Welcome back to the latest edition of Funnel Vision, the weekly newsletter that puts performance creative & growth marketing in focus. Brought to you by the crew at Ready Set.

The Inuit, the Indigenous people of the Arctic, have dozens of different ways to describe snow. All of them fell on my house yesterday. Wishing you all love, warmth, and a shoveled driveway this Valentine’s Day ❤️ 

To all our new subscribers, welcome! Each Friday we nerd out about all things performance creative and growth marketing. Stick around and join the fun!

Here’s what’s inside this issue:

• The psychology behind the most memorable Super Bowl ads of 2025

• Actionable insights any advertiser can apply—regardless of budget

• How to efficiently repurpose Meta ads for YouTube

Reading time: 6 minutes

CREATIVE STRATEGY

It’s easy to point to big-budget spectacle, WTF moments, and star power as the defining factors of a memorable Super Bowl ad.

(Seriously, can we talk about the flying facial hair this year?)

But true impact comes from forging lasting emotional connections—an art that requires understanding consumer psychology and behavioral economics.

And the best part? You don’t need an astronomical budget to make it happen.

Here are three standout ads that nailed it this year—plus the key takeaways you can apply to your own creative concepts.

1. Lay’s – The Little Farmers

In a refreshing departure from the celebrity-powered humor of Lay’s recent Super Bowl ads, their 2025 spot leans hard into sentimentality.

Directed by Taika Waititi, The Little Farmer follows a determined young girl on her quest to tend the perfect potato, telling an uplifting story about hard work, family, perseverance, and connection to the land. This journey is the real heart of the ad; a story of weathering hardships and adversity brought to life by the young farmer’s undeniable charm.

🧠 Psychological mechanisms at play

The Halo Effect
By aligning Lay’s with values like family, perseverance, and tradition, consumers are more likely to perceive Lay’s chips as healthier or higher quality than they really are.

Nostalgia
The earthy, back-to-basics narrative—bolstered by a lofty rendition of “All I Want Is You”—sparks a nostalgic warmth that positions Lay’s as a timeless and wholesome brand, rather than just another mass-market snack.

Cognitive Reframing
Instead of sidestepping negative “junk food” perceptions, Lay’s embraces them and flips the script by highlighting the origin—family-owned farms and hard-working people, producing real food at the source.

2. Google – “The Dream Job”

Google’s ad for the Pixel 9 with Gemini Live is a masterclass in powerful, emotional storytelling.

In an era where tech and AI often feel cold, distant, or even threatening, this ad nails it by keeping the human experience front and center. Gemini’s ability to conduct natural, free-flowing conversation in up to 2 languages doesn’t make you well up, the dad experiencing life’s highs and lows with his daughter does.

(Seriously, if 1:46 doesn’t hit you right in the feels, are you even human?!)

Yes, the production is glossy and undoubtedly expensive, but the story is simple: a father chasing his dream job, aided by an AI coach.

🧠 Psychological mechanisms at play

Big Mario Effect
The product isn’t the hero; it’s the mushroom power-up that enables the real hero to do awesome things. Rather than explaining how great your product is, show how people become great because of it.

Anthropomorphism
Artificial intelligence is the ultimate expression of anthropomorphism—the attribution of human traits, emotions, or abilities to non-human entities. When so much about AI today feels impersonal and threatening, this ad does a great job of making it feel warm, relatable, and accessible.

Peak-end Rule
We remember events by how we feel at peak moments and how we feel at the end. This ad’s peak (see above, 1:46) hits like a freight train, and the finale leaves you rooting for both the protagonist and his AI sidekick.

3. Liquid Death – “Safe for Work”

Liquid Death’s brand is bold, irreverent, and brilliantly disruptive.

Therefore, it’s no surprise that their debut Super Bowl ad was bold, irreverent, and brilliantly disruptive.

