'Twas six weeks before the Super Bowl, and Auto Brands are Stirring with Visions of Advertising.... Yes, with holiday promotions expiring soon, automotive marketers have been turning their attention to the next big item on their plates — how to approach advertising in and around the big "tentpole" events of the first half of 2012, namely the Super Bowl and Oscars.

And for the Big Game, they're all highly cognizant of the significant returns that most of last year's advertising participants got for their $3 million per spot during the broadcast. It looks like auto-brand participation may meet or exceed last year's lofty level even though the going price now has risen to a reported $3.5 million for a 30-second game spot and other elements of a "package" being offered by NBC in association with Super Bowl XLVI on February 5 in Indianapolis.

Volkswagen today announced that it plans to advertise in the Super Bowl for the third consecutive year.Continue reading...

Dannon USA executives have no illusions about Super Bowl party hosts clearing away the corn chips, savory spreads, sausage, beer and other decidedly nutrition-challenged fare from millions of tables across America on the day of the Big Game to make room for anything healthy — including yogurt.

But one of America's Big Two yogurt brands has decided to take a flyer anyway by buying commercial time during the Super Bowl. For the first time, Dannon will be advertising some of its nutritional yogurt brands and products alongside the Coca-Colas, Doritos, Budweisers and other snacktastic brands that traditionally have dominated game advertising.

The simple reason? It's time. "When we look at the U.S. as the world's single largest economy and the fact that yogurt is so under-represented in the American diet, and we think about what's the best way for us to bring the better-for-you message and food choices to a large population base, the Super Bowl is an avenue we haven't yet explored," Michael Neuwirth, Dannon's senior director of public relations, told brandchannel.Continue reading...

It's that time of year again for brand marketers. Yes, there's Christmas and Hanukkah shopping, but getting a share of that is all up to the promotional and merchandising folks at this point. With the winter holidays in full view, the thoughts of brand marketers have been turning to February, and to the Super Bowl.

Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis has announced that Madonna will bring her act to the stage to key the Bridgestone halftime show of the NBC telecast, along with a contingent of circus performers from Cirque de Soleil. And now, more and more brands are owning up to the fact that they've bought spots during the game for an estimated $3 million per 30 seconds in order to reach the projected audience of 111 million Americans who will be tuning in.

Automakers including Audi, Lexus and Toyota already have promised to show up during the February 5 game. GoDaddy has vowed to push the advertising envelope in the game for the eighth consecutive year.

And Century 21, the venerable real estate brand, will be there with its first-ever Super Bowl spot. It may seem a strange time for a housing-related brand to lay down all that dough for the Big Game considering that the U.S. housing market remains near a modern nadir. But Century 21 CMO Bev Thorne told brandchannel that it's the brand's 40th anniversary. Plus, Century 21 and its sellers are looking forward at this point.Continue reading...