Football season is just beginning, but automakers already have their eyes on the title game. CBS announced that ad slots are already more than 90 percent sold out, five months before the game takes place on February 3, 2013.
Hyundai is one of the biggest repeat advertisers, in the same league as commercial heavyweights like PepsiCo and Frito-Lay. Their ads will appear for the fourth consecutive year, although there is no word on which model the commercials would spotlight. Michael Sprague, the executive vice president of marketing at Kia, explained the brand's emphasis on using the game as a commercial platform.
"For us, it's very important to connect with consumers in that pop culture environment and the Super Bowl has become part of pop culture," Sprague told the Detroit Free Press. In the past, Kia commercials during the football event have shied away from mechanical-centric things like tires or its cooling system service in favor of more attention-grabbing methods. Dancing hamsters, Brazilian supermodels and rock bands have made appearances in last year's advertising.
The popular website Cars.com will also have their own 30-second slot. Car commercials often make up a large portion of the Super Bowl advertising, and the 2013 spectacle will be no different.