With the biggest sporting, and advertising, event of the year upon us, now is the time when viewers tune into commercials, especially when there are celebrity spokespeople backing the advertised brands.

But, there is one familiar face that won’t be present, at least for the commercials, during the big game. Although Peyton Manning will be starting for the Colts on Sunday, he won’t be spotted during commercial breaks as he frequently has been in the past. It’s not because he’s no longer one of the biggest names in football and advertising (he is still one of the most used spokespeople in ads), but because the brands he endorses, like MasterCard, Sony, DirecTV, Gatorade and Sprint, have all pulled their Super Bowl advertising spots.

Does this mean that times are changing for advertising? Are big-name advertisers no longer willing to fork over millions of dollars to run a 30-second spot during the game? Has the explosion of social media caused companies to rethink budgets and reinvest money that was traditionally directed toward advertising to other areas?

Maybe paying big bucks for ads isn’t the way to go anymore. It’s time that marketers strategize and rethink to ensure that marketing dollars are being spent wisely, getting the most bang for the buck and reaching customers.

So, what do you think? Have you seen companies redirecting advertising dollars to other areas? Are you going to miss seeing Peyton in commercials? I know I’ll miss seeing him, but I’ll still be cheering for the Colts during game time!

photo courtesy: www.flickr.com/photos/Leyinglo