposure. Super Bowl commercials also spotlight brands and even small businesses, giving them prominent national visibility and elevating their recognition on a massive stage. When done well, it can elevate brand perception and deliver long term awareness that extends well beyond the game itself. Several Super Bowl commercials have become iconic due to their quality, unpredictability, humor, and use of special effects.
Humor and emotional storytelling are key strategies in Super Bowl commercials, helping to create memorable experiences and lasting impressions. Humor is a prevalent strategy in Super Bowl ads, helping to distract viewers from their concerns and create a memorable experience. Apple’s “1984” set the standard for high-production, narrative-driven ads, marking a shift from simple product pitches to high-budget storytelling that emphasizes emotional engagement. The commercial was meticulously written and storyboarded, setting a new benchmark for narrative-driven advertising. Successful Super Bowl commercials often go viral, leveraging the game’s massive audience for additional online exposure, and are characterized by their high production quality, humor, nostalgia, and emotional resonance. The high viewership and diverse audience reached by Super Bowl commercials make them a prime platform for brand awareness campaigns.
That is the upside. The challenge is that these benefits come from scale and spectacle, not from efficiency or precision.
Super Bowl Ads Are Out of Reach for Local and Regional Brands
One part of the Super Bowl conversation that often gets overlooked is scale. Super Bowl advertising is fundamentally a national broadcast buy, designed for brands with nationwide distribution and mass market reach. The cost structure reflects that reality.
For local and regional food brands, a national Super Bowl ad would almost never be considered. Paying for exposure across the entire country makes little sense when a product is sold in specific states, cities, or retail footprints. The economics simply do not align with how these businesses operate or grow.
Even for strong regional brands, the idea of investing eight figures into a single national moment is disconnected from commercial reality. The majority of viewers reached would never encounter the product in store, making the spend inherently inefficient.
Targeted video strategies, by contrast, allow local and regional food brands to concentrate investment exactly where it matters. Spend can be focused on core markets, real buyers, and actual distribution areas, ensuring every impression has the potential to influence a purchase.
This is why the question is rarely whether a local or regional food brand should run a Super Bowl ad.
It is why that option is almost never on the table in the first place.
The Risk of Compressing Everything Into 30 Seconds for Viewers
Food is not a discretionary, once a year purchase. It is habitual, routine driven, and tied to everyday behavior. People buy food when they are planning meals, shopping for groceries, topping up mid week, or deciding what to cook or order for dinner.
A Super Bowl ad compresses all potential value into a single 30 second window on one Sunday evening. It’s hard to make a lasting impact in just 30 seconds, especially when competing for attention with so many other brands.
Once that ad airs, there is no ability to optimize delivery, adjust messaging, or reinforce performance. The creative is locked. The audience is fixed. The outcome is largely irreversible. There are concerns that the high cost of Super Bowl ads may not be recouped by increased sales, making the investment risky for many brands.
That model made sense when broadcast television dominated attention and reach could not be replicated elsewhere. Today, viewing behavior looks very different.
Audiences are fragmented across streaming platforms and on demand environments. Attention is spread across days and screens, not concentrated in one place, even during the biggest game of the year. Can a single Super Bowl ad really leave a lasting impression, or is it more effective to build ongoing campaigns that reinforce your message over time?
Choosing Your Days Instead of One Night
Choosing your days means spreading video investment across the moments that actually matter for food purchasing. By spreading out ad investment, brands create the opportunity to engage audiences at multiple touchpoints, maximizing brand awareness and commercial impact beyond just one high-profile event.
With Connected TV and online video formats, food brands can run campaigns:
- Across multiple weekends
- During weekday evenings when families are deciding what to cook
- Around grocery shopping days
- Across seasonal food moments
- Before and after major events like the Super Bowl when attention remains high but inventory costs are lower
Brands are turning to updated strategies that move away from relying on a single big moment, instead focusing on ongoing engagement and adaptability.
This turns video advertising from a single gamble into a sustained presence.
Instead of hoping a message lands once, brands can reinforce it over time. Instead of one creative execution, brands can test and evolve multiple versions. Instead of a single spike, brands build consistency.
For food brands, consistency is not a nice to have. It is how growth actually happens.
The trend of releasing updated ads and teasers online days before the Super Bowl has transformed the pre-game experience into an event in itself, giving brands even more ways to connect with audiences ahead of the big game. Increasingly, brands use teaser shows—short preview clips—to build anticipation for their Super Bowl commercials and generate buzz before the full broadcast.
Local Advertising: Winning Big in Your Own Backyard
For food brands, sometimes the biggest wins come from focusing on the local community. Local advertising allows brands to build a stronger relationship with customers by speaking directly to their preferences, traditions, and sense of place. H-E-B’s Super Bowl commercial is a standout example: by celebrating their iconic tortillas and Texas roots, the brand created a commercial that resonated deeply with local viewers and inspired pride among their loyal customers.
