Marketing communication: principles and practice

S E L E C T I N G M E D I A
167
BOX 9.1AUSTIN POWERS: THE SPY WHO SOLD LOTS OF
STUFF
Perhaps the most sophisticated example of product placement to date is the 
Austin
Powers
film in which laughs and free advertising go hand in hand as the technique is
at once made fun of and exploited for profit. 
In return for placement, for example, Heineken has promoted the film in its 32,000
US in-store displays, providing the equivalent of millions of pounds in free promotion
for the film. Marketing campaigns for products featured in the film use the Austin Powers
character to sell products and, in doing so, increase awareness of the film.
So which brands are featured and how? Dr Evil calls Scott the ‘Diet Coke’ of evil.
Austin receives e-mail via AOL, and lives next door to a Virgin store and a Phillips TV
store. Dr Evil’s HQ is a Starbuck’s restaurant. Austin’s Volkswagon car is a time-
machine! 
Of course, once the audience becomes aware of product placement, its impact may
be compromised. The film 
Back to the Future II
was overflowing with blatantly visible
products such Nike, Pizza Hut, Black & Decker, and DeLorean.

---

shop-front on the programme set. This saved the production company the
cost of constructing part of their film set, but expended only a small fraction
of the company’s promotional budget.
Some people are unhappy with this development, seeing this increased
commercialism as a taint on TV and film audiences. In 1999, 
The Truman
Show
poked fun at the technique by including fake products. For some people,
this promotional effort smacks of the scary idea of subliminal advertising –
purchase suggestion hidden from our awareness – commercialism insidiously
entering our lives, urging us to ‘buy more stuff’.
Marketing managers are now employing product placement agents to offer
their products (often with accompanying payments) to producers for use in
their programmes. The BBC’s guidelines on product use are strict. Payment
is forbidden. No commitments or promises on screen appearances are allowed.
The ITC is stricter. Makers can have free benefit of products only if they are
an essential element of the programme, helping to develop the plot or enhance
realism, and no undue prominence is given. Of course, apart from the question
of legality, we can also ask whether stealth advertising is ethically acceptable? 
It is claimed that the benefits (to the provider) of product placement extend
well beyond on-screen exposure. A promotional campaign can create a
positive association between the product and the film plot and/or its characters
– a ‘halo marketing’ effect. This co-promotion and joint marketing is a
growing business.
Typical objectives are:
• avoid the clutter of advertising media by placing the product in the
entertainment media
• build awareness through establishment or reinforcement
• celebrity endorsement is implied – when the product is used, a preference
or choice is suggested
• exposure to people who do not read and watch conventional broadcast
media
• product use consistent with the desired image, i.e. in natural and believable
situations, reinforcing the image
• attractive portrayal to increase desirability of purchase, perhaps boosting
conventional advertising impact
• positive reinforcement of brand loyalty
What is the impact of product placement? Providers may raise brand awareness
and employee morale, reinforcing the broader marketing programme.