The shock factor of watching a pilot, judge, and surgeon chug what appears to be a NSFW beverage on the job forces us to do a double take. The tension is released with the in-your-face declaration: “Don’t be scared, it’s just water.” 

In a torrent of polished, high-budget commercials, they embraced simplicity. Simple joke, simple concept, simple product. As one YouTube commenter stated, it doesn’t overstay its welcome.

🧠 Psychological mechanisms at play

Cognitive Dissonance
Did watching an NFL ref chug from a colorful aluminum can make you feel uncomfortable? That’s cognitive dissonance for you; the psychological discomfort of holding two conflicting beliefs. In this case: drinking on the job: bad! Oh wait, it’s just water: good! Tension, resolved.

Authority Bias
We tend to trust authority figures, even when they’re in the wrong. This ad is a clever play on authority bias—if the judge/surgeon/pilot can “drink” on the job, it must be okay. Right? The twist comes from subverting expectations, the payoff powered by the revelation that it’s simply water.

Framing Effect
Liquid Death’s ad flips the script for anyone skipping booze without wanting to feel out of place. By showing authority figures confidently drinking it, the brand reframes water as rebellious—just as bold as beer, but without the baggage.

Quick-Hit Tips for Advertisers from Super Bowl LIX

You don’t always need celebrities or high production value. Emotional resonance often outshines star power. The most impactful ads this year relied on genuine storytelling, not famous faces.

Flip the narrative. Don’t run from negative perceptions—reframe them. Lay’s turned processed junk food into wholesome family farming. Google turned scary AI into life-changing support. Liquid Death turned boring sparkling water into an edgy alternative to beer.

Emotion > product features: People don’t buy products; they buy feelings and desires. The goal isn’t just to showcase a product’s benefits, it’s to make people feel something powerful enough to stick.

Find (or create) your niche. Liquid Death proved that identifying underserved audiences—or even creating a cultural movement—can be more powerful than competing in saturated markets.

Humanize, always. Whether you’re selling chips, AI, or water, the most effective ads put people, emotions, and relatable experiences at the center.

CLICKABLE LINKS 👆️ 

💰 Investors are lovin’ AppLovin after an impressive Q4 earnings report, in which they reported a 44% surge in revenue. According to analysts, the company, which connects advertisers with mobile-game developers, could be the next TikTok.

🏈 Here’s a list of the best and weirded Super Bowl ads. Also, here are the most and least popular ads according to the WSJ.

📌 Pinterest’s AI-powered ad tools are driving impressive growth. Shares rose 20% after strong Q1 revenue estimates, indicating their investment in their ad tech is paying off.

👨‍⚖️ The FTC has a new chairman. Here’s the purported priorities for ad tech, data, and AI under the new administration.

⏱️ TikTok is once again available to download from the app store of your choosing. It was reinstated after receiving assurances they won’t be fined.

AD OF THE WEEK ✨ 

Can high-performing Meta ads also crush on YouTube? Yes, but with a twist. 

Porting a Meta top-performer over to YouTube doesn’t automatically guarantee success. But with a few smart tweaks, you can drastically improve your chances.

Here’s a quick breakdown of how we replicated a successful Meta ad on YouTube without expensive reshoots.

Brand: Hers
Length: 19 seconds
Platform: YouTube

WHY IT WORKS 🧠

✂️ Strategic edits – Creating a split-screen converted the ad to 16x9 from the original 9x16, eliminating the need for new footage. We also added a voiceover as YouTube is a sound-on platform.

🪝 Every second counts – This ad front-loads the most crucial information into the first five seconds, as most YouTube ads are skippable after this point.

🏅 Compounding wins – By combining a high-thumbstop opener, proven messaging, and a call to action with a strong CTR, we created a “super ad” that was greater than the sum of its parts.

Keen to crack YouTube ads for your brand? Let us know by replying to this email and we’ll organize a no-obligation chat with one of our creative strategists.

That’s all for this week

Thanks for reading! Seeya next time 🫶 

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