E.T. was scarfing down Reese's Pieces in the '80s. Austin Powers
has to have his Pepsi, baby. 007 drives a new dream car in every
"Bond" film, and Tom Hanks would still be on that island if it
weren't for FedEx. Seinfeld drank Snapple, and the "Friends" are
wild about Pottery Barn.
Product placement in TV and the movies is very old news. But the
landscape has changed dramatically over the last couple of years,
with significant implications for any PR professional involved in
product branding.
The biggest change is that PR is involved in the equation at
all. An area that used to be strictly the jurisdiction of ad
agencies and marketing departments is increasingly falling under
the PR umbrella.
That's happening for a reason, says Tom Tardio, CEO of Rogers
Cowan/Weber Shandwick Entertainment Marketing. "A lot of consumer
goods companies had a minimal commitment to product placement in
the past, centered on shipping boxes of product to as many films
and TV shows as possible. But it wasn't integrated with any
promotional function. There was never a PR overlay to maximize the
exposure." The recession and careful scrutiny of the results of
every dollar spent have prompted many companies to reengineer their
approach to product placement, Tardio says, ensuring that PR is
part of any product placement from the first strategy session.
Mary Semling, SVP of entertainment marketing for Edelman, says
that more often PR is not only strategizing, but actually landing
the placements. "We're no longer sitting back and waiting for the
deal to happen," she says.
Finding the Right Fit
The most successful product placements are hinged on the same
fundamentals of any partnership you might initiate: a common target
demographic and a fit that seems natural for both sides. Do your
homework on target audiences, and know what's ahead in terms of
movie deals and other potential placement opportunities.
It's advisable for communications execs to get to know the folks
at the major film and TV studios. Look for execs in the Production
Resources or Promotions group. Find the right contacts at the
studios so that you'll be in the loop and they'll know your
organization is interested in potential deals. Also, be sure they
know who the appropriate contacts are within your company. "What we
hear from a lot of studios is they need to know whom to call.
Universal may call and get the wrong person at your organization,
and there's no protocol in place. You need to get the right person
on the studio's radar screen," Semling says.
And if you aren't working with an agency to help broker the
deal, by all means, do your homework. It's extremely rare that a
product will be "featured" on a program or in a film without a
promotional agreement or a paid placement, although products may be
featured as parts of sets if you send them to the studio. And paid
placements, especially in the world of high-budget films, can cost
your company megabucks. It's easy to be taken advantage of. "Read
Brandweek, Ad Age and Variety - there's a lot of good information
in those trades," Semling says.
Once your organization has found a potential match, it's crucial
that PR be involved, says Aaron Brost, PR manager for Jim Beam
Brands Co. "PR works closely with the product placement [team or
agency] to pitch and educate the show's producers, prop masters,
writers and directors about a product, much like we work with the
news media." Brost has had tremendous success with Jim Beam's
DeKuyper Pucker Sour Apple Schnapps, a key ingredient in an apple
martini Leah Remini's character is known to indulge in on "King of
Queens." When his team discovered that Nicole Kidman also enjoys
the drink, they began arrangements to have the Schnapps placed in
one of her upcoming films.
Extending the Noise Factor
Whether you're at the bargaining table when the deal is brokered
or not, PR professionals need to become more deeply involved in
extending any product placement. Companies can no longer afford to
pay big bucks for the placement and then hope that consumers notice
it. Work closely with your agency or marketing department if you
aren't involved in brokering product placements so that you'll be
in on upcoming appearances from beginning to end.
Tardio offers "Men in Black II" as an example. If it weren't for
a high-level PR strategy, most consumers would know that Will Smith
sported some pretty slick shades in the film. But odds are, they
wouldn't know they were Ray-Bans. Instead, retail promotions and
sweepstakes at Ray-Ban retail outlets and a Cosmo fashion spread
got the Ray-Ban name out there in a big way. Smith and 80 lookalike
"Men in Black" even sported the sunglasses on the "Today" show, and
before it was all over, Al Roker and Matt Lauer were wearing "Back
in Black" glasses as well. Another coup: Ray-Bans are written into
the song Smith performs for the movie - and at a variety of
appearances.
Building that kind of attention for a product placement isn't
easy, Semling says. For one thing, not all celebrities are as
amenable to pushing your product outside the sound stage, whether
they're paid or not. "Most of the time when the film has big
talent, the talent aren't going to serve as spokespeople just
because your product is in the film. If you have visions of Vin
Diesel becoming your spokesperson," she says, get over them.
Semling advises clients to extend product placements with
sweepstakes, contests and local market promotions.
Get creative with media, too. When Jen Maguire, of Jennifer A.
Maguire PR, gets her clients' jewelry on celebrities, she often
offers long-lead fashion magazines a behind-the- scenes look at how
the company is creating a unique accessory for the appearance.
Even when you don't have the budget to do significant promotions
around a product appearance, you can still get some decent mileage
out of it, Tardio says. CCM's Dos Equis brand is one of the most
frequently placed beer brands in Hollywood. The company doesn't
have the budget for significant PR support of its placements, but
instead it does an internal marketing piece for its sales force,
which gets the team pumped and can be a tool with retailers and
other parnters.
(Contacts: Tardio, 310/201-8849; Semling, 312/240-2630; Maguire,
212/366-1796; Brost, 847/948-8888)
Negative Noise?
There are times when you may not want to splash your product
placement across magazine pages or have the stars promoting it on
"Today." Reasons to let a placement stand on its own without a
full-scale PR campaign:
- The budget doesn't support additional promotion beyond the
placement itself. - Additional PR might create unwanted buzz, or buzz with the
wrong demographic. For example, Jim Beam's Aaron Brost is careful
to select placements that will not target a demographic under the
age of 21. "We do not market to persons under 21, and we oppose all
forms of excessive consumption." So the company's PR team works
closely with producers, directors, writers and prop masters to
ensure the products are placed appropriately. - A recent survey showed that many consumers have noticed product
placements are on the rise (PRN, Jan. 13), and about 60 percent
aren't happy about it.
"Where you cross the line to annoying or distracting is when you
have a placement that takes the viewer out of the story line,"
Edelman's Mary Semling says.
In entertainment whose goal is to be outrageous (think "Austin
Powers"), this might be acceptable. But in a more serious film or
program, this can be irritating to viewers. Carefully consider
whether the placement will be a distraction before making the deal,
and don't go so far with the promotions that they eclipse the film
or program itself.