Super Bowl Ad May Leave Viewers Asking, 'Que Pasa?'

Jan. 26, 2006 — -- If you're expecting your Super Bowl Sunday to be an English-only experience, piénsalo de nuevo.

Toyota will use the ultimate sports event to launch a commercial in Spanish and English, in what is the most prominent example of what analysts say is a growing trend: bilingual television ads. 

In the 30-second ad, a Hispanic father drives his young son in their hybrid Toyota Camry. In Spanish the father tells the boy how the hybrid car switches between gas and electric power, and the son compares it to the way his father switches between English and Spanish. There are no subtitles, but the Spanish dialogue is easy to understand. 

It's a simple ad, but the two languages will draw viewers' attention.

"I wonder how much is being done for the buzz?" said Joe Zubizarreta, CEO of the Zubi Advertising in Miami. But then again, what's a Super Bowl ad without buzz?

 Mindy Charski, a contributor to Marketing Y Medios, a magazine devoted to Hispanic marketing, said the ad is already a success. "In addition to the buzz, everyone in the industry is talking about how Hispanics can't be reached just with Spanish ads."

Other advertisers and auto manufacturers have produced bilingual ads before. But none has gone as far as Toyota will on Super Bowl Sunday.  

In 2004, Target ran an ad with Spanish lyrics from an Alejandro Sanz song, while General Motors ran a Chevrolet Silverado ad during the World Series that also included Spanish music. The GM ad didn't feature any Spanish dialogue, but other cars bopped up and down, saluting the Silverado as it passed them. 

The words "subete" or "get on" appeared onscreen at the end. That ad was popular, but it also generated some controversy, said Charski. 

"Some people felt offended by the Spanish words at the end," she said. "They said this is an English broadcast and the ads should be in English." 

So how risky will Super Bowl Sunday be for Toyota?