Understanding How The Owls Took Charge

The Super Bowl is the biggest night in network television. Billions of families across America tune in to watch the most exciting football game of the season. The day consists of men yelling at the TV, Pinterest-inspired snacks, Buffalo wings, an over-the-top halftime show and commercials that will be buzzed about for weeks to come. However, this Super Bowl consisted of something completely new: this year there were owls. For the first time ever, Temple University aired a commercial during the Super Bowl. Regardless of whether you loved or hated Temple’s commercial, here are some important points to know about Temple’s ad.

The actual commercial- In case you were replenishing your plate with cliché Super Bowl food, Temple’s commercial aired during the fourth quarter of the game. It was a 30 second spot that depicted the Temple community doing different things. Band members practiced music, basketball players made slam dunks, professors lectured, students cheered at concerts and commuters hopped on the subway. The last shot featured Temple’s favorite owl, Stella, next to the caption “Take Charge.”

The cost- The average cost of running a 30 second national spot during the Super Bowl is about 4.5 million dollars. However, Temple was able to buy a regional spot for under 200,000 dollars and NBC will air the commercial for the next three weeks.

The background- This campaign was created by Temple University’s Marketing and Communications Department.  The first phase was launched in October 2014. The premiere of the Super Bowl ad marked the second phase of this campaign. This commercial was shot with two different endings: one with Stella and one with Morgan Hall in the Philly skyline. Temple posted both of the commercials online and asked viewers to vote for which one they wanted to see in the Super Bowl.

Why?- According to Temple’s data, 89 percent of the 300,000 TU alumni are not engaged with the school. The purpose of this commercial, and campaign for that matter, is to generate awareness of how strong Temple has grown to be. The marketing team wanted to air the commercial when they knew alumni would be tuned in to the TV.

Temple Made or Take Charge? - Some students were confused after seeing Take Charge splashed across their TVs. Some believed Temple was going through an identity crisis. Are students supposed to be “Temple Made” or are they supposed to “Take Charge”? Well, the answer is both! This new campaign is not designed to erase the Temple Made campaign. In fact, “Take Charge” is a branch of the “Temple Made” campaign. The messages are designed to coincide with each other. Yes, Temple students are self-made, Philly-made and Temple-made, but they are also ready to step up, take charge and make things happen. In other words, Temple students learn how to be self-sufficient (self-made) in school so when they graduate from Temple they are ready to “take charge.”

Do you think the “Take Charge” commercial stacked up to the other Super Bowl commercials? Do you believe it was an affective form of advertising? Share your comments below!  

This guest blog post was written by PRowl staff member Lauren Bentley.