Cars.com to Kickoff Marketing Plan With Super Bowl XLIV Ad --Site Builds Confidence with Third Consecutive Year in the Big Game

CHICAGO, Nov 03, 2009 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Cars.com will once again kickoff its 2010 marketing campaign with an advertisement on Super Bowl XLIV, which will air on CBS on February 7, 2010. This is the third consecutive year that Cars.com will advertise in the Big Game.

"Super Bowl is the largest stage in advertising and a proven brand-builder for Cars.com," said Mitch Golub, president of Cars.com. "Our presence in each of the past two years has paid off, exposing our brand to record audiences and building awareness of the site and service we offer to car shoppers. It is a smart investment that supports our strategy, and works to grow our business and that of our customers." Cars.com will continue its 'Confidence' campaign with one 60-second commercial that will air in the first half. New creative will build on last year's popular "Lifetime of Confidence" ad, and will showcase how Cars.com gives shoppers the confidence they need as they prepare to head to the dealership to buy a car. The spot is currently in development by the site's agency of record, DDB, Chicago.

"As car buyers return to market in 2010, we want them to know Cars.com provides the tools, credible information and advice to help them make confident new and used-car purchase decisions," said Carolyn Crafts, Cars.com's vice president of marketing. "Advertising on the Super Bowl gives us the opportunity to get that message out in a big way at the start of the year." With its ad in Super Bowl XLIII, Cars.com reached 98.7 million viewers -- one of the largest television audiences of all time. The ad was well-liked by viewers and contributed to gains in the site's brand awareness and traffic, resulting in a surge in shopping activity on the site which drove record contacts to Cars.com advertisers. Cars.com's 2009 Super Bowl ad also drove results to the site's mobile application, which was featured in the spot.

To view last year's spot, click here.

About Cars.com Cars.com is the leading destination for online car shoppers, offering credible, easy-to-understand information from consumers and experts to help buyers formulate opinions on what to buy, where to buy and how much to pay for a car.

With comprehensive pricing information, side-by-side comparison tools, photo galleries, videos, unbiased editorial content and a large selection of new- and used-car inventory, Cars.com puts millions of car buyers in control of their shopping process with the information they need to make confident buying decisions.

Launched in June 1998, Cars.com is a division of Classified Ventures, LLC, which is owned by leading media companies, including Belo (NYSE: BLC), Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), The McClatchy Company (NYSE: MNI), Tribune Company and The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO).

SOURCE Cars.com URL: http://www.cars.com

http://www.classifiedventures.com www.prnewswire.com Copyright (C) 2009 PR Newswire. All rights reserved -0- KEYWORD: Illinois INDUSTRY KEYWORD: AUT

CPR

PUB

ITE

WEB

SSE

SPT SUBJECT CODE: PDT