Product placement plays a big role in the media industry. The only way it is effective is if you are undecided about a certain product. No matter how many times I see my favorite show drink pepsi, I am still going to prefer coke. I think the same holds true for anyone, because most people are smart enough not to be completely persuaded by the shows the watch. I think the effectiveness comes from the undecided group of people. If someone had never drank a coke or a pepsi, and then saw somebody drinking a pepsi on their favorite TV show, they might go try it. This is still limited persuasion because most people also know that companies pay to get their products on the show, and it doesn't mean that that character likes that product, so product placement, along with all other advertising, has lost its effectiveness because we are constantly bombarded by adds. Adds can draw in customers that don't know about a product, but a product has to be good for it to continue to be successful.

Commercial Blog

One ad on the radio I hear a lot is the Shane Company commercial telling me that I have a friend in the diamond business. The target market of this add is 20-30 year old males who are thinking about getting married. They are encouraging men to either get a ring for their engagement or buy a diamond necklace for his girlfriend. The ads are targeted to the middle class because it tries to tell you how you can afford a diamond. The benefit sought for the diamonds are a great gift for someone and the product is meant to be used for a long time, usually forever, and in the case of the engagement ring it is meant to be worn every day. There is brand loyalty to try and get you to buy all your diamonds from the Shane Company. The commercial addresses you not being immediatly ready to buy by saying that they have a diamond for all budgets. The core product is diamond jewlery. The quality is high becuase each diamond is hand selected and there is no real product augmentation. The financial risk is lowered by saying there is jewlery for all budgets and the functional risk is lessened becuase it is said to be of high quality and last forever. The social risks are not getting the proper jewlery for your girlfriend/wife. The ad uses transfer propaganda to get your emotions into it and bargain prices because they buy direct from the manufacturer and that saves you money. It also uses the different and unique claim becuase their diamonds are different becuase they are hand selected. The ad also uses classical conditioning by associating gifts for your girlfriend with diamond jewlery.