The Clever Art of Product Placement

Every time you watch a movie or a TV show, try to list down every brand you recognize. The brands that you identify are not there by chance. Take the K-drama “Goblin” as an example. You may have noticed the cellphone model that The Grim Reaper owns, the brand of perfume that The Goblin gave his bride, the signature ensemble that The Goblin and The Grim Reaper had on, and the lipstick that The Bride was wearing. The appearances of these brands are not coincidental. Rather, companies paid to have their brands featured in “Goblin.” The same is true with movies, TV shows, and just until recently, YouTube videos.

This is a type of marketing strategy called product placement or embedded advertising. Product placement is used by commercial television programs and movies. The use of this marketing strategy benefits both the company that wants its brand advertised and the producer of a TV show or a movie. It is called “embedded” because viewers almost do not notice that the brands are being advertised to them. Instead, the brands naturally and seamlessly blend in with the context of the TV shows or movie.

For example, in the context of TV dramas that involve cooking, brands that are embedded may include kitchenware such as knives or non-stick cookware, kitchen essentials such as oil, and condiments such as ketchup or soy sauce.

Product placement is, for a number of reasons, a clever strategy as much as it is an art. First, it allows starting or small companies to introduce their products and big companies to launch a new product in the market without the use of commercials.

Second, product placement does not annoy viewers as much as commercials do. Without interrupting viewer experience, the use of product placement achieves the same result that commercials aim for.

Third, after you watch a TV show or movie, you find yourself in a position wanting to own what the characters have. This effect of product placement on consumers is nothing new. For instance, cosmetic companies who paid Korean dramas knew exactly that this would happen. This is why as ratings of “Legend of the Blue Sea” and “Goblin” went up, the lipstick that Jun Ji-hyun and Kim Go-eun wore became a huge trend in South Korea and other countries like the Philippines and China. Viewers became so curious about the specific shades and brand that the actresses used.