{"id":204750,"date":"2024-02-08T21:29:31","date_gmt":"2024-02-08T21:29:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2024\/02\/08\/uber-ceo-explains-why-super-bowl-ad-is-worth-the-money\/"},"modified":"2025-06-25T17:22:02","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T17:22:02","slug":"uber-ceo-explains-why-super-bowl-ad-is-worth-the-money","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2024\/02\/08\/uber-ceo-explains-why-super-bowl-ad-is-worth-the-money\/","title":{"rendered":"Uber CEO explains why Super Bowl ad is worth the money"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> [ad_1]<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/content.fortune.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GettyImages-1237230867-e1707414156913.jpg?w=2048\" \/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/company\/uber-technologies\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"sc-bd4ab706-0 dXixpY styledLinkColor \">Uber<\/a> had a good week. It wasn\u2019t just thanks to a strong earnings <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2024\/02\/07\/uber-earnings-q4-2023-.html\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"sc-bd4ab706-0 dXixpY styledLinkColor \">report<\/a> that beat Wall Street\u2019s expectations\u2014but the long-running ride-sharing platform actually turned a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/technology\/2024\/feb\/07\/landmark-moment-as-uber-unveils-first-annual-profit-as-limited-company\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"sc-bd4ab706-0 dXixpY styledLinkColor \">full-year profit for the first time ever<\/a>. Attention turns now to this weekend, when a high-priced, star-studded ad for its Uber Eats service will run during a Super Bowl matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=0LXSb0PQ6HQ\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"sc-bd4ab706-0 dXixpY styledLinkColor \">60-second ad<\/a>, featuring <em>Friends<\/em> alumni Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer along with David and Victoria Beckham\u2014as well as musicians Usher and Jelly Roll\u2014does not come cheap: A 30-second spot during the big game this year costs $7 million,<a href=\"https:\/\/admeter.usatoday.com\/2024\/01\/31\/super-bowl-commercial-costs-since-1967\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"sc-bd4ab706-0 dXixpY styledLinkColor \"> up from<\/a> $900,000 three decades ago.<\/p>\n<p>Is it worth it? Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi believes so\u2014but only because of the power of celebrities on social media.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<p><iframe title=\"DON&#039;T FORGET UBER EATS\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0LXSb0PQ6HQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThese big stars, they cost a lot, but they deliver a lot,\u201d he<a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/bloomberg-talks\/id1690236827?i=1000644546402\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"sc-bd4ab706-0 dXixpY styledLinkColor \"> told<\/a> Bloomberg. He noted that the stars use their own social media accounts to amplify the ad\u2019s message, which in this case is to remember that Uber Eats delivers groceries, flowers, and other things in addition to restaurant meals.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The memory theme underpins the ad. Schwimmer bumps into Aniston, who can\u2019t remember him despite working with him on one of TV\u2019s most successful series for 10 seasons. She then pretends to remember him before admitting that, no, she doesn\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Similarly, the Beckhams have unlikely memory lapses in the ad. \u201cRemember when you used to be a pepper lady?\u201d the soccer legend asks his wife. The Spice Girls alum answers, \u201cWasn\u2019t it the cinnamon sisters?\u201d Their banter goes on to include \u201cpaprika girls\u201d and \u201cbasil babes.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Jelly Roll forgets about his face tattoos, asking in shock while looking in the mirror, \u201cDid someone doodle on my face?!\u201d Usher, talking to stagehands, forgets he\u2019s playing in this year\u2019s halftime show, telling them wistfully, \u201cI hope I get to play a halftime show someday, man.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>On its own, suggested Khosrowshahi, the ad is not worth the price\u2014but with social media, it makes sense.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo it\u2019s not just about the commercial, it\u2019s about people talking about the commercials, it\u2019s about the stars using their <a href=\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/company\/facebook\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"sc-bd4ab706-0 dXixpY styledLinkColor \">Instagram<\/a> accounts to amplify the platform, et cetera,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s why it\u2019s working out for us. We think it\u2019s worth the investment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The ride-hailing giant has rebounded after getting<a href=\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/longform\/coronavirus-uber-ipo-business-model-ceo-fortune-500\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"sc-bd4ab706-0 dXixpY styledLinkColor \"> crushed<\/a> during the pandemic, when it laid off thousands of workers and shut dozens of offices around the world. The cost-cutting extended into last month, with Uber announcing it\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/2024\/01\/16\/uber-shuts-down-drizly-alcohol-delivery-1-billion-acquisition\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"sc-bd4ab706-0 dXixpY styledLinkColor \">shuttering Drizly<\/a>, an alcohol-delivery business it bought for over $1 billion in 2021. Now it plans to instead offer alcohol via the Uber Eats platform.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was a tough decision there,\u201d Khosrowshahi said this week. \u201cShould we put the next marketing dollar behind Uber Eats\u2014i.e., a Super Bowl commercial\u2014or should we put [it] to introduce the Drizly brand to consumers?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He added, \u201cIt didn\u2019t make sense to keep investing in Drizly.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div data-cy=\"subscriptionPlea\">Subscribe to the Eye on AI newsletter to stay abreast of how AI is shaping the future of business. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fortune.com\/newsletters\/eye-on-ai?&amp;itm_source=fortune&amp;itm_medium=article_tout&amp;itm_campaign=eye_on_ai\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"sc-bd4ab706-0 dXixpY styledLinkColor \">Sign up<\/a> for free.<\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/2024\/02\/08\/uber-ceo-super-bowl-ad-instagram-marketing-celebrities-friends-beckhams\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] Uber had a good week. It wasn\u2019t just thanks to a strong earnings report that beat Wall Street\u2019s expectations\u2014but the long-running ride-sharing platform actually<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":204751,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[149],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204750"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=204750"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204750\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":345067,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204750\/revisions\/345067"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/204751"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=204750"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=204750"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=204750"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}