Mercedes-Benz Promises Thrills With Most-Seen Auto TV Ad

With 269.2 million national TV ad impressions, a recently debuted commercial from Mercedes-Benz for its electric vehicles jumps into first place on iSpot.tv’s most-seen auto ads ranking for April 24-30. It was also the top spot for national TV ad spend, with its estimated $2.5 million outlay nearly $1 million more than any other spot on the ranking, thanks in part to airings during the NFL draft. 

Despite slipping from first to second place week-over-week, Dodge’s enduring spot for the Hornet had a 48% increase in estimated TV ad spend, while impressions increased 7% to 205.4 million compared to the previous week. Over a third of its impressions came from primetime programming, led by episodes of FBI, Young Sheldon and 9-1-1 – but examining all dayparts, it was Two and a Half Men that delivered the most impressions (8.2 million). 

Trucks, country music and similar impression counts are three things the third- and fourth-place ads have in common. A spot for the Chevrolet Colorado featuring music by Dierks Bentley generated 178.5 million TV ad impressions, putting it in third place. This was the only spot on the ranking that did not air during the NFL draft; instead, Chevrolet focused its outlay on NHL games and news programming.  

Meanwhile, the No.4 commercial from Ram, set to Lainey Wilson’s earnest “Heart Like a Truck,” had just under 178 million impressions, with the NFL draft delivering 4.2 million of those. iSpot’s Creative Assessment survey data shows this ad had an 89% brand match (the percentage of survey respondents who remembered it was a Ram Trucks ad after watching it), above the recent automaker industry norm of 78%. 

It’s back to the electric theme for the fifth-place commercial from Lexus, aptly titled “Electrified,” which generated 150.5 million national TV ad impressions. NHL games led for both estimated TV ad spend and impressions. Per iSpot’s Creative Assessment, this commercial had the highest persuasion score on the list: 16% above industry norms.

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1. Mercedes-Benz: Electric Dream Days: Intense Thrills 

Impressions: 269,163,704

Interruption Rate: 3.62%

Attention Index: 91

Est. TV Spend: $2,508,985

2. Dodge: Swarming the Nation 

Impressions: 205,369,878

Interruption Rate: 2.34%

Attention Index: 93

Est. TV Spend: $1,568,398

3. Chevrolet: Big Life 

Impressions: 178,509,739

Interruption Rate: 3.29%

Attention Index: 86

Est. TV Spend: $1,342,916

4. Ram Trucks: Truck Month: To Be a Ram: Have Heart 

Impressions: 177,969,862

Interruption Rate: 3.31%

Attention Index: 88

Est. TV Spend: $1,501,426

5. Lexus: Electrified 

Impressions: 150,462,270

Interruption Rate: 2.66%

Attention Index: 98

Est. TV Spend: $1,387,840

Data provided by iSpot.tv, The New Standard for TV Ad Measurement

TV Impressions - Total TV ad impressions delivered for the brand or spot.

Interruption Rate - The percentage of devices that were present at the beginning of the ad but did not complete watching the ad. Actions that interrupt ad play include changing the channel, pulling up the guide, fast-forwarding or turning off the TV. The Interruption rate is measured on a scale of 0 to 100%.

Attention Index - A comparison of the ad’s Interruption Rate against its specific media placement. The Attention Index is measured on a scale of 0 to 200, where 100 is the average and means the ad is performing as expected.

Est. National TV Spend - Amount spent on TV airings for the brand’s spots.