This personalized approach helps brands stand out in a crowded market. By highlighting what makes their products unique to a specific region or community, food brands can foster loyalty and turn customers into advocates. Local advertising also provides valuable insights into customer preferences, allowing brands to tailor their messaging and product offerings in a way that national campaigns simply can’t match. In the end, focusing on your own backyard is a powerful way to help your brand grow, strengthen customer relationships, and make a lasting impact where it matters most.
What $100,000 Represents in Context
To put the economics into perspective, the average cost of a 30-second Super Bowl ad is around $8 million in 2026, making a $100,000 budget just over 1% of the cost of a single Super Bowl media placement.
Yet from a video advertising perspective, that fraction of the budget unlocks a completely different strategy built around relevance, frequency, and timing, with added value in the form of targeted reach, flexibility, and measurable outcomes that traditional Super Bowl ads can’t match.
Hypothetically, What Could You Do With a $100,000 Video Ad Budget?
A $100,000 video budget can realistically support a focused, high quality video strategy built around modern viewing behavior.
Connected TV
With CTV CPMs commonly ranging between $20 and $40 depending on targeting and inventory, a $100,000 investment could deliver approximately:
- 2.5 to 5 million Connected TV impressions
- Big screen exposure across streaming environments
- Delivery concentrated in evening viewing hours
- Campaign duration spread across several weeks
- The rewards of targeted CTV advertising include better ROI and increased customer engagement, as ads reach the most relevant audiences.
- Brands can learn from real-time campaign data, optimizing their strategies and creative for maximum impact during the campaign.
Online Video
Online video placements that are 100 percent viewable can support:
- High impact in feed or in article video environments
- Strong completion rates due to guaranteed viewability
- Delivery alongside food, lifestyle, and content environments
- Frequency controls to ensure repeated exposure
- Digital campaigns can incorporate features like a preference picker, allowing customers to customize their experience and increasing relevance for each viewer.
Commercial Production on a Smarter Scale
The world of advertising has changed, and food brands no longer need to rely solely on big-budget TV spots to reach the masses. With the rise of streaming, YouTube, and on-demand TV, brands can now create commercials that are tailored for different platforms and optimized for performance. Shorter videos work perfectly for social media and YouTube, capturing attention quickly and driving engagement, while longer-form content can be released on TV or streaming services to tell a deeper brand story.
Taking a smarter approach to commercial production means using data and analytics to track how each video performs, then making real-time adjustments to maximize return on investment. Brands can test different creative ideas, measure which messages resonate with viewers, and refine their approach to get the best results. This flexibility allows food brands to reach their audience wherever they are—whether they’re watching on a computer, TV, or mobile device—and ensures that every advertising dollar is working harder. By embracing smarter production and distribution strategies, food brands can boost performance, stretch their budgets further, and make a bigger impact in today’s fast-moving digital world.
Why Retargeting Changes the Economics Entirely for Advertisers
If we were running this strategy, the budget would be deliberately split 50 percent prospecting and 50 percent retargeting.
Prospecting introduces the food brand to new, relevant households using Connected TV and online video. This layer is about reach and discovery, focused on grocery buyers and audiences already engaged with food and cooking content. It establishes awareness and creates the initial exposure needed to enter consideration.
Retargeting is where efficiency is created. Retargeting strategies are supported by robust data and advanced technology, ensuring that brands can precisely reach audiences who have already shown interest.
Instead of paying repeatedly to find new viewers, online video allows the brand to reappear in front of people who have already shown a signal of interest, including:
- Viewers who were exposed to the Connected TV ad
- Households that completed a video view
- Audiences who have already engaged with the brand message
This approach concentrates spend on relevance rather than volume. It increases frequency with the right person, reduces wasted impressions, and reinforces memory across multiple days.
Retargeting turns video advertising into a sequence of exposures, not a single impression. For food brands, where purchase decisions are habitual and familiarity driven, that sequencing is what moves a brand from being seen to being chosen.
Measurement Expectations Matter
One of the advantages of a Connected TV and online video strategy is that success is measured realistically. Instead of chasing overnight sales spikes, food brands can track reach against grocery buyers, frequency over time, completion rates, and exposure across real purchase cycles. This creates a clearer view of what is working, where the message is landing, and how often the brand is being seen by the people who actually make buying decisions. Over time, this level of measurement supports smarter optimization and more confident budget decisions.
In a Household of Four, Only One Person Buys the Groceries
When a family of four sits down to watch the Super Bowl together, all four viewers count toward the audience number. From a broadcast perspective, that is four impressions delivered at once.
But from a food brand’s perspective, those four impressions are not equal.
