Pepsi linked two of its major sponsorships – the NFL and The GRAMMYs – by introducing the first ‘GRAMMYs Halftime Show’ during this year’s music awards extravaganza.
For the first time ever the three-and-a-half hour long CBS telecast – which Nielson reports as drawing 28.5 million viewers (its second biggest audience since 1993) – Pepsi linked with the NFL as well as GRAMMY owner the National Acamdey of Arts & Sciences to create an ad that explored what a GRAMMYs Halftime Show might look like.
The humorous TVC featured a team of past football stars (and Super Bowl expert analysts) – from Deion Saunders using auto-tune, Terry Bradshaw singing country music and Mike Ditka riding a giant football a la Miley Cyrus’ Wrecking Ball – encouraged consumers to use the #halftime hashtag to drive social media hype around the NFL’s big game show.
A teaser ad ran on Sunday 19 January during the Seattle Seahawks v San Francisco 49ers play-off match,
whilst the full two-and-a-half minute version ran mid-way through the GRAMMYs show on 26 January.
Of course, the spot was really an innovative promotion for Pepsi’s blockbuster Super Bowl Halftime Show- which will star Bruno Mars and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers.
‘For years and years, Super Bowl halftime has been about music on sports’ biggest stage,’ says Seth Kaufman, VP Marketing at Pepsi North America.
‘We thought, ‘What if we flipped it around and Pepsi brought football to music’s biggest night?’’
Both ads from the official soft drinks partner of the NFL encourage viewers to use the hashtag #halftime across social media.
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Of course, there is a genuine synergy between the GRAMMYs and the Super Bowl Halftime Show – music. Indeed, the stars of the NFL’s big game break are regularly promoted and positioned as GRAMMY Award winners, so the two properties link neatly.
This year’s Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime show features GRAMMY award winner Bruno Mars.
Other elements of Pepsi’s Super Bowl activation during the week include #PEPCITY Celebration at Bryant Park, Pepsi#s ‘Hyped For Halftime’ experience on Super Bowl Boulevard (a 13-block stretch of New York’s Broadway), plus Pepsi and Uber’s #HalftimeAnytime Experience.
The #PepsiCity Celebration is a custom-designed dome housing several stages and performance spaces dedicated to Broadway, art, sports and culture. It switches to offering free (but ticketed through Eventbrite) performances every evening at 8pm with shows from stars such as Austin Mahone, Prince Royce and Ziggy Marley (along with food tastings created by top NY celebrity chefs like David Burke, Marc Forgione and Michael Psilakis).
The ‘Hyped for Halftime’ Experiences on Super Bowl Boulevard offer fans twin digital experiences to get them in the Super Bowl spirit. One element of the initiate is a photo experience that captures just what it feels like to run out of the tunnel and onto the field, while the second strand enables fans to record a video with musical props on the stage of the Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime Show.
Also, at Game Day Fan Plaza, Pepsi is creating a 360-degree photo experience where consumers get to be onstage as the star of their own halftime show – a ‘Live for Now’ moment captured from all angles.
Also, Pepsi is linking with Uber on a #HalftimeAnytime Experience – which enables registered users of the app a ‘halftime experience’ (which will appear as a special badge) and greets them on arrival at various New York City locations with fun surprises including music, a marching band and cheerleaders.
Super Bowl XLVIII marks the 12th consecutive year that Pepsi is the official soft drinks partner of the NFL. And all of its on-site Super Bowl activations in New York invite fans to celebrate and experience halftime to the fullest whilst also bringing the brand’s Live For Now mindset and positioning to life.
Other aspects of the brand’s activation include innovative digital and out of home advertising – such as billboards with rotating LED screens in Times Square, takeovers at transportation hubs including the Grand Central, Penn Station and Times Square subway stations and a Pepsi wrapped Times Square (“S”) shuttle Train.
As well as NYC-based out-of-home advertising, Pepsi is creating a newly constructed Pepsi sculpture just less than 40 feet long that will greet fans as they enter the Pepsi gate at MetLife Stadium.
The Super Bowl itself, of course, represents the culmination of a season-long NFL activation for PepsiCo and its brands, which include Pepsi, Doritos, Gatorade, Quaker and Sabra.
Links
GRAMMYs halftime TVC YouTube
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=
Pepsi Halftime Show Website
Pepsi Pulse
Pepsi Website
www.pepsico.com
NFL Website
