Ads are like art – everyone has an opinion.

Last Updated on February 11, 2026 by Rocky

AI Summary: Super Bowl ads prove leaders will invest big in attention, yet many underinvest in the sales talent who convert that attention into revenue. This blog challenges mid‑market CEOs to audit their sales hiring “ad,” fix a broken candidate journey, and stop using low‑end systems to recruit high‑end producers.

Ads are like art – everyone has an opinion.

“Best” is in the eye of the expert, the critic, or the fan. If you want proof, take a look at the grades the “experts” handed out this year: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/best-worst-super-bowl-commercials-2026/. Their criteria are probably different from yours and mine.

What isn’t subjective is the money.

This year, the average 30‑second Super Bowl spot is around $8MM, with more than 50 advertisers jumping in. You don’t need a finance degree to do the math, it roughly 180 short bursts of very expensive attention. No CEO or President signs off on that spend without believing there will be a return.

Now, shift that same mindset to your sales organization. Mid‑market companies, in particular, hesitate to invest in their sales team, the one part of the business that actually produces revenue. The reasons are familiar: “We can’t clearly see the ROI,” or “We had a bad experience with our last sales hire.” So, the company is willing to pay for attention, but not always willing to fund the people who turn attention into revenue.

That brings us to your sales hiring process.

Who is actually in charge of attracting and selecting your salespeople? Is it someone who has never carried a quota? Never sat in front of a customer with a number hanging over their head? That person is effectively deciding where to “place the ad” (job postings), how to “write the ad” (role description, comp story, growth path), and how to “qualify” the people you expect to hit your revenue targets.

Then there’s the candidate journey. Think about what a top producer goes through just to talk to you. Long online applications, slow or generic responses, multiple rounds of interviews with people who can’t speak in detail about territory, quota, or support. The best salespeople don’t need to tolerate that. They move toward companies that respect their time and talk to them like peers, not applicants in a queue.

Here’s a simple exercise I’d challenge you to do personally. Apply for one of your own open sales roles under a different name. Use a separate email you control and go through every step like any other candidate. See how long it takes to hear back. How clear the role, expectations, and compensation really are. See whether anyone actually sells you on the opportunity. My guess is you’ll see things you don’t like.

If you wouldn’t hand your Super Bowl media buy to someone who has never built a campaign, stop using the same generic process and people to hire the sales talent that carries your number. High‑end talent will not thrive in a low‑end system. You can’t cook a wagyu ribeye on a flame‑broiled Burger King open flame oven and expect a steakhouse result.

If you want a quick smile and an example of a spot that actually works, here’s my favorite Super Bowl ad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_mh-v02-Tw.

Ask yourself: are you putting this much thought into how you attract the people responsible for every dollar of revenue in your company?

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