Go Daddy Clears Censor Standoff - Reinvents Super Bowl Game Plan

January 25, 2008; 10:52 AM
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (Jan. 24, 2008) – Let the Web, nor the world, wonder no more…Internet powerhouse GoDaddy.com finally has an approved commercial to air in this year’s Super Bowl broadcast. There’s a catch though – it’s not the ad Go Daddy really wants you to see!

After ten submissions, including five concepts, three of which Go Daddy actually produced, and a number of revisions, the Fox television network has approved “Spot On” to air during this year’s Super Bowl broadcast. Several character actors are in the commercial, which also includes a key appearance by Indy race car driver and Go Daddy Girl Danica Patrick.

Go Daddy CEO and Founder Bob Parsons is disappointed the network won’t approve another commercial featuring Patrick, but neither Fox, nor Parsons will compromise. In the ad, titled “Exposure,” Parsons refused to capitulate to Fox’s request for the word “beaver” to be removed. The word “beaver” is used to reference Animatronics beavers filmed in the ad.

“I think Exposure is the funniest commercial we’ve ever made. It’s hilarious,” Parsons declared. “We are going to have to make lemonade out of lemons on this one. It’s risky, but we’ve changed our whole marketing plan so we can leverage something out of this smokin’ hot spot.”

Since Go Daddy can't broadcast “Exposure,” Parsons has decided, instead, to use the thirty-second approved Super Bowl commercial slot to tell people how to see the ad intended for the big game on www.GoDaddy.com.

Go Daddy is no stranger to difficult approval processes and has a notorious history with the Fox television network. The network pulled Go Daddy’s first-ever Super Bowl commercial after approving it in writing. The commercial was a parody on censorship. It aired once during the 2005 broadcast, but Fox yanked it before its second airing, triggering an avalanche of controversy. Ironically, a college marketing textbook featuring the legendary Go Daddy commercial notes how Fox is actually known for its "irreverent programming."

“Ever since the so-called wardrobe malfunction, Super Bowl ads have lost a certain edge,” Parsons points out. “We want ours to be GoDaddy-esque. That means it’s funny, edgy and just a touch inappropriate… but nothing more outrageous than you might see on any given day at any shopping mall in America!”

Some critics have panned the risqué advertising style, but Go Daddy's Super Bowl commercials have translated into big market growth each and every year. Following the 2005 Super Bowl commercial, Go Daddy grew its industry market share of new domain names from 16 percent to 25 percent, making it the largest registrar in the world. The following year, new market share surged to 32 percent and last year's commercial helped boost Go Daddy's industry edge to its current 42 percent mark.

The often maligned GoDaddy-esque ad from last year's Super Bowl not only generated big business, it also stuck in viewers' minds. In fact, IAG Research recently ranked Go Daddy's 2007 ad as the “Most Recalled” commercial for the entire year.

This year’s “Exposure” ad, like Go Daddy’s controversial 2005 “wardrobe malfunction” spot, spoofs a certain pop culture celebrity phenomenon. “Exposure” will be available at www.GoDaddy.com/SuperBowl08 when the company’s approved commercial airs game day, February 3.

“The Exposure commercial is hot, it’s funny and I just can’t wait for the whole world to see it,” Danica Patrick declared.

To see this year's submissions and rejections timeline, visit www.GoDaddy.com/Timeline08.
 
About The Go Daddy Group, Inc.
Go Daddy is a leading provider of services that enable individuals and businesses to establish, maintain and evolve an online presence. Go Daddy provides a variety of domain name registration and Web site hosting services, as well as a broad array of on-demand and other services. The Go Daddy Group, Inc. has more than 26 million domain names under management. Go Daddy registers, renews or transfers a domain name every second. GoDaddy.com is the world's No. 1 domain name registrar according to Name Intelligence, Inc. GoDaddy.com is also rated the world's largest hostname provider according to Netcraft Ltd. During 2007, The Go Daddy Group registered more than one-third of all domain names registered in the top six generic top-level domains, or gTLDs, including .com, .net, .org, .info, .biz, and .mobi.

Source: www.godaddy.com