by John Atchison

Created on: January 31, 2013   Last Updated: February 01, 2013

When the 2013 Super Bowl kicks off in New Orleans on Sunday, there will be a segment of the population watching that will not be tuning in to watch the game, but to watch what happens during the commercial breaks. For several decades now, Super Bowl commercials have been big business, with companies sinking millions of dollars into elaborate campaigns designed to capture the attention of the viewing public.

Super Bowl ads can make or break a company's advertising campaign in any given year. One will also find that those companies that find success usually return the following season to keep that positive momentum going. Many of the commercial spots this season will be coming from groups that have been long time participants on the Super Bowl Ad stage.  The internet site Businessinsider.com has promo clips of many of this year's entrants.

Take snack food giant Doritos, for instance. For the past several years, their commercials have been among the biggest success stories at the big game. Last year's rubber banded baby grabbing the Doritos bag from his teasing sibling was one of the best. The company returns with its familiar formula of viewers sending in their homemade ads, which was whittled down to five. Only two make it to the big game, with the winner being given the opportunity to work on the new Transformers movie. The competitors can be viewed here, but the old man at the supermarket check out could be a big winner.

Who has not enjoyed the E-Trade commercials in recent years, featuring the baby giving sage advice on online stock trading, while being involved in any number of hilarious situations? The baby will return once again this season, looking to keep the successful campaign going for a seventh straight year. Coke will be in the fray again, but gone will be the familiar Polar Bears. Coke is trying the interactive viewer thing, asking watchers to vote for the favorite ending to their Coke Chase 2013 theme.

Automobile manufacturers are famous for getting involved in the Super Bowl ads and this year will be no exception. Among the many groups with ads this year will be Chrysler, Fiat, Audi (which is having users vote from 3 choices to see which one makes it), and Ford's Lincoln. Also included are Kia (Hyundai), Mercedes, and Toyota, which features Kaley Cuoco in its spot.

There will also be numerous new companies trying their hand at making a Super Bowl ad. Wonderful Pistachios is trying to go with a 2012 hit, PSY Gangnam Style to hopefully make a gigantic splash on the advertising stage. Other new spots will include Tide laundry detergent, Sodastream, Oreo, Mio water enhancer, and Gildan Activewear.

Sometimes, leading stars are used to try to sell a product, and plenty of them make the Super Bowl Ad field again this year. The Rock will be in a cute spot for Got Milk while Kate Upton will be washing a car (certainly in a seductive manner) for the Mercedes spot. Several movie studios are premiering film clips, which could include names like Tom Cruise and Robert Downey Jr. Finally, what Super Bowl would be complete without a visit from domain name site Go Daddy.com, and their spokes model, Danica Patrick.

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