Tuesday, December 9, 1997

Volvo Trucks, Mail Boxes Etc. make big bets on lone commercials

By SKIP WOLLENBERG

AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) - Advertisers are paying more than ever for time during next month's Super Bowl telecast and are gamely hoping that their message will be heard above the commercial din.

Super Bowl advertising rookie Volvo Trucks of North America and encore performer Mail Boxes Etc. created contests tied to their lone ads in hopes of protecting their investment in the National Football League championship broadcast.

Their risks are real. NBC sold 58 half-minute commercial spots in the game, selling out more than two months in advance of the Jan. 25 broadcast. NBC won't say, but executives familiar with the matter said the network got a record $1.3 million for each 30-second ad.

The Super Bowl typically draws TV's biggest audience of the year.

But companies with a single slot could be overshadowed. Their ad could follow a spot from someone like Nike or Pepsi that leaves viewers buzzing. It could also run after the game has been decided.

What's more, companies like Volvo end up spending at least twice as much as the cost of the TV ad for a Super Bowl promotion, even when the target is only a small segment of consumers.

Volvo has collected more than 12,000 entries in a contest for a $120,000 truck. Its Super Bowl commercial has a message that will let 25 entrants know they remain in the running for the top prize.

Mail Boxes, which ships packages and takes mail for customers, got more than 3,500 small business owners to explain in 100 words or less why they should be featured in its Super Bowl commercial.

"If you have a limited budget, it makes sense to build some sort of grassroots way to increase interest in your Super Bowl ad," said Bob Flood, who buys network commercial time for clients of DeWitt Media Inc.

Volvo and Mail Boxes aren't the first to run contests to get more mileage for Super Bowl advertising.

Brewer Anheuser-Busch aired its Bud Bowl fantasy football game during Super Bowl broadcasts and had viewers mark down the score from each ad to qualify for prizes.

Oscar Mayer used its Super Bowl halftime sponsorship this past January to introduce the winner of a nationwide hunt for a youngster to sing its jingle.

Volvo Trucks, based in Dublin, Va., built a six-month promotion around its Super Bowl commercial to boost awareness that it makes trucks large enough to live in for those who make their living hauling cargo trailers.

There will be an estimated 140 million people watching the Super Bowl; only 3 million people own and operate tractor-trailers.

Wouldn't it be cheaper and more efficient just to send truck owners a letter or even take them out to dinner?

Mike Delaney, a top marketing executive for Volvo Trucks, said Volvo wanted to boost awareness of its place in the U.S. truck-making business, where it accounts for about 9.5 percent of the market.

As the first manufacturer of big rigs to advertise on the Super Bowl, Volvo already has generated a buzz in the industry, Delaney said.

Entry forms for the truck giveaway were made available in October at its 200 dealerships and at 180 truck stops. Two caravans of new Volvo trucks have been crossing the country, stopping at truck stops where potential buyers could get a look. Volvo has Super Bowl parties planned at 40 truck stops, and figures at least half of its intended audience will be watching.

And even if you lose, Volvo sent coupons for discounts on oil changes with the game card.

The total cost of the promotion, including the Super Bowl commercial: $3 million. "It already has been an excellent investment for us," Delaney said.

Mail Boxes Etc., which franchises the business service centers, is advertising in its third Super Bowl. It featured an airline tour operator in Alaska using one of its offices to ship a salmon in its last Super Bowl ad.

This year, Mail Boxes marketers made a contest of the selection, asking small business owners to tell them why they should be featured in its Super Bowl ad. The contest was limited to businesses with 20 or fewer employees.

It picked 10 semifinalists recently and has shot about 80 hours of film featuring them before deciding next month on a winner.

But the winner shouldn't get carried away.

"It didn't affect our business at all," said Pete Devaris, whose Juneau-based Alaska Coastal Airlines was picked last year, when it was known as Wilderness Air and was based in Kodiak. "We never had anybody call us because of the commercial."