Did you know that a 30-second ad during the 2006 Super Bowl cost a whopping $ 2.5 million? That’s $ 80,000 per second!

But consider this: 90 million people tuned in to the game, and many of them did so just to watch the ads.

Why am I talking about SuperBowl advertising for small business owners and solo professionals who market on a tight budget?

After all, who can begin to relate to spending that amount of money on marketing? I know I can’t!

But you can learn from this marketing show. Here are some ways …

Lesson n. # 1: Put “Buzz” to work

SuperBowl advertisers are taking advantage of the environment their message is in. Buying a spot during SuperBowl is different than buying a spot at any other time. There’s a big, big, huge spotlight shining on those ads, and that’s good news for advertisers.

Why is this important?

When you have an event with a lot of publicity, you create an environment in which people are paying attention. Getting people’s attention is often a marketer’s biggest challenge.

With these ads, that first hurdle is a flop.

Lesson # 2: Taking Advantage of Free Advertising

Everyone talks about the game and, more specifically, about the commercials. During the weeks leading up to the game and the weeks after, there is press about the commercials. Just Google “SuperBowl Ads” and you will see.

These advertisers are not dumb. All of this PR provides additional exposure at no additional cost and adds mileage to your paid marketing.

Lesson n. 3: Using Current Technology to Reach Customers

This year all the talk was about Burger King, who made their SuperBowl ad available for download on Sprint cell phones.

None of this has anything to do with the quality or cost of these places.

It has to do with the marketing strategy. And you can apply these same strategies to your marketing, regardless of your budget.

Ask yourself how you can capitalize on the buzz … or create it. Launching a new show? Don’t just pounce on your audience.

Make fun of them … let them know it’s coming soon. If you publish an ezine or newsletter, include short announcements about your upcoming new product or service weeks before introducing it. Develop some anticipation.

Find ways to get publicity.

Is there an industry event that you can link to? Are there any news or trends that you can take advantage of? What’s going on that you can capitalize on?

Learn and use technology to spread your message.

I know, it’s hard to keep up, but as marketers we have to. Technology is changing the way your prospects and customers get their information. If you don’t keep up with things, you may be left in the dust.

In the last 10 years we have moved from print direct mail and newsletters, to digital magazines and email marketing, and now we are entering the world of consumer-oriented media with blogging and podcasting. Ask yourself how you can offer your marketing services and services using these new media.

There you have it, three ways you can use and benefit from the same marketing strategies as the big boys.