Why do we have to wait for the Super Bowl to watch great commercials?

I must be honest, this Super Bowl did have its share of bad advertising Some examples include the Nationwide's dead child ad, Mercedes Benz's Rabbit and the Hare race, Doritos' distasteful airplane scene- the list goes on. However despite their poor audience reception, even these bad advertisements possessed a certain flair that pervaded the typical day-to-day advertisement. Of course, there's always plenty of ads that truly over the course of each year but for me it's difficult to remember a time when I was so moved by one ad, let alone three or four! Of course, I'm thinking of the Budweiser commercial with the puppy who was saved from wolves and the Dove Men commercial about being a dad.



Why can't everyday ads exude this level of creativity? One would think that if all ads were as entertaining as the ones that run during the Super Bowl, then maybe viewers wouldn't be so inclined to avoid or become annoyed with them. I speculated that this would either make television too overstimulating for audiences or perhaps it would demand a raise in the creative quality of all advertisements. As a creative person and student of advertising, it can be hard sometimes to real myself back into the reality despite how much I want a world full of Super Bowl-grade advertising.

All in all, we have to remember the reason why the Super Bowl spots are so coveted- it's not just because of the number of viewer, it's because the way the viewers are watching. They are so engaged and so excited because they've been anticipating this day for a long time. It would be simply ridiculous to risk missing out on a second of this game just because to avoid the few ads. Typically people watch television so passively- flipping through channels, hoping that something mildly entertaining will catch their eye and help them relax for 20 minutes. During the Super Bowl, however, the viewers truly take part in the event. They're hanging on to every play and referee call with a variety of emotions ranging from anxiety to joy and anger to sadness (sorry Sea Hawks). On NPR, the announcers even discussed how the event is practically a holiday.
 In the end, those of us in advertising need to keep in mind that the nature of commercials is to be effective, not enjoyable. But by the grace of the Super Bowl, a combination of the two is always promised.