ATLANTA, Feb. 6, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- As the leading online resource in the automotive marketplace, AutoTrader.com makes its mark on the big game by tracking what advertisements drive consumer online shopping behavior.  Using a methodology that identifies the real-time correlation of advertising value to car manufacturers' ad spots, AutoTrader.com provides a visual representation of shopper vehicle search with a corresponding time stamp, along with the car make and model, from the automotive ads that ran from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET on Sunday, February 5. 

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"There was a flood of hype around the auto ads that ran this year, and they certainly dominated the air waves during the game, but how that translates from game time ad to online shopper activity is probably the most compelling to advertisers and manufacturers trying to understand shopper behavior and the value of an ad spend for the big game," said Rick Wainschel, vice president of automotive insights at AutoTrader.com.

The following car manufacturers ran ads this year:  Volkswagen, Honda, Acura, Toyota, Hyundai, Audi, BMW, Chevrolet, Fiat, Kia, Chrysler, and Cadillac. Between the hours of 6 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. on Sunday, more than 30 car commercials ran and of those vehicles showcased, six performed the highest among shopper searches on the AutoTrader.com website.  Time stamps, as listed on the graph, indicate the direct correlation to when shoppers searched for vehicles.

From the data analytics, AutoTrader.com shows that Hyundai performed highest overall based on its pregame sponsorship and the commercials aired for the Elantra, Genesis and the Veloster by the first quarter of the game – rather than getting one spike during the game, they had elevated activity across the length of the game on multiple car models.  At the peak of the game, the heaviest online traffic spikes came from shoppers that were looking at Chevy Sonic and Toyota Camry.  The most unexpected result came from Fiat 500.  On Sunday, over 65 percent of Fiat 500 searches occurred after the big game ad aired.

About AutoTrader.com
Atlanta-based AutoTrader.com, created in 1997, is the Internet's ultimate automotive marketplace and consumer information website. AutoTrader.com aggregates in a single location millions of new cars, used cars and certified pre-owned cars from thousands of auto dealers and private sellers and is a leading online resource for auto dealers, individuals and manufacturers to advertise and market their vehicles to in-market shoppers. The company also provides a robust suite of software tools for dealers and manufacturers to help them manage and market their vehicle inventory and display advertising on the Internet. AutoTrader.com continues to grow key business metrics, including revenue, profitability and site traffic. Today, AutoTrader.com attracts millions of unique monthly visitors who utilize the site to review descriptions, photos and videos of vehicles for sale; research and compare vehicles; review pricing and specials; and read auto-related content like buying and selling tips and editorial coverage of major auto shows and automotive trends. AutoTrader.com operates one other auto marketing brand, AutoTraderClassics.com. AutoTrader.com also owns used vehicle management software company vAuto, Kelley Blue Book (Kbb.com), HomeNet Automotive, a leading provider of online inventory management and merchandising solutions for the automotive retail industry and VinSolutions, a leading provider of end-to-end solution platforms for dealers.  AutoTrader.com is a majority-owned subsidiary of Cox Enterprises. Providence Equity Partners is a 25 percent owner of the company and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers is also an investor. For more information, please visit www.autotrader.com.

SOURCE AutoTrader.com