Pepsi wants to make the biggest Super Bowl splash

PepsiCo Inc. plans to run spots for no fewer than five of its brands this Sunday, including an ad featuring 60 seconds of silence.

The spot, which will actually run during the Fox network's pregame show on Feb. 3, was conceived by a PepsiCo employee, starring him and three others, including two who are deaf.

Considering how many seriously bad Super Bowl commercials we've seen over the past few years, this one might have a chance to be one of the real bright spots. One of the spots that really breaks some new ground.

And here's another interesting Super Bowl advertising development - PepsiCo said today that it would air Super Bowl ads for five different brands: Gatorade G2, Amp Energy, SoBe Life Water, Diet Pepsi Max and Pepsi. The experts say this is a sign of just how much the beverage category has changed. In past years, the majority of this super-expensive ad time was typically devoted to "core" brands like Pepsi and Diet Pepsi. However, as consumer tastes continue to shift, promoting non-core energy drinks and non-carbonated beverages has become essential.

With the average price tag per spot of $2.7 million, I certainly think Pepsi is making a commitment here, and the stratgty, to me, is a sound one. In the past, deviation from the core brands would have been a mistake, but in today's marketplace, diversification is the way to go, and the non-core brands need that level of support.