Rankings reveal the powerful impact of COVID-19 ads
LOS ANGELES—April 8th (GLOBE NEWSWIRE)—Ace Metrix, the leader in measuring video advertising effectiveness, today released its roundup of the top performing ads from Q1 with an additional list for those addressing the Coronavirus pandemic. Out of dozens of measures for creative effectiveness, Ace Metrix recognized the top Breakthrough ads as well as the most Empowering COVID-19 spots.
“While Super Bowl 54 ads were the most impactful in years, that’s a lifetime ago now that we have a new normal,” said Peter Daboll, Ace Metrix CEO. “COVID-19 occupies consumers’ minds 24/7, and they’ve shown they’re open to and even expect brands to communicate what they’re doing during the pandemic. Generally, viewers respond very well to encouraging, relevant and informative messaging. But more importantly, they want to see that brands are doing something meaningful – not just saying ‘we’re in this together.'”
Ace Metrix recently revealed key, actionable insights for advertisers as they navigate the COVID-19 crisis. The study found that on average, ads addressing the pandemic are outperforming all-industry score norms across all component measures — most notably Relevance, Likeability and Information.
Of the 100+ COVID-19 ads tested in March, 73% scored on the Empower measure from Ace Metrix’s Cultural Perception scoring system, which quantifies the risks and rewards of communicating values and social objectives in these modern times. Typically, only 12.5% of all ads across industries achieve any signal so this already puts Empowering COVID-19 ads in a highly impactful place.
The Empower score measures positive cultural impact, indicating when an ad’s message inspires, encourages or motivates viewers. The top spots recognized below scored higher than 84.2% of ads with Empower signal. More impressively, Verizon’s “Pay It Forward” broke into the Extreme band of signal — something reserved for the top 0.61% of Empowering ads.
| Rank | Brand | Ad Title | Length | Empower
Band |
| 1 | Verizon | Pay It Forward | 0:30 | Extreme |
| 2 | Honda | Working Together | 0:30 | Rare |
| 3 | Anheuser-Busch | One Team | 1:15 | Rare |
| 4 | Miller Lite | Tip Jar | 0:15 | Rare |
| 5 | Thank You Healthcare Workers | 1:00 | Rare | |
| 6 | NFL | Stay Home Stay Strong | 2:00 | Rare |
| 7 | Anheuser-Busch | Strong Team | 0:30 | Rare |
| 8 | Walmart | Heroes in Vests | 0:30 | Strong |
| 9 | USAA Corp | Proud Service | 0:30 | Strong |
| 10 | PGA Tour | Great Cause | 0:30 | Strong |
The list for top Breakthrough ads is based on a combination of Attention and Likeability components. With over 2,000 ads tested last quarter, those recognized achieved Breakthrough levels recorded by less than 1% of all ads.
| Rank | Brand | Ad Title | Length | Attention | Likeability |
| 1 | Doritos | The Cool Ranch ft. Lil Nas* | 1:00 | 806 | 798 |
| 2 | Hyundai | Smaht Pahk* | 1:00 | 816 | 779 |
| 3 | Jeep | Groundhog Day* | 1:00 | 804 | 792 |
| 4 | Thank You Healthcare Workers | 1:00 | 782 | 806 | |
| 5 | WeatherTech | Lucky Dog* | 0:30 | 787 | 789 |
| 6 | Budweiser | One Team | 1:15 | 781 | 773 |
| 7 | Bissell | Pet Care | 0:30 | 773 | 781 |
| 8 | Sam’s Club | Thank You, All | 1:00 | 757 | 795 |
| 9 | Planters | Tribute* | 0:30 | 789 | 758 |
| 10 | Freshpet | Home, With Freshpet | 0:30 | 765 | 776 |
*Super Bowl 54 ad
Visit the Ace Metrix Site for more insights about Q1’s top ads.
