Greetings, Super Bowl commercial fans!
If you’ve come to USA TODAY Ad Meter, you’re probably just as eager for the big game ads that await in 2023 as we are — and most likely, you also have a question or two about what’s what as Super Bowl Sunday quickly enters the conversation.
The good news: While much of the 2023 Ad Meter landscape is still in a production phase, the overall steps for submitting a commercial and registering to be a panelist will remain the same as previous years.
Here’s a little guidance to get things kicked off, for both panelists and brands/agencies…
Ad Meter Panelists
How does Ad Meter work?
Panelists will have the opportunity to begin rating the ads on typically the Wednesday before the Super Bowl, at noon ET. As soon as an ad is released, we will add it to the Ad Meter platform.
Like previous years, Ad Meter will remain open until 1 a.m. ET/10 p.m. PT the night of the Super Bowl. This will give participants more time to weigh in on their favorite commercials.
How many commercials will there be?
Ad Meter panelists are asked to rate the National Commercial Block between the kickoff to the two-minute warning in the fourth quarter—plus halftime. While the count varies from year to year, panelists should expect to rate some 50-plus commercials.
How does the voting work? How is the winner determined?
Each commercial will receive a rating from every panelist who votes. The average rating will be the total of all ratings divided by the number of users who completed rating all commercials. The highest average rating will be the winner.
The 2023 USA TODAY Super Bowl Ad Meter winner will be declared after voting on admeter.usatoday.com has ended, with the results being announced the following morning—in digital, print and television.
As panelists are rating, will ads be in the same order as they are in the telecast?
Yes, we plan to put the ads in the telecast order on the voting site.
Do panelists have to rate every ad?
Yes, all panelists are required to rate every eligible ad—otherwise, your votes will not count.
Can anyone participate?
U.S. citizens 18 years of age and older can participate. Interested panelists must register in advance at admeter.usatoday.com.
How many panelists do you expect/want?
We expect to have thousands of participants, much like we did in previous years.
Brands and Ad Agencies
What ads are eligible for Ad Meter?
All national ads that air from after the coin toss through the fourth quarter’s two-minute warning (including halftime) will be rated.
- House promotions for Cable/Broadcast Networks (such as sitcom promos) are not eligible.
- Commercials must be national ads. Even if the spot will air in the top major markets, it’s not eligible. It must be the national spot. This is the first thing that Ad Meter editors will ask.
How do we submit our national ad?
Once confirmed that your ad is a national spot, you will need to submit the following (to RSuter@gannett.com):
- A YouTube link to the actual commercial that will air during the Super Bowl
- A hi-res image of the commercial (it should be in the 1000 x 600 pixels range)
- The title of the commercial
- Quarter it will air (including halftime)
- Length of commercial
What is the deadline to submit these assets for Ad Meter voting?
We’ll accept a company’s commercial package right up until the coin toss on Super Bowl Sunday.
We’ll only have the extended version on YouTube at that point—will that work?
Ad Meter editors will not accept extended cuts. It must be the exact spot that runs during the Super Bowl.
Will Ad Meter accept any other types of video files?
No. For a brand’s commercial to be uploaded to the Ad Meter site, it must be a YouTube link.
We’ll have the actual YouTube spot available after it airs during the Super Bowl—will that work?
No. Due to the substantial pace and production workload of Ad Meter, it’s not possible to upload a brand’s commercial spot along with images, description, etc., while other brands—that submitted on time—are expecting their spots to go live as it airs.
Brands must submit all assets before the coin toss.
* Editor’s note: It’s common practice to submit a private YT link to Ad Meter that will remain private until the commercial airs. Ad Meter editors will agree to the embargo and are the only ones who will see the spot.
Is there a correlation between Ad Meter success and YouTube views?
No. The amount of views a commercial receives on YouTube’s platform does not carry any weight during the Ad Meter rating process.
* Editor’s note: The view counts a commercial receives on Ad Meter will factor into the overall views on the spot’s YouTube count.
Why do we need a hi-res image?
