How to have fun in a mediocre matchup

Want to create your own fun on Sunday and be able to tell folks on Monday who the real winner is?  Get online and check out who’s winning and who’s fumbling in the advertising game.

A clydesdale kicking another football? Yawn.  A talking gecko?  Eh.  A wardrobe failure to sell a domain registrar?  Even that’s a little tired….

Yes, advertisers are pouring up to $3 million into :30 spots despite a sour economy and a less than riveting matchup.  To win this Sunday, advertisers need more than the favorite ad during the game.  They need a full digital strategy to maximize their returns and here’s how you can see who has the best game plan including mobile, social media, micro sites, paid and organic search.  You can bet you’ll see some fumbles from even the most well known brands.

First, well before Sunday’s kickoff, find the advertisers you like.  Ad Age has listed the known Super Bowl advertisers.  Pick 3 to 5 so as not to lose site of the actual game.

Next, check out their respective websites and see how much they’re playing up the Super Bowl and their presence.  Are they building up to a ‘surprise’ or kicking off a new campaign?  What’s going to make their spot memorable amidst all the noise?

Super Bowl related websites are no brainers.  Where the winners will separate from the losers is how they embrace innovation in their digital strategy….

Go to Twitter and look for your advertisers.  Follow the accounts you find and make note of those you don’t.  Look over the tweet activity to what people are saying and how often.

Now visit Facebook and MySpace.  Again, look for your advertisers and see what they’re doing that relates to their Super Bowl efforts, if at all.  Do they provide a compelling reason to join something or become their fan?  Is it a short lived strategy or does it have long term capabilities?  The advertiser wants your attention well past Sunday so they should be pulling out all the stops to create as many new relationships from their Super Bowl hype as possible.

iPhone or smart phone?  Try pulling up their site and see what you get.  Here’s where you’ll see some separation.  Those that have mobile friendly stes or micro sites are going to have a huge advantage as web users embrace their devices.  If the advertiser has gone to the length of building an iPhone app in conjunction with their promotion, consider putting them towards the winner column.

Google it. Some of the biggest brands have been seen on the sidelines when it comes to capitalizing on search.  When a TV ad runs, the respective web traffic skyrockets if all goes well. However, not everyone memorizes the web address at the bottom of the ad and instead default to search.   Often these searches don’t use the brand name but instead use keywords or subjects of the ad like green technology or smart phone.  Searchers are smart shoppers and they want to learn for themselves, not just from an advertiser.  Understanding a searcher’s shopping behavior and use of non-branded keywords is crucial to maximizing returns during game time.  Is your advertiser ranking on top for their related keywords? How about paid ads?  Do they have both spots covered or do you see their competition poaching their traffic?

The winning advertisers will be leveraging every aspect of the digital realm to maximize the return on their $3 million spot(s).  While we expect to see some creative digital strategies, it’s also still fun to play Monday morning quarterback and point out the ones who drop the ball.