This year’s Super Bowl may be brought to you by Orange County.
Viewers might be surprised by the number of local companies advertising at the big game, set for Dolphin Stadium in South Florida on Feb. 7.
This year spots are on tap from Fountain Valley-based auto companies Hyundai Motor America and Kia Motors America Inc., both part of South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Co.; Irvine-based Boost Mobile LLC, which markets prepaid cell phones from parent Sprint Nextel Corp. of Overland Park, Kan.; and Irvine-based flat screen TV maker Vizio Inc.
“We loved what we got from last year’s Super Bowl numbers—they were off the charts,” said Joel Ewanick, vice president of marketing at Hyundai Motor America.
New York-based CBS Corp., which is broadcasting the game, has sold 95% of its 30-second spots and is cutting deals for the rest, according to trade publications.
CBS sought $2.5 million to $3 million for a 30-second ad, with higher prices allocated for the best time slots, such as the first ad in a commercial break closer to the start of the football game.
Many of those prime spots already have been sold, according to sources.
A year ago, during the height of the recession, the sour economy paved the way for many newcomers to advertise during the Super Bowl.
Hyundai aggressively gobbled up spots abandoned by General Motors Co., using the time to promote its new Genesis luxury sedan.
This year, Hyundai initially bought five spots. But it has been picking up spots abandoned by veteran advertisers looking to take the year off.
After learning PepsiCo Inc. dropped its prime advertising spots, Hyundai grabbed more prominent placement during the first quarter of the game.
This year’s campaign is set to introduce the redesigned Sonata and Tucson as well as highlight Hyundai’s charitable efforts.
Kia’s ad will feature the new Sorento.
There’s no word on exactly what Boost Mobile, which is new to the Super Bowl, will be running.
But it will maintain its “Unwronged” theme that it launched last year, the company said.
The campaign takes aim at phone companies charging hidden fees.
As for Vizio, which advertised during the Super Bowl last year, the TV seller is looking to add some serious star power this year.
It signed a three-year deal to have Beyonce Knowles-Carter endorse its TVs.
The three-year agreement includes the Super Bowl.
Advertising at the Super Bowl isn’t taken lightly.
Last year’s Super Bowl, which the Pittsburgh Steelers won 27-23 over the Arizona Cardinals, saw record viewers, according to Nielsen Co. About 98.7 million people tuned in.
Kia’s Hot Rod
Irvine-based Kia Motors America Inc. isn’t going to let the young guys get away.
The automaker, part of Hyundai Motor, is ramping up its marketing for last year’s Forte Koup coupe.
The company is showing off a red Forte Koup in commercials with the tagline “One Hot Ride.”
“The coupe has only just started arriving at our dealerships, so in a lot of respects the launch is just getting under way,” said Tim Chaney, director of marketing and communications at Kia.
Kia is looking to promote the coupe in TV commercials and online.
It recently announced a partnership with Atlanta-based marketing company Kinetic Group that will include two Forte Koups racing in the 2010 Grand-Am Koni Sports Car Challenge Series.
Kia will be racing in the Street Tuner class, which includes autos by competitors Toyota Motor Corp., Mazda Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co.
Office Brokers Tweeting
Not convinced you can make money from using Twitter?
Many marketers are looking to Texas-based Dell Inc.’s experiment with Twitter as proof consumers are willing to follow companies in exchange for deals.
After making $1 million during the holidays by alerting Twitter followers to sales items, the computer maker said it saw more than $6.5 million in revenue from its Twitter account in 2009.
Users sign up for what is essentially a marketing e-mail on Twitter, giving them access to deals on computers and accessories.
Now the Irvine office of Lee & Associates is looking to replicate Dell’s Twitter success.
The office broker has started offering special deals on office space and commercial properties to its 1,800-plus followers.
“(We are) embracing social media to connect users and property owners with special deals on commercial properties,” said Andrew Bermudez, vice president at the brokerage’s Irvine office.
Followers see deals and are given three to five days to respond.
