$7 million.

That is approximately how much money a company will spend on a 30-second ad for the Super Bowl. To put that into perspective, if someone had $7 million in hundred dollar bills, it would weigh 123 pounds. A 30-second Super Bowl commercial costs enough to buy almost 48 four-year degrees.

 The amount of money spent on advertising at the Super Bowl is ridiculous, and that money could be spent on better things.

Since the Super Bowl is the most largely watched event of the year in America, large corporations will often buy more than one ad slot for their products, but studies have shown that this does not necessarily increase sales, and might even take away from the effectiveness of the first ad. Super Bowl commercials are known to be very iconic and even a part of the Super Bowl experience, but big flashy, shocking ads can get stale quickly, especially when they are shown within an hour of each other.

Some Super Bowl ads also raise a certain moral issue when presented with the cost of such an ad. This year, at the 2024 Super Bowl, the Christian company He Gets Us bought two ad spaces that added up to 75 seconds. The company’s main goal was to promote Christianity as a non-discriminatory and all-loving religion, their message being He (Jesus) Gets Us. While the ad seems very encouraging to passive-watchers, others realize that this company doesn’t really seem to get Jesus. While publicity is important, there are plenty of other advertising opportunities that don’t cost so much. If the company wanted to make a difference and draw more people to the religion, a more effective way to do so would be to spend that money on philanthropy; the company could’ve made a significant, positive impact in people’s lives with that money. 

This is a great example of how consumerism has made society lose sight of what’s important. If a mildly progressive advertisement filled with ethos is more likely to make people support a company than its actual actions, it is time to reevaluate what makes a company good. Regardless of its motives, $7 million is a waste of money.