Squarespace is no stranger to the spectacle of the Super Bowl. This year, the American website hosting-turned all-in-one platform launched its ninth Super Bowl campaign with ​​‘The Singularity’ starring actor Adam Driver. 

The in-game spot, directed by award-winning filmmaker Aoife McArdle, has Driver playing multiple versions of himself, struck by the idea that Squarespace is a website that makes websites. As he follows that line of thinking down the rabbit hole, reality itself begins to unravel, triggering a singularity event.

Ben Hughes, vice president of creative at Squarespace, is one of the brains behind ‘The Singularity’. He helps run the company’s in-house creative department, which is responsible for global advertising, brand design and content across different markets, including Australia.

Marketing spoke to Hughes for a peek behind the curtain at how a multi-million dollar Super Bowl campaign like ‘The Singularity’ comes together.

Marketing Mag: What first inspired the idea for ‘The Singularity’? How many ideas were left on the cutting room floor?

Ben Hughes: We create hundreds of ideas for each Super Bowl and a big part of the creative process is progressively whittling the field down to get to the very best one. Here, the inspiration came from our own founding story. This year marks the twentieth anniversary of Squarespace and our founder used this to pitch the company to people as “a website that makes websites”. When we heard that, we knew it would make for an incredible ad. 

MM: From idea to campaign launch, how long did it take Squarespace to create ‘The Singularity’?

BH: It was about nine months from initial briefing to final delivery. That includes all of the creative rounds to arrive at the idea, locking in the director and talent, production, post-production and trafficking. 

MM: Squarespace’s Super Bowl ads often feature A-List celebrities. This year, did you explore the option of not featuring a celebrity? Why did you choose to feature one in the end?

BH: Our brand is all about creativity and we’re lucky to be able to attract partners who are artists at the pinnacle of their crafts. Every year, we always look at some ideas that don’t involve celebrity talent, so it’s definitely not a mandate, but the combination of Adam and the Singularity script seemed to click perfectly. Fortunately, he agreed.

MM: Why was Adam Driver the right brand ambassador?

BH: We don’t really think about him as a brand ambassador. It’s more that he was the right partner to tell the story we wanted to tell. Something we realised early on about this year’s idea was that the straighter you play it, the funnier it becomes. Adam is known for his intensity as an actor, but he’s also extremely funny, and we felt like he would totally commit to the absurdity of the idea. 

MM: Do you think Super Bowl audiences will ever get tired of ads that are oversaturated with celebrities? 

BH: As long as there are Super Bowl ads, there will be celebrity Super Bowl ads. The human desire to watch famous people doing silly things is endless, not to mention that they come with their own audiences and passionate fan bases built in. 

MM: How do you characterise and then approach the Super Bowl’s audience?

BH: I think it’s the last true mass audience. It’s very rare these days for so many people to be looking at the same thing at the same time. That being said, we’re always trying to make an ad that’s the best expression of the brand, not the thing that we think the most people will like. 

MM: How do you think ‘The Singularity’ stood out among the noise of other Super Bowl ads and entertainment?

BH: I think it was both the simplest ad in the game and the most visually rich.

MM: Squarespace released the behind-the-scenes teaser ahead of the big game. What does the company hope to achieve by releasing teaser content early, rather than waiting to launch on the big day?

BH: All of the content we create for the Super Bowl is rolled out in a very deliberate way. This year, we led with our behind-the-scenes film, which we used as a talent reveal moment. It wasn’t originally designed to be a campaign teaser, but it ended up being a perfect way to bring people into the world of the campaign without giving away too much.

MM: What constitutes a successful Super Bowl ad in your eyes?  

BH: If we can make an ad that we love, that’s a great expression of the brand and that people talk about and write about, we consider that a success.

Ben Hughes

For an analysis on why Super Bowl ads are dropping earlier and feature so many celebrities, read ‘The Super Bowl tease’.

This year’s Super Bowl ads were a spectacle of celebrity cameos and big names, and perhaps there is no bigger name than that of Jesus Christ himself.

Between ads about beer, Netflix and chocolate, spectators were shocked to see Jesus’ name in lights at State Farm Stadium. 

He Gets Us, an initiative of the non-profit organisation Servant Foundation, ran one 60-second and one 30-second spot as part of its mission to “reintroduce” the masses to “the Jesus of the Bible”. 

The first ad featured a slideshow of children embracing and supporting each other in black and white. By the end of the clip, the ad’s confusing message was clarified across the screen: “Jesus didn’t want us to act like adults. He gets us. All of us.”

The second ad, called  ‘Love Your Enemies’, similarly featured a black and white montage of people in conflict with one another. The message this time was that “Jesus loved the people we hate”.

Twitter reacts

The explicitly religious ads have had mixed reception online. Some users left comments of support under a post from He Gets Us. Others derided the Servant Foundation’s links to anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ hate groups.

US Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also weighed in on Twitter. She took aim at the hefty price tag on the ads, which reportedly cost Super Bowl advertisers between USD$ 6 million to USD$ 7 million for 30 seconds.

The Super Bowl has put an end to the M&M’s spokescandy saga, confirming the controversy was a calculated PR stunt.

It all started in January, when M&M’s announced that its mascots would be put on “indefinite pause” after they had represented the brand for over two decades. Recent updates to the spokescandies to make them look more inclusive had been dogged by accusations of “wokeness” by American right-wing media – and had apparently left M&M’s with no choice but to replace the talking chocolates with comedy actor Maya Rudolph, a “spokesperson America can agree on”.