In most households, one man is the primary grocery decision-maker. He decides what goes on the shopping list, which brands are trusted, what gets reordered, and what ultimately ends up in the trolley or cart. The remaining viewers may influence preferences or express opinions, but they are not the ones making the final purchase decision.
This creates a fundamental inefficiency in mass broadcast advertising for food brands.
A Super Bowl ad pays equally for every viewer in the room, even though only one of them is likely to act on the message. Before factors like distribution, price point, or category relevance are even considered, a large portion of impressions are already misaligned with the person who actually buys the product. And sometimes, the thing that really tips the scale is how the grocery decision-maker goes about making those choices—it’s often a quick, habitual thing rather than a deeply considered process.
Targeted video strategies change this dynamic.
By combining prospecting with retargeting, food brands can increase the likelihood that the same grocery decision maker sees the message multiple times, across multiple days, and in contexts that align with real purchase behavior. Instead of one shared viewing moment, the brand earns repeated exposure with the person who matters most. Recommendations from a neighbor can also play a significant role, as people often trust suggestions from those in their community when making purchase decisions.
This repetition is critical for food. Most purchases are not impulsive. They are habitual. They are made quickly, often without deep consideration, and are driven by familiarity and mental availability.
The difference is not whether the ad is enjoyed in the living room.
It is whether the brand is remembered when the shopper reaches the shelf, scrolls a grocery app, or builds their weekly order.
That is where food advertising delivers real value.
Why Frequency Beats Flash for Food Brand Customers
Food brands do not win through surprise alone. They win through familiarity.
Most grocery purchases are low consideration. Shoppers rely on habit and recognition. A prospecting and retargeting loop builds mental availability across real purchase cycles.
A Super Bowl ad may be memorable, but it’s tough for a single spot to compete with the effectiveness of sustained, repeated exposure.
A sustained, retargeted video strategy is remembered when decisions are made.
Choosing Growth Over Headlines
The Super Bowl delivers spectacle and cultural moments.
But for most food brands, growth comes from consistency, relevance, and repetition.
A $100,000 video strategy built on Connected TV, 100 percent viewable online video, and a balanced prospecting and retargeting approach allows food brands to choose their days, reach real buyers, and reinforce their message across real purchase cycles.
For food brands focused on sustainable growth rather than headlines, not running a Super Bowl ad is not a compromise.
It is often the smarter strategy.
Media Engagement: Building Lasting Connections Beyond the Big Game
The Super Bowl isn’t just the biggest night in sports—it’s a global event that brings together millions of viewers, turning living rooms into stadiums and commercials into cultural touchstones. For advertisers, the Big Game is a rare opportunity to reach the masses, and the best Super Bowl commercials are more than just ads—they’re moments that spark conversation, laughter, and even a few tears.
This year, brands leaned into humor, celebrity cameos, and heartfelt storytelling to make a deeper connection with their audience. Lady Gaga’s appearance in a Super Bowl ad was a standout, showing how a world-class performer can elevate a brand’s message and create instant buzz. Humor remained a powerful tool, with ads featuring relatable moments—like a man sharing a meal with friends or neighbors—helping viewers see themselves in the story. These touches of comedy and camaraderie make the message stick long after the game ends.
Newcomers also made waves. Ro, a healthcare company, released its first Super Bowl ad, using the spotlight to highlight accessibility and convenience in healthcare. The ad’s approachable tone resonated with viewers, showing that even tough topics can be made relatable and engaging. Meanwhile, Andy Samberg brought his signature humor to a commercial that was released on YouTube before the game, proving that the right mix of celebrity and timing can generate excitement and anticipation well ahead of kickoff.
Advertisers are also getting smarter about how they engage customers. Expedia’s big game commercial used a clever stunt and a preference picker, letting customers tailor their travel experience—a nod to the growing demand for personalization. Other brands focused on health and wellness, weaving in themes like fiber and rewards to show how their products fit into a healthier lifestyle. One wedding-themed ad, complete with a memorable soundtrack, stood out for its emotional storytelling, reminding viewers that the best commercials are often the ones that feel like a mini-movie.
The NFL and broadcasters like NBC have embraced new ways to reach audiences, using streaming platforms and social media to extend the conversation beyond the TV screen. The Hollywood Reporter noted that this year’s Super Bowl commercials were more focused on building relationships and telling stories, rather than just showcasing products. As soon as the ads aired, viewers took to social media to share their favorites, debate rankings, and keep the buzz going long after the final whistle.
In today’s world, making a lasting impression means meeting customers where they are—on TV, streaming, YouTube, and every device in between. The Super Bowl remains a unique opportunity for brands to step into the spotlight, but the real winners are those who use humor, heart, and innovation to build a relationship that lasts well beyond game day. As we look forward to next year’s Super Bowl, one thing is clear: the hard work, creativity, and dedication that go into making these commercials will continue to shape the way brands connect with viewers around the world.
