Mabel R. ActonIf you were reaching for another scoop of nacho dip, you probably missed it.
Yet, a five-second-long Reddit commercial that aired during the Super Bowl still managed to make most of the internet do a double-take after its brief, glitchy message vanished from the screen just as quickly as it appeared.
For those of you who didn’t catch it, here’s what the San Francisco-headquartered company had to say in its split-second ad:
“Wow, this actually worked. If you’re reading this, it means our bet paid off.”
Designed to look like a typical post on the popular social media site, the ad also wryly commented on last week’s GameStop saga, wherein a forum on the site called r/WallStreetBets rallied users to initiate a short squeeze on the video game retailer in order to generate a sudden surge in its stock prices. Consequently, apps like Robinhood (a company that aired its own Super Bowl commercial touting its services) were forced to limit users on how many stocks they could buy.
“Big game spots are expensive, so we couldn’t buy a full one. But we were inspired and decided to spend our entire marketing budget on 5 seconds of airtime,” read the Reddit ad, continuing, “One thing we learned from our communities last week is that underdogs can accomplish just about anything when they come together around a common idea.”
Also last week, r/WallStreetBets made plans to spearhead a GoFundMe campaign, eventually raising over $29,000 with the aim of airing their own fiery Super Bowl ad directed at Robinhood, which the Reddit commercial also seems to reference.
“Who knows, maybe you’ll be the reason finance textbooks have to add a chapter on ‘tendies.’ Maybe you’ll help r/SuperbOwl teach the world about the majesty of owls. Maybe you’ll even pause this 5-second ad.”
Dozens of viewers nationwide certainly did, as was evidenced by dozens of screenshots of the commercial that quickly popped on social media. Some even likened its bizarre, interruptive nature to the Max Headroom incident, a signal hijacking that occurred in 1987 and has long been a top of discussion among Redditors.
Watch (and pause) the full ad below:
