In a reversal, Wix.com will eschew the upcoming Super Bowl in favor of digital advertising.
The website builder, which has advertised in the Super Bowl since 2015, has decided not to return to the next big game, on Feb. 4, 2018, says Chief Marketing Officer Omer Shai.
Wix.com increased its TV ad spending to $28 million in 2016 from $18 million in 2015, according to Kantar. But it has changed course entirely this year.
Wix.com has moved away from TV, Shai says, adding that it stopped advertising on TV in the second quarter and has no plan to buy TV in 2018. It is focused instead on digital campaigns and working with influencers to promote the brand.
Wix has been hiring celebrities and influencers such as model Karlie Kloss, YouTubers Rhett and Link and comedian James Veitch.
The decision comes after Wix in June introduced Code, a product that is geared toward more advanced web designers and developers. Shai says instead of reaching the mass audience that the Super Bowl delivers, Wix is looking to show off the new product's qualities to targeted designers and developers.
The company has also been expanding its in-house marketing capabilities, still the source for all its advertising.
Still, Wix may not be ignoring the Super Bowl entirely. Shai says the company is still deciding whether it will run a digital campaign in conjunction with the big game.
In Super Bowl LI, Wix.com brought in Jason Statham and Gal Gadot for an action-packed spot. The year prior, Wix partnered with DreamWorks Animation for a spot that also promoted "Kung Fu Panda 3," which riffed off memorable campaigns from Budweiser and Old Spice.
The first Wix Super Bowl ad featured NFL legends Brett Favre, Terrell Owens, Franco Harris and Emmitt Smith as entrepreneurs who watch their respective business endeavors bust out thanks to the company's intuitive web-development platform.
That year, the marketing agency MerkleRKG awarded Wix for its post-game social media strategy, pointing to the company's follow-up efforts across various digital platforms, which helped maximize the effectiveness of its Super Bowl buy.
