• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, February 4, 2009

When it comes to generating online buzz with Super Bowl ads, Hollywood stole the show. Three upcoming summer blockbusters promoted in spots during the game were among the top five ads that sparked online discussions 36 hours after the final whistle blew.

The ad for Dreamworks release "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" sparked the most online chatter, with seven times the buzz of the average Super Bowl ad, according to data released Wednesday by TNS Cymfony. Paramount Pictures' ad for "Star Trek" ranked second in buzz, while the studio's other spot previewing "G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra" was fourth.

Sneaking in at No. 3 was perennial Super Bowl advertiser Anheuser-Busch, which ran several spots for Budweiser and Bud Lite. Hulu, the video site co-owned by NBC Universal and News Corp., didn't fare quite as well with its debut campaign during the game. Its "Alec in Huluwood" ad featuring Alec Baldwin came in at No. 10, generating twice the online buzz of the typical Super Bowl ad.

Ads that did not make the most-discussed list included E-Trade's "Talking Baby" spot and Audi's "Chase." Jim Nail, chief marketing officer for TNS Cymfony, explained in a statement that ads focused on entertainment and "affordable indulges" drove online engagement, while those focused on financial services and cars did not.

When it came to driving Web traffic, free food proved to be by far the most compelling--and affordable--offer. Denny's free Grand Slam Giveaway promotion boosted the reach--defined as the total visitors to a site divided by total number of people online--of Dennys.com on Super Bowl Sunday 17 times above the level in the week leading up to the game.

Perhaps more importantly, the offer also had people lining up outside its restaurants around the country to get a free breakfast on Tuesday between 6 a.m. and 2 p.m.

"There certainly was a call to action there," said Matt Pace, director of retail for TNS Compete. "That was Denny's appeal to the weak economy." Sites for Cheetos, Budweiser, Gatorade and Bud Light rounded out the top five advertisers increasing audience reach, with each at least doubling their pre-Super Bowl levels.

Go Daddy, known for its salacious Super Bowl spots in recent years, also managed to double its Web audience by directing viewers online to watch the conclusions to its ads featuring a seemingly naked Danica Patrick.

Hulu.com, which began hosting all of the Super Bowl ads as they aired, got a 76% audience bump. It may have seen a bigger gain if Hulu's TV ad had directed people to the site to watch and vote on the Super Bowl ads.

By contrast, some advertisers' Super Bowl campaigns actually appeared to keep people away from their sites. GE, Taco Bell, Coca-Cola, CareerBuilder.com, Monster.com, Cars.com and E-Trade all saw Web visits tumble on Super Bowl Sunday by 4% to 57%. The lack of an online spike for financial services and car brands again is consistent with consumers avoiding major purchases or investments because of the recession. E-Trade's "Talking Baby" ads may also have lost some of their novelty after being rolled out last year.

Some sites also don't register gains immediately. The corporate sites of Coke and PepsiCo picked up traffic on Monday, for example. And some Super Bowl ads send viewers to specially created microsites rather than an advertiser's main site. So the RefreshEverything.com site promoted in Pepsi's Super Bowl spots had a nearly 200% audience spike on Sunday even though Pepsi.com had only a 38% gain.

Meanwhile, Denny's might have to give away free meals every day to keep its Web traffic humming along at a high level.