• December 17, 2009

Cars.com says it will accelerate its marketing efforts in the final weeks of the year with a series of halftime show sponsorships and commercials that will air on NFL and college bowl games in addition to high-profile sports news programming.

The Chicago-based company will launch its 2010 advertising campaign with a 60-second spot on the Super Bowl XLIV on CBS.

"With the economy recovering and consumer confidence growing, car buyers are increasingly returning to market," said Mitch Golub, president of Cars.com in a statement. He said that through November, Cars.com has seen leads rise 9% above the same period last year.

Cars.com will sponsor 10 college bowl halftime shows on ESPN and several 30-second spots on ESPN's Monday Night Football, ESPN's SportsCenter, regional NFL games on CBS and NBC and college bowl games on CBS. The sponsorships start Saturday with the New Mexico and St. Petersburg bowls.

"Our fall campaign including the sponsorship of ESPN College Football and high-impact online sponsorships has been very effective at reaching in-market car shoppers and driving them to our site," Golub said. --Karl Greenberg