Product Placement in Movies and Mass Media
Teresa Brasaemle
ENG 122
Instructor Cathy Wilson
November 09, 2013

Product Placement in Movies and the Mass Media
Over time, product placement has occurred in the movies and mass media. From the silent films of the early 1900s to modern day talkie movies, product placement has served as a gravitational pull for consumers, even though it is uncanny how subliminal advertising makes adults and young people spend money they do not have. There are three key elements to consider when discussing product placement in movies or the mainstream media, namely the economic effects on individuals, the social impacts, and the psychological ramifications.
First, the economic effects include having to purchase a particular product that has been seen in a given movie. Such products range from Apple computers to clothing, makeup, and popular music. These products are so conveniently placed in movies that they feed one’s hunger in a manner of speaking, which leads to a subliminal message given off during a movie one is watching. What is even worse is that consumers feel compelled to purchase. As stated,” When it works, subliminal advertising does so by affecting the consumer—member of audience—subconscious attitude toward received material in a movie or TV drama, towards the product in the movie or TV drama.” (Ming-tiem, Wen-ko, Mei-Ling, 2007, p.3)
Second, the social impacts are mind-boggling. This is where the trends begin; it is not the fact that the person wants the product or not but rather it is the overwhelming need to be like everyone else. This is almost like a cloning effect on today’s society. We want all of this just to be like the Joneses or Smiths down the street or like Salina or little Johnny.
Finally, the psychological ramifications that stem from the economic and social impacts discussed above can range from anger to depression and even to suicide, on a rare occasion, because a person does not have the financial means to be able to purchase a certain product or service and thereby fit in with his or her next-door neighbor.
One of the main forms of multimedia is television, which is just one communication method that uses product placement. Television is still the most popular form of entertainment to bait the consumer through product placement. They may only be 30 seconds long and run to only three or six adverts in a row, but the message is still the same. Direct or indirect subliminal messages are still being transmitted to consumers of all ages. “Television is the chief medium used by national advertisers. Much television advertising is for car companies, financial and insurance companies, food companies, restaurants, retail stores, telecommunications companies, and companies that sell medicines.” (Humphreys, 2013, Ways of advertising section, para.1)
While this is notable for the advertiser economically, at the same time the consumer feels compelled to purchase the product or service regardless of whether he or she has the money or has to spend money he or she can ill afford. Even though consumers watch television to view programs, at the same time they feel that they have to purchase an advertised product. Children see the toys they want on the television, and their parents feel guilty. In addition, they feel as though their children need to be accepted. This social need to be accepted is not limited to just children, but adults can become snared, too.
Even though television is one of the chief mediums for product placement, let us stop and think about the movies and what products are in them as well as how they influence moviegoers economically. Again, looking at hardworking individual’s that may not have the money and honestly just do not have. It is incomprehensible for anyone to believe that these products are just randomly placed. According to The Journal of Marketing, “A growing stream of product placement research has conducted surveys of consumer and practitioner views on the practice and experiments to gauge product placement’s impact on brand awareness, attitudes and purchase intent.” (Wiles, M., & Danilova, A., 2009, p.44). Despite the popularity of product placement on television, the film or movie industry is naturally taking over. Indeed, it is even going as far as following the consumer’s attitudes or his or her purchase intentions. It is almost as though those advertisers that place products in movies feed off consumers’ attitudes. This feeding off customers’ behaviors has been going on since silent movies started at the beginning of the last century. One may think not but, it is true. At that time, the clothing and shoes were worn and even the beverages that were drunk in those silent movies were product placement. Furthermore, product placement companies feed off the willingness of the moviegoer, which is their consumer for that product, through a direct approach or subliminally in one form or another. This has existed since then but with less hype than the current time where, anything goes.
However, there are some deeper social impacts and psychological ramifications. These focus around our children, and unfortunately, many people overlook the impact that this phenomenon truly has. Television and movies play a major role with children and adolescents. First, we should mention the negative health effects of watching too much television or going to the movies too often. This behavior is creating obesity in children and young adults in today’s society. Moreover, if it is not the child’s health that has gone out the window, it is the need for that child to feel socially accepted by his or her peers. As stated, “Moreover, because of children’s developmental sensitivities, their exposures may have longer-lasting effects than would be expected with adults. Effects might include the development of tastes fostered by media, for better or for worse, with subsequent effects on social skills, academic achievement, and physical, emotional, and spiritual health.” (Kaliebe, K. & Sondheimer, A., 2002, p.205)
In addition, one only knows what the product placement in movies relates. Anything from cell phones to computers and clothes are tailored to be suggestive in an inappropriate way. Research shows that parents are unable or unwilling to prevent their young children and teenagers from viewing so much television. This also applies to the movies that are being shown in theaters. One has to remember that product placement is not only limited to electronic items and so on. Guns, bullets, and knives are also considered to be suitable products. One may think that these products fall under protection in this country but, on the contrary, they are considered to be appropriate for product placement in movies and on television shows. Not only are they dangerous products, but they are also psychologically damaging for children as well as young adults and even adults. Moreover, they show young adults that violence is permissible in today’s society, which, can have a strong pull on today’s youth and society.