The seemingly-official announcement went viral, and ‘Maya Rudolph’ was the 13th most searched term on Google in Australia on the day of the announcement.

In the lead up to Super Bowl LVII, M&M’s continued to tease audiences online with rolling updates to the confectionary company under the rule of its new delightful – if slightly unhinged – “queen”, Rudolph. 

First was a rebrand to “Ma&Yas”, followed by the creation of new product: chocolate-coated clams. Behind the scenes, the old spokescandies were shown exploring new passions.

Spokescandies at the Super Bowl

M&M’s playfully continued the narrative on game day. Its first 30-second Super Bowl commercial depicted Maya Rudolph’s new kingdom, where loyal subjects winced at the taste of clam Ma&Ya’s and the red M&M was shown held hostage in the background. 

The second spot, which went for 15 seconds, had the old spokescandies announcing their return at a press conference.

“I’m glad to be back because this is what I was made for,” the purple M&M, originally designed to represent acceptance and inclusivity, says.

“I mean, as a walking, talking candy, my options are pretty limited.”

Tucker Carlson, a Fox News host and vocal opponent of the “woke” M&M’s, is yet to comment on the big reveal. But fellow Super Bowl advertisers Avocados From Mexico joined the conversation online with a Tweet about how avocados “make everything better” – including M&M’s.

With its big Super Bowl campaign, M&M’s confected a story that required audience investment from beginning to end. The company joins a host of other brands dropping early teasers to get more out of their multi-million dollar investments in Super Bowl advertising.

Read more about those ads here.

Cover image: M&M’s

Google Pixel appeals to the pettier side of audiences with its latest Super Bowl ad, ‘#FixedOnPixel’, released ahead of the big game next week.

Featuring cameos from comedian Amy Schumer, NBA athlete Giannis Antetokounmpo, and musician Doja Cat, the 90-second spot demonstrates how the average user can use a Google Pixel 7 to edit their photos.

#FixedOnPixel begins on a sentimental note with a slideshow of family and party photos, soundtracked by an orchestral version of Unchained Melody. 

“For years, our phones have captured our memories,” reads text appearing on the screen.

“Now it’s time to fix them.”The tone takes a turn with a record scratch and the sudden blast of Missy Elliott’s We Run This. Schumer, famous in part for comedy that draws on her dating history, brings the age-old act of cutting an ex out of a photograph into 2023 with the Pixel’s eraser tool. Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo deletes evidence of him getting dunked on, and a Doja Cat fan unblurs a hurried selfie with the singer.

“The ad continues our longstanding tradition of demonstrating the helpfulness of Google’s products and technology to solve real problems – whether they’re big or small,” says Google’s vice president of U.S. devices and services marketing Daryl Butler.

The ad brings Google Pixel’s photo capabilities to the fore at a time when smartphone companies are focussing on their camera capabilities to compete for consumer dollars. 

#FixedOnPixel is set to play during the game next week and joins a host of Super Bowl ads being released early. 

Watch other Super Bowl LVII ads that have been released early.

More Super Bowl early releases are trickling through ahead of the biggest event on the advertising calendar next Sunday 12 February (Monday 13 February in Australia).

The NFL estimated that over 208 million viewers tuned into the Super Bowl in 2022. Reaching that audience this year has cost advertisers between USD$6 million to USD$7 million for most 30-second commercials, the broadcaster Fox Sports’ EVP of ad sales told Associated Press. He also confirmed all Super Bowl ad spots officially sold out during the week of 23 January.

What can viewers expect this year? Another ‘Crypto Bowl’ is out, following the high-profile collapse of several crypto exchange companies like FTX, which advertised at Super Bowl LVI.

The 2023 teasers are once again dominated by A-listers, promoting chocolate all the way to electric vehicles. Here are the latest releases:

M&M’s rebrands as Ma&Ya’s

M&M’s has picked a grand stage for the hard launch of its newest ambassador Maya Rudolph. Mars first announced that the actor and “spokesperson American can agree on” would replace its polarising spokescandies in January – but it’s possible this might have been a Super Bowl stunt all along. A representative for the company reportedly told the New York Times that M&M’s “official long-term spokescandies” will return during the Super Bowl.

Bud Light waits on hold

Actors and spouses Miles Teller and Keleigh Sperry enjoy a beer while they dance to hold music in the 2023 Bud Light commercial. This “Easy to Enjoy” brand platform ushers in a “new era” for the brand, according to Bud Light vice president of marketing Alissa Heinerscheid, one that strips “away all the loudness and the distractions”.

Booking.com enlists Melissa McCarthy

Melissa McCarthy sings in her Super Bowl debut for the digital travel app. Despite the high production values, Booking.com’s ‘Big Game Ad’ still goes for relatability, with the comedy actor humbly wishing for “somewhere, anywhere, as long as they have childcare”.

Netflix promotes electric vehicles

Will Ferrell drives an electric vehicle (EV) between scenes on Squid Games to Stranger Things as part of a partnership between Netflix and the multinational car manufacturer General Motors. The 60-second spot aims to “give EVs the stage they deserve” and present the cars in more real-life situations.

Downy McBride

Actor Danny McBride has also rebranded himself for Downy, a fabric softener brand. After revealing himself to be the brand’s “mystery super Bowl celebrity”, McBride rides around town, heroically delivering Downy products before a comedic crash landing.

Check out other Super Bowl LVII teasers featuring Serena Williams, Rihanna, and the lead cast of Breaking Bad.