The image acts as the thumbnail to the commercial, and the video will not populate on the voting platform without one.
* Editor’s note: This step frequently gets overthought. While many brands have submitted an image in the past, a company can just as quickly take a screenshot of the video from YouTube and submit that—the screenshot fits the 1000 x 600 range.
Photo Submission, Licensing Agreement: USA TODAY Ad Meter
As part of the USA TODAY Ad Meter experience, commercials submitted to the Ad Meter editors may be included in editorial coverage outside the voting platform in USA Today or any of its affiliate publications (“USA TODAY Network”). That incorporates posting the commercial spot (when applicable embargoes are lifted), or any part of it, within the USA TODAY Network.
Like the Ad Meter voting platform, a brand’s submitted image will accompany its commercial in the editorial coverage, either as the primary photo in a standalone story or as a thumbnail in the rundown of Super Bowl ads. To ensure that a brand’s submitted photo asset has such permissions for the editorial use, agencies or brands must confirm, in writing, that the images are acceptable for inclusion outside of the voting platform.
The confirmation can be completed via email response when submitting the assets to Rick Suter (RSuter@gannett.com) for Ad Meter.
If this type of access is not granted, then Ad Meter editors will only upload the video to the voting platform.
A brief description accompanies the commercial—can we control what’s written?
Ad Meter editors welcome any info about the commercial, but the blurb accompanying the video is part of our editorial process. So we will not accept any copy from the brands.
When does Ad Meter voting begin?
While the timeline is subject to change, Ad Meter voting has historically kicked off the Wednesday before the big game, beginning at noon ET.
Are we able to promote our Super Bowl commercial for Ad Meter voting?
Absolutely. Participation in USA TODAY Ad Meter is why we created the platform and process back in 1989. The more voices, the better. And as we move forward in the Digital Age, we fully expect brands to use social media outlets as a way to promote a campaign.
Are we able to do ‘paid promotions’ on social media?
Yes, brands that wish to execute paid promotions for their Super Bowl commercial/Ad Meter voting may do so.
Here are the overall guidelines for social media and use of the Ad Meter IP:
Organic Social Posts
- USA TODAY does not require a review of organic social posts, but as a courtesy, will review for accuracy
- Please allow two business days for reviewPaid Social Posts
- When using “Ad Meter” or linking to the Ad Meter website in a paid social post, please send post(s)
to RSuter@gannett.com & admeter@usatoday.com for review before going live - Please send two business days before campaign going liveUse of IP
- You may use “Ad Meter” in text form and link to our website: admeter.usatoday.com
- You may not use the Ad Meter logo or elements of this year’s surrounding creative campaign
- We advise you not to use “Super Bowl” unless NFL has approved you to do so
Can an advertiser “game” the system using paid social media—or any other means?
No. Ad Meter participation requires a registered Ad Meter panelist to vote on every commercial for their votes to count. It’s not a one-and-done system. So driving voters to a specific ad doesn’t overload the voting because the newly registered users must continue voting for their ratings to become official.
* Editor’s note: The USA TODAY Ad Meter team has not seen any correlation between top-rated ads and the brand’s use of social media (paid or not).
What if a voter rates one ad a “10” and gives underwhelming marks to all the other ads?
USA TODAY Ad Meter has continuously monitored our registrations and audited the rating process closely for any patterns or discrepancies—like bulk voting or Bots—and has investigated anything that seems odd.
There are systems to flag such behavior, which will continue in 2023 and beyond.
Are company employees with a national spot in the Super Bowl allowed to register for Ad Meter and vote?
Yes. We encourage Ad Meter participation, so this is perfectly acceptable.
What if we have a national Super Bowl commercial but don’t want to be included in the Ad Meter ratings?
Brands with a national spot—including movie trailers—that do not wish to be part of Ad Meter may opt out. We only ask that you submit this in writing to RSuter@gannett.com.
That’s all for now, commercial fans. Stay tuned for more as USA TODAY Ad Meter 2023 nears.
