McDonald’s one-minute “Pay with Lovin’” ad, which aired during the 2nd quarter, is one of the top-scoring ads so far this Super Bowl, according to Ace Metrix, the standard in television and video advertising analytics. The ad achieved an Ace Score of 706, one of the highest Super Bowl Ace Scores of all time and 21 percent above the category norm for quick service restaurants.
“An Ace Score over 700 is about as common as a perfect game in Major League Baseball: 0.06% of all ads over the past five years have scored above 700. McDonalds has achieved Super Bowl gold, surprising and delighting consumers and changing perceptions about the fast food giant,” says Peter Daboll, CEO of Ace Metrix.
“McDonalds is on trend with messages of positivity that really resonate with consumers. For the past few years, we’ve seen a pivotal shift away from sheer shock value and slapstick humor toward emotional connectivity with consumers. We see a banner crop of ads this year – from brands like Dove and Budweiser – that are continuing to embrace this emotional connection,” he says
Other Notable Ads of First Half
Snickers’ fun take on the Brady Bunch impressed consumers, who awarded it with an Ace Score of 652, 14 percent above the category norm for candies and snacks. This ad compares favorably to last year’s Top 10 M&M’s “Delivery” ad, which achieved an Ace Score of 627
In keeping with its trend toward pulling at heart strings, Budweiser’s “Lost Dog” ad scored an admirable 652 Ace Score (34 percent above the beer ad average). Last year’s similarly themed “Puppy Love” ad was the second most effective ad of the Super Bowl, achieving an Ace Score of 681
Dove’s homage to dads scored an impressive 633, 21 percent above its category norm and Dove’s most impressive Super Bowl showing to date. Similarly with its positivity theme, Always’ “Like a Girl” ad, which aired during half time, achieved an impressive Ace Score of 636.
“Budweiser, Coca-Cola, Dove, Always, and Nissan each produced meaningful emotive creative for the first half that caused consumers to perk their ears and raise their eyebrows… and possibly shed a tear,” Daboll says.
For the second year running, Doritos’ funny “Crash the Super Bowl” ads did not break into the very top echelon of Super Bowl ads, though its “Middle Seat” spot did achieve an impressive 631 Ace Score, 11 percent over its category average and slightly under its 2014 predecessor, which appeared in the Top 10 Super Bowl ads with an Ace score of 640.
