Super Bowl ads are a key feature of the All-American gladiatorial football experience, with an estimated 115 million viewers in 2023. And thanks to powerful Super Bowl voice overs, witty scriptwriting, and heartwarming storytelling, they’ve become highly-anticipated events in their own right. Their multi-million-dollar budgets also mean that the best Super Bowl ads can feature everything from George Clooney to Amazon’s Alexa. So, what’s the secret to success?
At Voice123 – where you’ll find the best commercial voice actors – we understand the impact of engaging voices in advertising. So, in this post, we’ll cover what are Super Bowl ads, the best Super Bowl ads of all time, how much are Super Bowl ads, and how an epic NFL voice over can inspire your next video project.
Are you ready to kick off the ultimate showtime with the best Super Bowl ads 2024?
What are Super Bowl ads?
Super Bowl ads are 30-60 second high-profile, theatrical commercials that air during the annual NFL championship game in the U.S. They’re known for their cinematic quality, innovative concepts, and celebrity cast. They generally feature diverse products, brands, and services with humor, ingenuity, special effects, and celebrity endorsements. The best Super Bowl ads have become so popular that some companies pre-release their ads online before the final game to generate commercial buzz.
Some of the best in 2023 focused on product or service promotion, like PopCorners: Breaking Good, which featured Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul, and Dunkin’ Donuts: Drive-Thru with voice overs by Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez to create brand awareness. With unbelievable planning and creativity, NFL ads have become the most-watched and talked-about commercials each year. Let’s explore a few of the best.
The best Super Bowl ads of all time
- Apple’s 1984 (1984) ad adapts Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell’s novel. Ridley Scott directed it with bold, striking imagery to introduce Apple’s Macintosh. It’s considered the greatest Super Bowl ad and is included in the Clio Awards Hall of Fame.
- Coca-Cola’s Hey, Kid, Catch (1979) is the heartwarming story of “Mean Joe Greene,” a footballer who shares a Coke with a young fan and tosses his jersey as a thank you. With its touching NFL voice over, it won a Clio Award for being one of the best TV ads in 1979.
- Budweiser’s Whassup (1999) showed friends greeting each other with “Whassup?” Its exaggerated Super Bowl voice overs humor made the phrase a cultural phenomenon. It was later parodied in Scary Movie and became a recognized punchline on TV talk shows.
- Doritos commercial (2010) featured two men getting into a fight at a gym. The fight erupts when a gymgoer steals a bag of cherished Doritos crisps. The ad became one of the most watched TV ads of all time, with an estimated 116.2 million viewers.
- Amazon – Alexa Loses Her Voice (2018) is a celeb-packed ad featuring not-so-likable replacements when Alexa loses her voice. Gordon Ramsay, Rebel Wilson, Cardi-B, and Anthony Hopkins try to answer simple user questions with hilarious results.
Now, let’s look more at how much they cost!
How much are Super Bowl ads?
Super Bowl ads 2023 cost $6.5 million, but their cost in 2024 could be $7 million. This is a $1.5 million increase from 2021 when the most expensive Super Bowl ads cost $5.5 million. They usually rise in cost annually because the Super Bowl is one of the most-watched annual TV and radio broadcasts in over 130 countries. It reaches over 200 different TV stations and airs on almost 500 radio stations. Making it one of the best ad platforms worldwide. But how can nifty football voice overs impact your projects?
The power of voice overs in Super Bowl ads
NFL voice overs are a vocal style that you can adapt to different video, radio, and TV commercials. Super Bowl voice overs convey passion and sincerity, which makes them a strategic storytelling tool companies can use to stir viewers’ thoughts and emotions. Think of the reach of the eTrade – Baby ad. While the adorable on-screen toddler pulls at heartstrings, the intriguing football voice overs audiences hear convince them that the company is looking out for their best interests. The ad was so successful that eTrade signed more new accounts than ever, and the baby became a Super Bowl ads icon. Looking to boost your ads? Check out the fab football voice overs on Voice123.
Final thoughts
So, folks, Super Bowl ads are iconic commercials that push the boundaries of innovation and entertainment. And year after year, these short advertisements with impressive football voice overs spark conversations long after the final touchdown. So, use revolutionary advertising like Apple’s 1984, Coca-Cola’s Hey, Kid, Catch, Budweiser’s Whassup, the Doritos commercial, and Amazon’s Alexa Loses Her Voice to inspire your future projects.
And when you’re ready to recreate your own NFL voice over inspired ads, Voice123 has everything you need. Use our free voice over script tools to write a chart-topping narrative and pair it with epic voice actors from Voice123. Or you can work with our unique Managed Services team, and they’ll handle your entire project from start to finish.
It’s time to create your own playbook of the best football voice overs in Super Bowl history!
FAQs
These are Budweiser’s heartwarming “Puppy Love” ad and Apple’s iconic “1984” commercial announcing the arrival of the Macintosh computer.
The cost of a Super Bowl ad in 2023 was $6.5 million. For 2024, it’s expected to be $7 million.
This is Fizz-A-Lot’s soda commercial. It featured aliens mistaking the fizzy drink for a fuel source. The ad’s chaotic slapstick humor and witty one-liners kept global viewers entertained.
The best ad based on public opinion was Forever, created by the pet food company The Farmer’s Dog.