Super Bowl Ads That Scored in Social Media

By Lauren Sher February 6, 2012

The New York Giants beat the New England Patriots to take home the Super Bowl XLVI title last night, but who won the coveted battle of the ads?

For advertisers who shell out $3.5 million for a 30-second spot, or almost $117,000 per second, it's all about making memories that stick, but according to Bluefin Labs, a social TV analytics company which monitored reaction to the big game in the social space, some commercials scored with viewers while others fell short.

Doritos' "Man's Best Friend" spot was the most popular ad of them all, generating the most positive comments on sites like Facebook and Twitter, Bluefin found.

The ad, one of many in the mix starring dogs last night, featured a brazen Great Dane who rubbed out the family cat and used Doritos as hush money to silence his owner. The commercial was made for approximately $20 as part of Doritos' "Crash the Super Bowl Contest" and netted the maker, freelance filmmaker Jonathan Friedman, $1 million. In the pre-game social media blitz, Doritos fans voted online for two commercials that made the air.

Dubbed the first "social media" Super Bowl, the game activated 11.2 million social media comments on sites like Facebook and Twitter, according to Bluefin Labs, making it the biggest televised event in social media by a more than touchdown. (It beat out the record set during the August MTV Video Music Awards of 3.1 million social media comments).

The most talked about ad overall by Bluefin's measurements, generating a mix of positive and negative comments, was the revealing H&M ad starring a nearly bare David Beckham in his briefs. Not surprisingly, more than 80 percent of those weighing in on his perfectly-toned physique were women.

Tops among men was Chrysler "It's Halftime in America" ad featuring Clint Eastwood which struck a more serious tone. CareerBuilder's ad - the one with the frustrated employee whose colleagues are chimpanzees - was the favorite among parents.

How did the rest of your favorite ads play out socially? How did the parade of dogs - Volkswagen Dog, Sketcher's Dog, and Budwesier's Dog - compare to the "sex sells" model seen in the Go Daddy, Teleflora and M&M spots? Check out the top 10 most-buzzed about list in the social sphere below.

(Notably missing are the much-talked about Honda spot with actor Matthew Broderick reprising the role of Ferris Bueller, which was released prior to its Super Bowl debut which some experts say may have taken away from the surprise socially, and comedian Jerry Seinfeld's ad for Acura, which brought back the sitcom's iconic "Soup Nazi" character.)

Top 10 Most Commented On Super Bowl Ads

The following data provided by Bluefin Labs is based on a 45-minute window from the ad airing to 45 minutes afterward.

1. H&M - David Beckham Bodywear

With 109k social media comments, the sexy ad topped the list and most-buzzed about among women. 83 percent of the commenters were female.

2. Chrysler - It's Halftime in America (feat. Clint Eastwood)

The car maker's serious tone scored 96k social media comments, which were overwhelmingly positive. It was a male favorite, with 65 percent of comments from men compared to 35 percent from women.

3. NBC The Voice - Vocal Kombat (feat. Betty White)

The ad got 90k social media comments and skewed heavily female.

4. Doritos - Man's Best Friend

The spot received 74k social media comments but earned the highest rate of positive comments at 61 percent.

5. Pepsi - King's Court (feat. Elton John and Melanie Amaro) - 45K social media comments