CHICAGO -

While it may come as no surprise that a company would see a spike in overall traffic after advertising in the Super Bowl, Cars.com highlighted one particular area where it enjoyed considerable gains.

Specifically, the company said it generated quite a bit of traction for its mobile offerings from the two 30-second commercials that launched during coverage of Super Bowl XLV earlier this month.  

In fact, the Cars.com mobile products got “barely three seconds” of airtime, according to the company, but produced significant results. The Cars.com iPhone app showed a 140-percent increase in downloads after the Super Bowl and the mobile Cars.com site generated more traffic, as well, according to chief marketing officer Carolyn Crafts. Cars.com rolled out its mobile optimized site in 2007 and began offering an iPhone app last year.

“It’s not news to say that our traffic and awareness went up following the debut of our commercials in Sunday’s game,” Crafts noted. “What really pleased us is how exceptionally well our mobile app and mobile site traffic went up.

“Downloads of our app were up 140 percent following the game, and usage of our mobile site is also up significantly this week,” she continued. “So while the analysts continue to debate whether ad time during Sunday’s showdown was worth the investment, we can unequivocally say that even the briefest glimpse during the game can lead to tremendous results.”

Crafts also shared some of the positive results experienced by automakers that ran ads during the game.

“Mobile new car searches for the automakers who advertised on Sunday were also significantly higher,” she pointed out.

“All manufacturers who advertised saw a lift in mobile searches of new models of at least 30 percent over the same period a week ago,” Crafts noted. “Some of the big winners were BMW, Hyundai and Mini, who all saw interest in their 2011 models rise by more than 50 percent.”

The two Cars.com 30-second Super Bowl commercials can be seen at www.cars.com/superbowl.