Product Placement

Abstract

Product placements represent the paid inclusion of branded products through audiovisual means within mass media programming. Placements reflect a “hybrid” characteristic that integrates key elements of advertising and publicity messages. Specifically, advertising messages are paid for and identify the brand sponsor; publicity messages are not paid for and do not identify the brand sponsor; hybrid messages are paid for and do not identify the brand sponsor. Given this hybrid characteristic, placements are attractive to brand sponsors: the “paid for” characteristic allows the brand sponsor to exercise control over the message (content, format, how it is presented, etc.); the lack of identification of the brand sponsor enhances the credibility of the perceived message source, thereby encouraging the audience to process the message as editorial content. In other words, the message is processed less defensively than, say, how the audience processes advertising messages. Product placements have registered impressive growth as evident from increased marketing expenditures devoted to placements, the expanding scope of placements (their popularity in TV programs, movies, songs, etc.), and the remarkable degree to which audiences embrace, accept, or tolerate placements worldwide. Historically, the United States has led the world market for product placements. PQ Media reports predict that the value of US product placements will reach an astounding $11.44 billion in 2019 from $7.39 billion in 2011. Several factors have contributed to this development, ranging from the fragmentation of media, decreased effectiveness of ads, and the general lack of regulation of product placements. For example, industry observers note the diminishing effectiveness of the thirty-second television ad. TV viewers often rely on devices such as digital video recorders (DVRs) to avoid or zip through commercials. Product placements have a strategic advantage over traditional ads in that they lie embedded within the editorial content that audiences actively seek. Additionally, exposure to product placements often occur in a setting (e.g., a movie theater) with a captive audience. When taken together, they provide ideal circumstances to influence audiences unobtrusively for commercial benefit using a message format that projects a non-commercial character. As a result, audiences are less likely to be aware of persuasive character of product placements and thereby process them differently than, say, how they respond to ads. It is noteworthy that ads engender instant audience awareness of their persuasive character, but this outcome is less likely for placements. Research indicates that the credibility of the message source decreases when audiences become aware of the sponsored nature of placement messages, compared to situations where they lack such awareness. However, empirical evidence also shows that this negative outcome or damage does not spillover to the sponsoring brand.