WHAT THE DATA SAY: 69% want funny, not patriotic or purpose-driven ads in 2024 Super Bowl

By: Ray Day

CONTACT:

Ray Day
ray.day@stagwellglobal.com 

We wanted to share our latest consumer and business insights, based on research from Stagwell. Among the highlights of our weekly consumer sentiment tracking:

IMMIGRATION OVERTAKES INFLATION AS AMERICANS’ TOP CONCERN

Immigration has overtaken inflation as the top concern among Americans, according to our most recent poll with the Center for American Political Studies at Harvard University.

• 35% list immigration as their top concern among an array of issues, with inflation a close second (32%).
• Inflation, however, remains the issue affecting Americans personally. In fact, 38% say inflation affects them directly, compared with 17% who cite immigration as affecting them personally.
• Republicans (85%) and independents (71%) want to see tougher border enforcement, while Democrats are split 50-50.
• Overall, 30% of Americans say the country is on the right track (down from 32% a month ago), and 31% say the economy is on the right track (down from 33% a month ago).

HEART DISEASE MISDIAGNOSED BY CONSUMERS

More than half of U.S. adults don’t know that heart disease is the leading cause of death, despite its 100-year reign, based on our Harris Poll survey with the American Heart Association.

• 51% did not correctly identify heart disease as the leading cause of death in the U.S., while 16% said they didn’t know the leading cause.
• 18% list cancer as the top cause of death of people in the U.S.
• 46.7% of U.S. adults have high blood pressure, yet only 38% of those with high blood pressure are unaware that they have it.
• In the past 10 years, the age-adjusted death rate from high blood pressure jumped 65.6%, and the actual number of deaths rose 91.2%.

SPORTS FANS WILLING TO SPEND FOR STREAMING

Sports fans are increasingly willing to spend for watching their favorite games, according to our Harris Poll survey with Front Office Sports.

• 61% of NFL fans and 45% of all U.S. adults say they would be likely to pay for a subscription to a streaming service to watch an NFL playoff game.
• If the NFL were to make a postseason matchup a pay-per-view event, 57% of NFL fans and 42% of U.S. adults surveyed say they would likely pay a one-time fee to watch.
• Among NFL fans willing to pay a per-game price, 53% would pay $10 or more, and 17% would pay $20 or more.
• 64% of NFL fans and 49% of all U.S. adults would pay for a subscription to watch the Super Bowl.

ANIMALS ARE IN, CRYING IS OUT AT THIS YEAR’S SUPER BOWL

When it comes to Super Bowl ads, laughing and animals are in, and crying and cause-related marketing are out, according to our Harris Poll survey with AdAge.

• 69% of respondents favor funny ads, while only 14% want serious ones.
• Only 31% want to see patriotic themes and 24% purpose-driven ads.
• Animals remain a crowd favorite with nearly half of Americans.
• 42% want to see athletes, followed by TV and movie characters (42%) and celebrities (41%).
• Ads aside, 76% are excited to see the actual game, with Gen Xers particularly interested (81%).
• Gen X (72%) is most excited to watch the ads, compared with 64% of the general population.

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