• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, December 22, 2008

FedEx does not absolutely have to be in the Super Bowl. But its absence is noteworthy. The company, which has delivered some memorable spots while having a presence in 18 bowls since 1989, is definitely out this February.

It's not that the value of advertising in the Big Game has deteriorated -- that somewhere north of $2.5 million is not worth 30 seconds to capture, say, 100 million people's attention, company ad executive Steve Pacheco wrote on a FedEx.com blog.

It's the economy. An investment of that size now, running FedEx's typically humorous spots, could send the "wrong message" to employees. "Make no mistake, our advertising presence ... has strategically allowed FedEx to establish itself as a household name," Pacheco wrote. "But times have changed. As a country, we are in unprecedented economic waters ... there is a time to justify such an ad spend and a time to step back."

Word of Pacheco's frank post was first reported by Brandweek.

The executive, in a remarkably frank blog posting, went on to write: "In the ultimate medium where the message is king, being in the game simply sends the wrong message both to employees and other FedEx constituents. A Super Bowl ad buy is not where we should put dollars at this time, although, in the past, the value of doing so for FedEx has been indisputable."

He added that FedEx may return to the game sometime down the line. "We look very forward to the time when it makes sense for FedEx to advertise in the Super Bowl again," he said.