We would be forced to turn in our advertising credentials if we didn’t give you our “expert” take on ads from Sunday night’s big game. However, as much as we love this business and digging into the merits and shortcomings of each commercial, we have chosen to give you our picks, not of the best or worst spots, but the commercials that simply made us stop gnawing on chicken wings for a moment to turn to the TV and then to each other and say, “what the heck was that?!”

Seemingly on a weekly basis, a wave of fandom rises for the next stream-worthy show: Ted Lasso, Stranger Things, The Rings of Power, Yellowstone. Accolades abound for powerhouse streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, Disney Plus and even newcomers like Paramount Plus and Peacock. Countless headlines publicize that streaming viewership has outpaced cable television for the first time. While data supports this theory, it begs the question: is linear television advertising worth abandoning entirely?

In our own version of the two-minute drill, Reuben Rinkers give their quick thoughts on which ads scored big and which ads fell short during the Super Bowl. The consensus among our crew was that there was no consensus. What we picked as our favorites was all over the board. And a quick search of different online reactions suggests that we are not the only ones.

First-party data—if you’re not already reading about it, you soon will. As technology evolves to meet growing expectations regarding online privacy, first-party data will be an important factor in how successfully organizations can target their marketing messages. Unfortunately, many marketers aren’t prioritizing or directing the right resources to collecting first-party data.

2020 has been a year of massive disruption. We’ve seen our routines changed beyond our control and formed new habits ourselves, too. Marketers have had to keep up with fluid changes in consumer behavior, leading to innovative new techniques and technologies. Here are some things that are important to understand about trends in consumer behavior and the implications for digital marketing tactics in 2020:

There is no global playbook to manage a situation like we’re experiencing now with the COVID-19 pandemic. While every business is different and is dealing with unique implications and repercussions, we are all facing some common challenges. There are certain things that every business needs to consider and address during a time like this. We’ve put together a few recommendations that we hope you find helpful as they may apply to your organization.