Consumers, whether they are children or adults, all have the need to feel or to be socially accepted. One case in point that comes to mind refers to the clothing worn by young men, especially the brand of jeans or the way in which they are worn. Young men think that to be “socially accepted”, they have to wear those pants almost to their knees. This style of wearing their pants comes from product placement in the movies subliminally advertising Levi jeans. What is sad is that today’s young men think that this is socially acceptable. In reality, it is simply ignorance and poor taste. Likewise, young females feel that to be socially accepted they have to wear makeup that is manufactured by Estee Lauder, sport purses from Sax Fifth Avenue, or, which is even more ridiculous, wear shorts that are so short they leave nothing to the imagination. This is from product placement in movies, case in point is Sex in the City. In this TV program, the character Carrie Bradshaw has to have expensive shoes and purses, and she wears those short shorts. As stated, “Perceived reality of the movie’s content is the degree to which viewers believe that the portrayal of characters, experiences, and settings are true to life. If the viewers do not perceive the portrayal as being realistic, then the movie content will have no more than a negligible impact on their real lives. By contrast, if the viewers consider the portrayal to be realistic, they are more likely to imitate the social and consumption behavior shown in the movie.” (Redondo, 2012, p.624) This is what young females are seeing; they are seeing the products that are placed in these movies and television series on HBO. And all of this is in the name of being socially accepted by one’s peers.
With adults, social acceptance is at a much broader scale: they need to understand the economic factor. In order for adults to “comply” with the pressure on social acceptance, they must spend large amounts of money. For adults, it is a matter of the larger products that are placed in movies or in the many forms of the mass media. “The literature in psychology presents a well-documented tendency for positive and negative stimuli to produce asymmetric effects. Compared to positively valenced stimuli, negatively valenced stimuli of the same type have a greater power to attract attention, receive more extensive and elaborate cognitive processing, and carry more weight in impression formation.” (Redondo, 2012, p.623) As you can see, even though product placement has economic effects, it also leads to social and psychological issues.
As uncanny as it may seem, product placement in movies is subliminal; computers, cars, and soft drinks to mention a few. If you watch a movie, whether in a theater or at home on a DVD, pay close attention to what products are in that film. Even try this with the shows that are on television. Then, you will have adults of all ages wanting to spend money that they may not even have. Consider today’s economy and the expense that comes into play when going to the movie theater, not to mention the fact that consumers feel as though they have to socially conform. Unfortunately, with the strong urge that people have to be a part of society, to feel like they belong, and to spend money that they do not have, this is going to continue to exist until the end of time. As human beings, we need to disassociate ourselves from movies and the mass media. It is amazing that one movie can have products placed in it. Is it no wonder that the product manufacturer is now being forced to deal with filmmakers to gain a proportion of their advertising? Take time to smell the roses and relax: there is more to life than conforming, spending money, and psychologically feeling that one has to be a certain type of person. We as a society need to realize that just because we see a particular product placed in a movie or in some form of the mass media, we do not always have to go and buy that product in the name of fitting into the 21st century and conforming to society. Today’s society is purely brainwashed, or should one say mentally programmed, to buy what is subliminally placed in a movie or on a television show. What is economically grand for the manufacturer is not always so for the consumer, however.
The author believes that as a society we want to be accepted. However, at the same time, we fear rejection if we do not have the latest and greatest. That is why we want to keep up with the Joneses. For once in your life, stop fixating one’s own economic destruction and the need to satisfy one’s psychological needs to be happy. Or the driven need to keep up with today’s society to socially fit in, Mother Nature has a great series of movies and television programs. They are all free, have no age restrictions, and are available in three-dimensional high definition color. Here is the best part: there is no product placement in these movies or television series. So take time to enjoy them, relax, and be one’s self for a change.

References
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Hall, Emma (2004) Young consumers receptive to movie product placement. Advertising Age. Vol. 75 Issue 13, p8-8. 1/3p Retrieved from: EBSCOhost database.
Humphreys, A. (2013). Advertising. In Academic World Book.
Retrieved from http://www.worldbookonline.com/academic/article?id=ar005440
Kaliebe, K., & Sondheimer, A. (2002). The media: Relationships to psychiatry and children: A seminar. Academic Psychiatry, 26(3), 205-215. doi:10.1176/appi.ap.26.3.205
Redondo, I. (2012). The Behavioral Effects of Negative Product Placements in Movies. Psychology & Marketing, 29(8), 622-635. doi:10.1002/mar.20548
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Ming-tiem, T., Wen-ko, L., & Mei-Ling, L. (2007). The Effects of Subliminal Advertising on Consumer Attitudes and Buying Intentions. [electronic version] International Journal Of Management, 24(1), 3-14. Retrieved from EBSCOhost database.
Wiles, M., & Danielova, A. (2009). The Worth of Product Placement in Successful Films: An Event Study Analysis. Journal of Marketing, 73(4), 44-63. doi:10.1509/jmkg.73.4.44