Super Bowl Commercials 2012: Leaked Super Ads Are Sign of Marketing Genius

It's about time I came off my marketing high horse. I hate that commercials are being leaked left and right before Super Bowl Sunday, but I get it. 

Remember that feeling of surprise and genuine anticipation we all felt going into the Super Bowl? Sure, some of that was because of the game, if you are into that sort of stuff, but many, if not all, wanted to see the commercials. 

These tiny vignettes were either hilarious, poignant or dull. The least of which were trashed by friends in the living rooms we watched them in. The best were discussed weeks after the game. 

Well, millions of dollars in costs and a short attention span by you Americans has forced their hands. We have been forced into a week of spoilers and leaked commercials, and I hate it. 

I hate that I have already seen the long version of the Ferris Bueller commercial, making the 30-second spot, or any iteration, merely second rate. 

We have hemmed, hawed and screamed to anyone within ear shot that leaking these ads is stupid and will kill the Super Bowl. 

Relax. 

First, this will not kill the Super Bowl, and we should be watching for the game anyway. What it does is call attention to the very best. 

Watch what happens in your living room this weekend. Like a trailer you have already seen, you will tell everyone to watch and pay attention, "this is the one with the fat dog I told you about."

An audience that otherwise is loud and boisterous, not the best for capturing the full commercial, will be watching intently. 

And if not...

So what? This is actually a brilliant ploy that has us dummies looking for these commercials a week ahead of time. 

Do you think the companies care that you already saw that spot with Jerry Seinfeld? Hell no. All they care about is that they paid $3.5 million to run it, and they finally found a way to milk it to its fullest. 

We still get the best and brightest commercials in the world during the Super Bowl, but now I get to take a whizz during commercials like a normal human being. 

It's a win-win, no matter how you look at it. The entertainment is still there, but now we can relax during the breaks in the game and not be so clued into companies selling stuff because we have already seen it. 

There will still be surprises and additions, but there is no reason to get into such a huff over it. Now the halftime show, that is a different problem altogether. 

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