It is hard to say who the biggest winner was Sunday night.
The overtime, comeback victory of the Patriots and its famous quarterback Tom Brady would likely top everyone’s list.
However, in the wake of an entertaining, well-executed performance devoid of blatant politicization, Lady Gaga is probably giving the Patriots a run for their money. Her sales exploded the day after Super Bowl Sunday.
Lady Gaga’s Super Bowl halftime show performance on Feb. 5 scored huge sales gains for the diva, according to Nielsen Music.Based on initial sales reports collected for Sunday, the diva sold about 150,000 digital albums and songs in the U.S. on Feb. 5 — an increase of a little more than 1,000 percent compared to the previous day, when she sold around 15,000 digital albums and songs.Also impressive: On Super Bowl Sunday alone, Gaga sold more songs and albums digitally than she did in the entire week ending Feb. 2 — across both physical and digital formats. In the week ending Feb. 2, Gaga sold 30,000 albums and songs, of which 26,000 were digital.
I must admit that I just purchased 5 of her songs, grateful that we weren’t “Streeped“.
On the other hand, there were clear entertainment failures. The Audi commercial, which featured “girl power” in an homage to gender justice, failed to showcase the product.
Instead, the ad’s downbeat message turned off more people than it inspired. It also drew attention to Audi’s own record on gender equality, which is mixed at best. And it highlighted the perils that come with an attempt to hitch a corporate identity to a controversial social issue. The YouTube video of the ad has logged more dislikes (59,000) than likes (47,000). “Some of that [negative reaction] comes from a perception of a manufacturer and seller of products trying to grab an issue and align with it for their own gain,” says Julie Hennessy, a marketing professor at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.
What do I tell my son? Not to buy Audi.
Finally, who was the biggest loser of the night? While the Atlanta Falcons are a leading contender, Lumber 84 dominated with its overtly political and controversial ad.
…Maggie Hardy Magerko, 84 Lumber’s CEO and the daughter of its founder, is having second thoughts after her ad’s “unexpectedly” negative response: The owner of the company insists that she voted for Trump and that the ad was inspired by his campaign chatter about a “big beautiful door” in the border wall, but that reeks of damage control in light of the outcry this spot would surely cause on the right. I’d be mighty curious to know from the Border Patrol how many legal immigrants (on a “journey toward becoming legal American citizens”) whose visas and work permits are in order typically enter the United States by wandering through the desert towards the border instead of showing up at a point of entry and presenting their papers. These two are very obviously illegal immigrants.
This marketing tip is ever-green: Insulting potential customers with your political grand-standing is never a good idea.
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