The New Face of TV adverts - Digital Product Placement?

With programme viewers having many more options now to avoid ad breaks on TV, eg recording programmes then skipping through the adverts as well as dashing out to make a cup of tea, one emerging piece of technology recently reported by Michael Millar, BBC News is that TV and film editors are considering post production digital product placement.

Of course product placement isn’t new as any Bond movie goer will have witnessed when Heineken stole a march over vodka martini in Skyfall, but what is new is that editors can drop in whatever they like, as and when they like, in the post production process and we at The Plum Consultancy ask - Is this the new face of TV and film advertising?

This form of advertising, immersed within the programme you wish to watch, allows brands to be integrated in such a way that the audience believes that they are part of the scene and therefore the common feeling of defensiveness against advertising is not present in the viewer (source: Mark Popkiewicz, Chief Executive digital placement firm MirriAd).

Keep an eye out for advertising on bus shelters for instance (some of which actually don’t exist in pre-production reality), the mobile phones that are being used and the drinks canisters being held and placed in scenes.  The technology available is capable of placing or replacing moving objects and even replacing products being handled by actors throughout a programme.

Mark Popkiewicz states in Michael Millar’s article that early trials show almost double the engagements by viewers compared with traditional campaigns.

Mr Popkiewicz is quick to point out that there is no element of subliminal influence, which can be both legally and socially unacceptable, saying the whole point is the images are “present and impactful” to make them work. He also makes clear that brand integration is not used in news and current affairs or children’s programming.

As more and more viewers are tracked through digital intelligence and with the majority of viewers now using either a tablet or smartphone while watching TV, which are also used for purchasing of products and social media activities, so more and more information is known about the viewer.

Could this eventually lead to adverts becoming as personalised to the viewer as a piece of direct mail through post production digital placement?

Although the legal ramifications are not yet known and the cost of compliance across countries may be prohibitive, this form of product placement will, we’re sure, be debated for some time to come.

If you would like to discuss this new wave in TV and film advertising or how to be creative with more traditional methods, please contact The Plum Consultancy by visiting: www.theplumconsultancy.com