Imagine a brand taking a risk so daring that Las Vegas gamblers bet on whether it would pay off. That brand is Doritos. With a motto “go big or go home,” Doritos pioneered the power of consumer-created content by boldly airing fan-made Super Bowl spots in 2007 and 2008. Both ads placed No. 4 in USA Today’s prestigious ad meter, which ranks Super Bowl ads from most to least favourite. But, this year, Doritos elevated the stakes, taking a chance on its consumers that could lead to unprecedented success or a significant let down. Doritos put up $1 million for the fan whose homemade Doritos Super Bowl ad could trump Madison Avenue and become the first-ever user-generated commercial to take the top spot in USA Today’s ad meter. With millions in broadcast advertising dollars and the brand’s reputation at stake, public relations became the leader in driving high quality submissions and strong ROI. The PR strategy turned what could have been only a one week news cycle into six months of coverage that drove entries and overall awareness of the David vs. Goliath moments on Super Bowl Sunday and the next day, when USA Today revealed Doritos was No.1.

Invited America to develop Doritos’ Super Bowl ads (August 2008 – January 2009)• Challenged fans to create, submit and vote for a Doritos ad online Implemented a two-pronged media outreach approach to simultaneously reach Doritos’ core target audience and likely entrants and generate ongoing coverage in mainstream media (August 2008– January 2009)• Targeted newspapers, blogs, video sites and podcasts for core consumers (16-24)• Pitched ad, sports and lifestyle reporters at mainstream media outlets; positioned Doritos as user-generated content pioneer in co-op video news release; conducted satellite media tour with finalists Prepared messaging and media opportunities for all potential result scenarios (December 2008 – February 2009)• Developed multiple messages to control communications around various outcomes (e.g., Doritos takes top spot, Doritos places in top five, Doritos places low, etc.); conducted extensive outreach to national and local market media to line-up post-game press.

Just as a Doritos fan trumped Madison Avenue, PR also gave the ad world a run for its money. Publicity efforts marketed Doritos tortilla chips so extensively that the total earned media impressions were valued at nearly $40MM in advertising equivalency, 13 times the cost of a Super Bowl spot. PR earned Doritos 600 million impressions pre-game and became the No. 1 news story post-game, doubling program impressions in 10 days.

The best indicator of success: A 16 percent lift in sales of Doritos the week after Super Bowl XLIII.The program directly re-engaged consumers in the Doritos brand resulting in 1,900 entries, twice the number of submissions from year one of the program, 2.5MM+ hits on the contest web site, 1MM+ unique users who engaged in voting and commenting and 8.5 MM total video views. Doritos was the No. 2 brand capturing share of blog discussions about Super Bowl ads.