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Pringles, M&M's return to the Super Bowl

The Super Bowl is doubtless going to look very different in 2021, given the ongoing pandemic. But that doesn’t seem to have deterred some of its most celebrated regular advertisers from planning big new commercials.

Ad Age’s Jeanine Poggi writes this morning that Mars Wrigley’s M&M’s is returning after sitting out last year’s game and will “look to make people smile during the Super Bowl after a dismal year of fear and divisiveness.” The goal of its 30-second ad via BBDO will be to “inspire people to find ways of connecting with each other,” according to the company.

Meanwhile, Jessica Wohl reports that Kellogg-owned Pringles is planning a spot via Grey that features “the hilarious consequences that occur when people get engrossed in Pringles Flavor Stacking combinations.” There will also be a focus on social media interaction, it hinted, with the intention “to showcase the fun consumers can have creating Pringles Flavor Stacks.”

To stay up to date with all the brands planning Big Game ads, bookmark our Ad Age roundup. 

Facebook bets on celebrities

Services like Cameo, the app that lets celebrities record personalized messages for users, have become incredibly popular this year, as entertainers look to connect with fans digitally during the pandemic—and monetize those interactions. Now, Facebook is getting in on the act. 

As per Bloomberg News, the social network is building a new video product that will let people pay content creators or celebrities for the chance to interact with them during a live broadcast. It’s called “Super,” and will let creators, entrepreneurs or celebrities host live, interactive video events. Viewers will be able to tip creators by buying them digital gifts, or pay to “appear” alongside a creator during the livestream to ask a question or take a selfie, according to a person familiar with the new feature. (Also important: it's being developed internally, as the Federal Trade Commission's investigation into Facebook means it could be harder for the company to acquire its rivals in future.)

Celebrity hook-ups

Speaking of celebrities, Ad Age has a roundup of the best celebrity-brand pairings of the year today, as we kick off our series of end-of-year lists.

From Travis Scott’s bestselling McDonald’s meal, and multiple ads by the ubiquitous Ryan Reynolds, to Patrick Stewart and Mark Hamill’s face-off in an ad for Uber Eats, the pandemic has resulted in a bumper year for celebrity tie-ups, writes Jack Neff. (He also points out that 2020 also saw also some “odd and unofficial” brand-celebrity pairings, like Four Seasons Total Landscaping in Philadelphia capitalizing on Rudy Giuliani’s odd choice of a venue with branded merch.)

Measuring up

The world of ad measurement is undergoing some major shifts at the moment, and the latest development comes from Samsung, which has launched a service that measures the combined impact of linear and streaming campaigns. 

As Ad Age’s Mike Juang reports, General Motors was a partner in the pilot Samsung Measurement project, which identified the effectiveness of campaigns by audience type, then provided recommendations to improve the automaker's car sales, in-target reach, buy rate and other KPIs. Samsung's news follows Nielsen's announcement Dec. 8 that it will do away with current commercial ratings by 2024, replacing them with Nielsen One, which marries linear viewing with digital impressions.

Just briefly

The Wintour of our content: Condé Nast has made Anna Wintour worldwide chief content officer and global editorial director of Vogue, giving her final say over publications in more than 30 markets around the world, reports the New York Times. Her promotion is part of a wider shakeup that gives the editorial team in New York more global oversight. 

Podcast of the day: Home fitness brand Hydrow is taking on Peloton and Mirror on the premise that rowing works nearly twice the number of muscles as running or cycling. Ad Age’s Adrianne Pasquarelli talks to Chief Commercial Officer Gretchen Saegh-Fleming about the brand's marketing strategy and a new ad campaign.

Georgia ads: Facebook will begin letting advertisers run ads targeting Georgia voters ahead of the state's January runoff elections, despite its wider political ad ban, reports Axios. Following a similar move by Google, it opens the door for more digital ads targeting voters there.

Banking on baby: Ally Bank is offering all babies born on Dec. 31 of this year $250 in a custodial savings account, writes Ad Age’s Adrianne Pasquarelli. The digital banking brand announced the initiative in an open letter to the soon-to-be-born consumers.

Faking it: Pernod Ricard Scotch Whiskey Ballantine’s explores the delicate territory of how our social media selves compare to our real selves in a new campaign out of Slap Global, the new venture from agency vets Maxi Itzkoff and Gerry Graf. As Ann-Christine Diaz writes, it features four people who meet face-to-face with hologram doppelgangers of themselves as they answer questions about their personalities and values; and the results aren’t always comfortable as they confront their own fakeness. Watch it over at Creativity. 

That does it for today’s Wake-Up Call. Thanks for reading and we hope you are all staying safe and well. 

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