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There is a common misconception that any placement of brands in TV and feature film is paid for – with a lot of dollars. And the media strongly supports this opinion. Article after article have been written to support this myth - but the truth lies outside what you may read.
While this holds true for what is known as brand integration, where money is exchanged to guarantee a specific story line centered on the brand, it is not true for over 90% of what ends up on the small and big screen alike. What then does is take, instead of cash, to forge a strong brand-production bond? In this blog, Hollywood Branded shares three reasons why brands can win big time on screen, and make affordable product placement magic happen on screen.
Film studios and TV networks do restrict certain categories of brands, seeking either monetary involvement in the form of a media buy and integration, or a promotional partner that will leverage their media to co-brand the production – bringing new viewership and higher box office sales.
Yet there remains an enormous opportunity for brands to harness the power of product placement separate from those dollars and promotional efforts. It's time to address the burning question: How much does product placement cost?
The real truth with product placement is that those folks behind the scenes – the people brands want to form alliances with – the Prop Master, Set Decorator, Wardrobe Stylist, Transportation Coordinator… they LOVE brands, and (gratis) participation with the production by providing no-cost product is a major benefit to them. And they are eager to work with brands to incorporate them into productions.
Just like brand marketing departments, productions have budgets – and when they can save dollars and come in under budget, they look great to their bosses.
This provides production complimentary product that again saves on their production costs on a larger scale.
Obviously not all brands lend themselves to this – but a beverage or snack brand company might provide a couple of pallets of product for the crew to consume during production, a mobile phone might provide service for key production executives or the entire crew, an automotive partner might provide production loan vehicles for production to use to transport key executives and talent, and many other types of companies might provide a cast and crew gift for the wrap of production.
How can a brand ensure the production is aware the brand is on board and ready and willing to help out without calling random strangers in Hollywood?
The most efficient way is to partner with a product placement or entertainment marketing agency who will create and drive a strategic program targeting the productions that fit the brand’s desired targeted demographic, while at the same time ensuring the brand is safeguarded from any negative usage on screen. The agency’s fee is not only for their time and resources, but also relationships and industry knowledge, which should provide the brand with a phenomenal Return On Investment (ROI) that most brands will not be able to secure alone.
Did you know the majority of agencies, brands and consumers think positively of product placement and brand integration? Now that you understand a little more about product placement cost, read about 7 key tactics to help increase placement sales.
Check out our blogs below to learn more:
Topics: Marketing Best Practices, Product Placement & Branded Content, How To
Stacy Jones, Hollywood Branded's founder and CEO, has over twenty six years of leadership experience building global entertainment branding campaigns for top Fortune 500 companies and hundreds of brands. Her career started after receiving her BFA in Theater Production & Scenic Design from the University of Arizona. Acknowledged as an expert in the field, she has appeared on CNN and MSNBC; spoken at conferences around the globe from Germany to Beijing; and has been featured in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, The Hollywood Reporter, Financial Times, The Economist, Brandweek, Advertising Age, Variety, B&C and Mediaweek amongst others. Originally from Texas, you will still hear her ya’ll as she gathers the team for strategy planning sessions. Like all true entrepreneurs, Stacy is an adventurer at her core – having sky dived, hang glided off bi-planes, swam with crocs while rafting the Zambezi in Africa, photographed grizzly bears in Alaska, trekked Mayan ruins in Belize, explored the ocean as an avid scuba diver, and who loves owning an advertising agency where she swims with a different type of Hollywood shark on a daily basis.
