An interesting article in Advertising Age points how poor marketing placement choices might actually cause consumers to “erase” their memory of the brand. As a result of advertising on American Idol, Coca Cola increased their equity, AT&T did fairly well, but Ford got “erased” from people’s memory because it just didn’t resonate in that context.
Think about it this way… if the brand placement doesn’t fit into the “story” somehow, people don’t remember it. I think we’re just flat out wired to remember stories. Seriously, how many of you remember way too many words to the “if you like piña coladas” song? That’s what I’m saying. In fact, Captain Morgan or someone should really market that song with their rum. But I digress.
Definitely food for thought when placing ads. The better the product fits into the overall “story” of the location (whether a page, a social networking site, a movie, a game, etc.), the more positive associations people will have with the product.
Tracy Coté
(…gettin’ caught in the rain….)