ATLANTA — AutoTrader.com is rolling out a new advertising campaign today across multiple channels — including Web, TV and business-to-business avenues — that will demonstrate the research tools, information and vehicle inventory the company can offer to help shoppers make the best purchase decision.

What AutoTrader.com calls the centerpiece of the "Heart & Mind" campaign are two 30-second TV spots that will begin airing today.

"The spots creatively highlight the functionality AutoTrader.com offers to allow people to review and compare real new and used vehicles listed for sale on the site," officials explained.

"Stunning imagery represents the shopping process through the heart and the mind, where emotional and rational decisions take place," they added. "The spots communicate that when using AutoTrader.com to find a new or used vehicle, buyers will be satisfied with their purchase decisions."

The TV ads will be carried via ABC, ESPN, TNT, MTV, VH1, Spike, Lifetime and HGTV. AutoTrader.com said it will employ these ad sports the remainder of 2010.

AutoTrader.com online advertising will consist of home-page takeovers as well as ads on such Web sites as Slate.com, YouTube, Pandora, AOL Fanhouse, Facebook, ESPN, CNN, NBA.com, NASCAR.com, PGA.com and Yahoo! Sports.

Also on the digital front, AutoTrader.com is introducing a "Decide My Ride" application via Facebook. Shoppers will be able to post four vehicles they are thinking about buying, and their Facebook friends can vote for the vehicle that is the best to purchase. This plays on theme of how pivotal the opinions of family and friends can be in the car-buying process.

Beginning Friday, AutoTrader.com had been posting teasers about the campaign to its Twitter and Facebook pages to generate some interest. Then today, the company put the actual ad on the Facebook page.

Additionally, there will be some "industry-focused" publicity for AutoTrader.com throughout the rest of 2010 in such avenues as e-mails, collaterals and ads in auto trade media.

AutoTrader.com said the business-to-business efforts will attempt to highlight the "depth and breadth" of the campaign to the dealers and automakers, as well as explain how the campaign can help drive site traffic. Such upswings in site traffic are obviously good for those who list their vehicles on AutoTrader.com, who can enjoy greater exposure.

Executives went on to explain that the campaign deals with some of the trends which recent research has discovered in the auto-shopping process. The first is data that indicates that almost half (45 percent) of shoppers look at both new and used models when beginning their quest for a new ride.

Second, in light of today's economic challenges, research shows that shoppers are more concerned now about making sure they buy the "right vehicle" than ever before.

As such, they are doing more online research to compare different vehicles, prices and offers. 

And AutoTrader.com is designed to show consumers they can turn to the site for their shopping research needs, including side-by-side comparisons of different vehicles.  

"We spent a lot of time looking at what consumers want and need in the car-buying process," stated Clark Wood, the company's chief marketing officer.

"Then we built a campaign that in high-impact, exciting and creative ways lets people know AutoTrader.com has the information, the tools and ultimately the actual cars listed for sale that shoppers need to be sure they found the right car for them," he added.

"AutoTrader.com has experienced record site traffic over the past few months and we believe this campaign will drive even more car shoppers to our site, creating even more value for the auto dealers, manufacturers and private sellers who advertise on our site," Wood concluded.