• by Tanya Gazdik , January 20, 2020

Safety has always been a big part of the Volvo brand identity, and now the automaker is putting a new twist on the word with a Super Bowl promotion. 

The automaker will give away $1 million in cars if a safety is scored during the game on Feb. 2. 

For a chance to win, contestants visit VolvoSafetySunday.com where they’ll be prompted to design their own Volvo car and submit a unique configuration code as an entry between Jan. 20 and just before kickoff. They can choose one of any 2020 Volvo models currently available in the United States, in any trim and color.

The automaker will promote the contest via targeted online advertising and on its social channels using the hashtag  #VolvoSafety. Creative surrounding the contest was created in-house.

If a safety is scored, Volvo will randomly select entrants to receive $1 million in cars. Winners will be contacted during the week of Feb. 3 via email.  

The average price of a Volvo is about $60,000, which would mean about 167 vehicles will be given away.  

A safety is a relatively rare and unpredictable scoring play in football that occurs when an offensive team is tackled, loses or fumbles the ball, or commits a penalty in their own end zone. The result of the play is two points to the defensive team, which receives possession of the ball via a free kick.

During the 2019 regular season, 17 safeties occurred in 256 total games -- approximately one per week of the season (6%) They are more common during the Super Bowl, occurring 9 times in 53 games (17%). Las Vegas offers 6-1 odds on a safety occurring during the big game. 

From the invention of the three-point safety belt 60 years ago to other world firsts, safety is at the center of everything Volvo does, says Jim Nichols, brand communications senior manager, Volvo Car USA. 

“Volvo Cars has been successful in the past in activating programs around the big game that sit outside of traditional advertising,” Nichols tells Marketing Daily. “Volvo Safety Sunday offers a way to educate people on Volvo’s safety heritage and explore our cars in a more meaningful way than a clever TV spot ever could.”

Volvo has a history of “anti-Super Bowl” efforts. Last year, the automaker encouraged consumers not to watch Super Bowl ads and instead participate in an online contest called “The Longest Drive” to win one of the automaker’s vehicles.

In 2015, the automaker also avoided a Super Bowl buy, conducting another social campaign based on competitive ads. “Volvo Interception” let game day viewers nominate someone deserving to receive a new Volvo XC60. Each time an automotive ad ran during the game, viewers tweeted the name of the person deserving of a new car using the hashtag #VolvoContest.