To begin this story, let's start with some basic stats:

• According to the Marketing to Moms Coalition (MMC), American mothers are responsible for purchasing power to the tune of $2.1 trillion/year.
• Mothers typically have the last word in deciding what products their families consume.
• In a recent MMC survey, three-quarters of mothers feel that Super Bowl ads don't target their needs at all.

This veritable gold mine of marketing has been completely untapped for years, with most advertisers preferring to spend their money reaching out to the male demographic who usually watch football. Many have missed the fact that, unlike most football games, the Super Bowl has become more of a social event than a typical sporting event.

So we asked, how would marketers reach this group? In the world of professional sports, what novel approach could catch the attention of mothers in the audience without putting off the traditional male viewer?

We have an idea.

What if a major advertiser deliberately chose NOT to buy a Super Bowl ad? It's a radical thought, yes…but imagine that an advertiser instead launched a campaign in which they proclaimed that instead of spending $3M for :30 of air time, they spent those dollars to help others. By donating to a mom-friendly nonprofit, an advertiser could net a huge amount of customer loyalty.

What is that kind of positive publicity worth in today's dollars? That's the $3M question…