Shot of Product Placement for Smirnoff as Brand Partners with Madonna

Feb 19

Smirnoff has joined forces with Madonna in the latest music video product placement deal.

The star’s video for latest single ‘Give Me All Your Luvin’ – the debut single from her forthcoming album ‘MDNA’ – premiered on YouTube in early February. Smirnoff vodka lines up as the drink of choice in the video’s bar scene.

Smirnoff’s Nightlife Exchange Project Dance was a global Facebook competition that set out to seek a dance star to join Madonna on her next tour. US dancer Lil Buck was finally chosen after a dance-off at New York City’s Roseland Ballroom. He joined the pop star’s dance ensemble at the Bridgestone Super Bowl Half-time Show earlier this month.

Simon Burch is the global brand director for The Smirnoff Co. He said: “Partnering with Madonna has been extraordinary and we are thrilled to deepen the partnership supporting the release of MDNA and ‘Give Me All Your Luvin’.”

Brands are increasingly including product placement in music videos in their advertising armoury thanks to the ease of targeting their prime audience.

Streamed TV Proves a Hit – with Traditional Advertising Surely its Casualty

Feb 12

Streamed entertainment is proving to be a popular hit with UK viewers. But what does this mean for advertisers now that more people are skipping the ads? Step in Product Placement: the advertising alternative that won’t become a casualty of the fast-forward button.

ITV Player, BBC iPlayer, 4oD and other TV and film streaming services are, according to KPMG research, becoming more ‘mainstream’ in the UK, with more users willing to pay for them.

The audit and tax advisory giant’s bi-annual Media and Entertainment Barometer, based on a YouGov survey of just over 2,000 Britons aged 16-plus, revealed the popularity of streamed TV, especially amongst the younger generation. 90% of those surveyed in October 2011 were aware of BBC iPlayer; 79% had heard of ITV Player and 65% knew of LoveFilm. 68% actually used the BBC’s streaming service, a rise of 5% in six months, and 36% were regular users of ITV Player, up 4% in six months.

Britons Increasingly Willing to Pay for Streamed Entertainment

The study showed that Britons are increasingly willing to pay for streamed entertainment; 30% will fork out for paid TV content and 64% for films.

David Elms, head of media at KPMG said: “Not only is awareness and usage of streaming high, but willingness to pay for content has increased too.”

So with the rise in popularity of ‘viewer-controlled’ entertainment, brands will surely be seeking an alternative advertising strategy that is safe from the fast-forward button. This is where the benefit of embedded advertising comes into its own: where brands become part of the entertainment, rather than a tea-break phenomenon, or a casualty of the ad-break skipper.

Report Shows Positive Attitude to Product Placement

Feb 07

The Journal of Management and Market Research report we mentioned in our last blog has come up with some statistics that show a positive attitude to product placement. According to the report, 60% of viewers see placed brands in a positive light and 2010 figures showed 75% of shows contained branded content.

The report went on to question the economic value of product placement advertising. One study, by Wiles and Danielova, uncovered evidence that product placement in a popular film is connected to a rise in brands’ stock prices.

Product Placement can Boost Brand Awareness by 20% 

The report also quotes that, according to Nielsen Media Research, product placement in television shows can boost brand awareness by 20 per cent and Tsai, Liang, and Liu found heightened brand awareness leads to better recall and a stronger intention of buying.

Viewers are in favour of placed brands providing they add realism to a scene. Snoody commented that because day to day life is so inundated with brands, seeing them within TV programmes or films adds to the sense of reality. 

In general says the Journal’s report, attitudes toward product placement are positive across media types.

Study’s Downsides to Product Placement Challenged by Digital Technology

Jan 23

A Journal of Management and Market Research study: Product placement Effectiveness: Revisited and Renewed, makes an interesting and balanced read across the subject of product placement, and throws up some statistics worthy of note which we’ll cover in a future blog.

What we’re focusing on in this post is the fact the study makes reference to a few observations in an attempt to level the balance, by offering up a brief selection of reasons why product placement advertising may have its downsides.

One of these reasons is lack of control over how products are integrated into a scene. Daugherty and Gangadharbatla (2005) said that products may end up being used unethically or could be ignored, misused or criticised. “Advertisers must exert greater control over product or brand appearances to ensure their prominence,” says the study.

A second reason cited as a downside to product placement advertising is that marketers have little or no influence over how successful the campaign will be. “It is difficult to predict where to place brands for maximum positive exposure,” the study suggests.

“Marketers are increasingly pressured to be accountable for expenditures and results. Thus, while the use of product placement is growing and the positive effects of product placement have been established, it is important for the marketer to measure whether and to what degree the firm’s investment is worthwhile. However, there is little evidence on whether or to what extent these investments pay off,” says the study.

Fair points – but Arguments Fail when Product Placement is Digital

These could be considered fair points with regard to static product placement, where brands are integrated into storylines and scenes at script or director level. However, with digital product placement – where brands are placed retrospectively into a scene by digital means – the arguments fail.

By using digital product placement technology with integrated measurement and analysis tools, brands can take full control of their placements, and enjoy premium exposure.

ZoneSense is MirriAd’s unique system that seamlessly places branded imagery into existing content. And since November 2011, placements are accurately measurable thanks to the integration of a new analytics service. Information on exposure duration, position, integration level and orientation to the camera is all made automatically available, allowing the brand and content owner to be familiar with all aspects of a campaign: on demand and in advance, thus mitigating a brand’s investment risk. 

So the proof of the campaign performance – before and after – is in the analytics. And the control is in the hands of the brand. Downsides: consider yourselves challenged!