Subscribe to RSSAdvertising Isn’t A Four Letter Word
If you were to judge the initial reaction of a random person to the word “advertisement,” chances are it would be negative: “Drink Coca-Cola,” “Eat McDonald’s,” “Drive a BMW.” It’s not a rare occasion that I find myself thinking, “My life is ruled by advertisers.” Whether you are watching television, listening to the radio, or perusing the Internet, advertisements can be frustrating and annoying.
There is a reason why people (myself included) cringe at the idea of another multi-million dollar commercial with 20 different people of 30 different ethnicities dancing with a BigMac in their hands. I am certainly not “lovin’ it.” In fact, at that moment, I’d rather die than eat a BigMac. The advertisements never stop. When television and radio stations take these extended commercial breaks, it is called interruption marketing. And whether the numbers prove me right or wrong, it is killing the industry. The truth is blatantly obvious: viewers hate commercial breaks. I can see why there is a market for ad-free media outlets like Adbusters.
The problem with interruption marketing is that it has become so bothersome that the market is beginning to phase it out. DVR devices such as TiVo allow viewers to record their favorite shows and skip the commercials. If I had the money, I would buy it. However, the “evil powers-that-be” who control the advertising companies have taken notice and worked their way around the blockade of DVR recording. Their solution? Product placement.
A great example of product placement occurs in the 1998 film The Truman Show, starring Jim Carrey. The film follows a fictional character named Truman Burbank who is unknowingly the biggest television celebrity on the planet. The aptly named Truman Show follows his every waking moment, from birth to present and is broadcast 24/7. He is completely sealed from the outside world and secretly recorded on thousands of conveniently placed hidden cameras. Obviously the producers can’t break from the show (think of the action they would miss!) Instead, they cleverly place situations in Truman’s life where one of his friends or relatives explain the wonders of some new product or service. Who knew that this 30-second conversation is really an advertisement? To Truman (as well as the viewer), it is no big deal, though a little odd.
The same can be (and is) done with modern television. Have you ever watched American Idol? Have you ever noticed a conveniently placed Coca-Cola cup sitting in front of Simon Cowell? I’ll bet you have. It’s been there in just about every episode. Or how about the MacBooks that sit in front of your favorite hosts on Fox and Friends? These placements are no accidents (or at least they shouldn’t be). Product placement is the next big wave to hit the advertising industry.
However, there is danger ahead for the advocates of product placement. The FCC, our wonderful and loyal protector (aka government censor), is contemplating the idea of regulating the practice. The proposed rules would require networks and film studios to inform viewers when these advertisements occur. For example, the next time you watch American Idol, there may be a scrollbar at the bottom of the screen that says, “Simon Cowell drinks Coke! This is a paid advertisement of the Coca-Cola Company.” How annoying would that be? More importantly, how far would it reach? Would every product shown become an advertisement? “Conan O’Brien wears Armani.” Of course he does! He has to wear something!
My personal favorite product placement is in the 2004 film Garden State. Zach Braff and Natalie Portman are sitting together in the waiting room of a psychiatrist’s office. She takes off her headphones and they engage in some twentysomething male-female dialogue. Eventually he asks her what band she was listening to. And then it happens. It is what I believe to be the greatest single act of altruism and generosity in the history of modern American advertising. Natalie, a Harvard grad with a face that could launch a thousand ships (or sell a million CDs), replies, “The Shins…You gotta hear this one song. It’ll change your life, I swear.” As if that wasn’t enough free advertising, Zach Braff puts the headphones on and the audience listens to about 20 seconds of the Shins! Pure, unadulterated advertising. The crime is that the movie company did not see a single cent for it. The writer just happened to be a huge fan. After Garden State, the Shins became a household band. Before I watched Garden State I had never heard of them. After I saw the film, I bought two CD’s and burned them both for my little sister. MTV even conducted an interview with the Shins upon the release of their following CD and talked about “the quote.” Please, do not tell me that product placement does not work because my music collection is proof that it does.
The truth is that we secretly love advertisements. The catch is that we vehemently hate the formality of knowing we are being marketed to. If the FCC required the makers of Garden State to say that “the quote” was a paid advertisement (which it unfortunately wasn’t), then the product would have seemed less appealing than it did in its natural state. After all, who do those rich septuagenarians think they are, taking up my precious middle-class time with their not-so-subtle requests for more money? See what I mean?
Advertising is not a dirty four-letter word. It is a profitable, required eleven-letter word. It is how the iPod became famous. It is how GoDaddy became a household name overnight. Brilliant marketing yields brilliant results for both the producer and the consumer.
So who wants to buy ad space on the side of my car?
Rainer is a guest blogger for New Iron Media and a junior at Grove City College. Neither organization paid for the mentioning of their name, nor did Mr. Fehrenbacher receive a royalty for the use of his.