A final hoorah...

They say all good things must come to an end, and I’m sorry to report that like all good things this blog is coming to an end. This will be my last post. We’re nearing the end of the semester, and what a semester it has been. We’ve learned and talked about so much as in pertains to product placement. We started with a simple definition: the appearance of products in television programs or movies paid for by the manufacturer or company. I was surprised how far product placement has expanded past that definition and into new mediums.
We’ve looked into all sorts of interesting mediums in which product placement is set. We’ve learned that product placement in placed anywhere from television and movies, to race cars, music and on celebrities. Product placement is everywhere. Technically we’re all just walking billboards for the brands we wear, cars we drive, and products we’re seen with. Our generation would much rather view product placements than traditional advertisements. This seems to be the trend we’re heading towards. I think traditional advertising will always be around, but with the technological advances of TiVo and DVR, commercial exposure may become obsolete (except to those of you advertising nerds like me that tend to be more interested in the commercials than the actual television programs). I guess if they want anyone to pay attention, they’re going to have to become a little more creative.
Product placement has certainly become quite creative. Who would have thought that Jesus would drink and promote Coca-Cola? And who would have thought that Coke would sue for such a great product placement. Movies have definitely started to become overcrowded with product placements like we say in Blades of Glory. Surprisingly, even with so much product placement, it still held the number one box office spot. Looks like product placement is proving to be pretty effective. Just how effective, you may ask? Well, that’s a good question.
We also discovered in our journey throughout the semester than Nielsen has come up with a new tool called Place*Values. It’s a revolutionary new tool that allows advertisers to evaluate past product placements and new placement opportunities. It even allows advertisers to test different variations of their product placements and evaluate the success of each variation. With all the innovation in product placements, where is it headed? Research has shown that Europe and Asia are growing markets for product placement. So it looks like we’re heading overseas.
So, my friends, until we meet again, keep looking for product placements because every product has its place. Au Revoir.