By Joshua Jamerson 

Advertisers like PepsiCo and Budweiser spend millions pushing their products to Super Bowl viewers. A southern Pennsylvania building-supply chain is doing something a little different this year, using its first-ever Super Bowl ad to kick off a national recruiting campaign.

With more than 100 million people expected to watch Sunday's big game, 84 Lumber Co. is betting that its 90-second spot will introduce viewers to the company and make a statement about American opportunity. 84 Lumber wouldn't disclose what it paid to air the commercial, set to be shown just before halftime, but with 30-second spots going for as much as $5 million, the company could have shelled out $15 million -- for the airtime alone.

84 Lumber Co. is betting that its commercial during the big game will help the Pittsburgh-area building-materials retailer introduce itself to potential job seekers and eventually fill 400 management trainee positions it plans to create this year.

Companies spend millions getting their products and services in front of the nation's largest viewing audience, but rarely -- if ever -- has a firm aired a Super Bowl spot specifically intended to attract potential job applicants. 84 Lumber wouldn't disclose what it paid to air the 90-second commercial, but with 30-second spots going for as much as $5 million, the company could have shelled out $15 million -- for the airtime alone.

The company intends to run more television ads nationally in the coming months, and is also planning a social media push. Televised recruiting ads are fairly rare, but as companies compete to attract talent in a tightening labor market, hiring experts say more big-ticket recruiting campaigns may be on the way.

"It's smart to me, though obviously expensive," said John Sullivan, a professor at San Francisco State University's college of business who specializes in human-resources strategy. If 84 Lumber's campaign succeeds, other companies may follow suit, he said.

General Electric Co. ran a comedic advertising campaign last year as part of the company's efforts to rebrand itself as a technology company. The ads, which aired during last year's Academy Awards broadcast, sought to reintroduce GE to software developers and tout coding jobs, said Jen Waldo, the head of human resources for GE Digital.

In the ads, a new GE hire named Owen explains the company's tech focus to baffled friends and family members. Applications to GE Digital rose about 24% in the months after the ads aired, according to the company, a sign that the spots gained traction among job seekers.

"Without fail, the first thing they mentioned to me were the Owen ads," Ms. Waldo said.

84 Lumber leaders are taking advantage of the booming building market, expanding the company's entry-level management training program from 600 spots to roughly 1,000.

These hourly positions -- loading and unloading trucks; maintaining inventory, among other tasks -- pay about $30,000 to $38,000 a year, and 84 Lumber frequently promotes trainees to bigger roles in the company.

Tom McCartney, 84 Lumber's vice president of human resources, says the ad is intended to get job seekers thinking about 84 Lumber as a place to develop a career path. Mr. McCartney himself started as a manager trainee in 1988 and has since risen through the ranks.

"This will certainly put 84 Lumber on the map," said Tim Calkins, a professor of marketing at Northwestern University who has studied Super Bowl ads.

84 Lumber's president and owner Maggie Hardy Magerko has said that she wants the company to cast a wider net for talent, seeking "entrepreneurs who see opportunity where others do not...To do that, we need to hire and train people differently."

Commercials during the big game often reflect the nation's current economy and mood, Mr. Calkins said. For example, he cited ads for precious-metals buyer Cash4Gold that aired during the 2009 Super Bowl, underscoring a mood of urgency at the nadir of the global financial crisis.

"You think, 'Gee, Cash4Gold ads during the Super Bowl? That's how you know things are getting bad,' " he said.

Rob Schapiro, chief creative officer at Brunner Inc., the marketing firm that worked on the ad, said it would convey a patriotic message. An earlier version of the spot stirred controversy after Fox, this year's Super Bowl broadcaster, reportedly rejected the ad for its political content. A Fox spokesman declined to comment.

Mr. Schapiro said the commercial will end with a web link directing viewers to a site about working at 84 Lumber, which will also feature the original ad. (He insisted it wasn't his intention to purposefully have an ad rejected in order to garner headlines, a tactic used by some firms to stir up more attention for their spots.)

"We're a promote-from-within company," said 84 Lumber's Mr. McCartney. "It's just part of making a statement that we want to be recognized as an employer of choice where people can come make a career."

Write to Joshua Jamerson at joshua.jamerson@wsj.com

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 31, 2017 10:13 ET (15:13 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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