• by Aaron Baar , February 2, 2015

After a big year, T-Mobile bet on a strong presence to make a big impact during the “Big Game.”

In addition to its heavily pre-viewed Super Bowl commercial featuring Kim Kardashian West (viewed eight million times on YouTube since its release on Tuesday), T-Mobile teased another commercial featuring comedians Chelsea Handler and Sarah Silverman that aired during the third quarter. The company also created a spot specifically for the live stream of the Super Bowl, and announced a partnership with Seattle Seahawks star Richard Sherman to use his likeness in print, digital and out-of-home advertising. The Sherman partnership began last week with buses bearing Sherman’s image in Phoenix for the game. 

“I am having a blast watching how team Magenta is going to the Super Bowl in a big, brash and totally Un-carrier way — and how customers are responding,” wrote T-Mobile Chief Marketing Officer Mike Sievert in a blog post. “Because when you’re David competing against not one but two Goliaths, you’ve got to be disruptive and do things differently.”

The post goes on to assert that the two biggest competitors in the wireless space — AT&T and Verizon Wireless — spend three times more than T-Mobile on marketing, and further outlines the strategy of embracing social (with the Kim Kardashian West spot), taking risks (turning over creative responsibility of a Super Bowl commercial to Handler and Silverman) and breaking new ground (creating the first-ever Super Bowl spot exclusively for online viewers). 

“Everybody knows that the ads are a big part of ‘The Big Game’ itself,” Sievert says. “Why should the online viewers get a different experience or warmed-over content?!”

The over-the-top strategy is in keeping with T-Mobile’s ‘Un-carrier’ positioning, which has yielded plenty of new customers and buzz. But there is some question about whether the company can continue to top itself. 

“Many are saying they’re spending too much on low pricing, and [though] they’re attracting customers, they can’t keep that up,” independent telecom analyst Jeff Kagan tells Marketing Daily. “Sprint has been doing a good job with new products and services. T-Mobile is seeing the need to increase their [marketing].”

The higher profile also represents a shift in narrative for T-Mobile, Kagan says. Coming back from a place of being “almost dead” two years ago, the story recently has been about turnaround. It’s now up to the company to keep people talking. 

“Now the question is what are they going to do next. There’s only so far you can go [with turnaround],” Kagan says. “They’re going to continue to throw gas on the fire to keep it alive.”