I recently started a new job at a production company as a media coordinator/ producer assistant. Going into the interview, I kept getting confronted with the term "branded entertainment". The lady doing the interview explained it, but it didn't make much sense to me. When she asked if I understood, of course I said I do. However, when I got home I did some research on what exactly branded entertainment is and soon came t realize it is something that has always been in our face faintly. So what is branded entertainment?
The best definition I could come up with from all the sources I found describes Branded Entertainment as the integration of advertising into entertainment. By placing an advertising message within the plot of a film, game or television show, it can reach a wider audience than would otherwise be possible. Wikipedia also calls it "advertainment". In a nutshell, it is like the movie "Truman Show", but in real life.
Thinking back to a show I watched recently where one of the main characters had a horrible stomach ache. Every person she came in contact with, she always asked them if they had the pink stuff. And sure enough, by the end of the show, there was a little pink bottle in the medicine cabinet among other things. That is branded entertainment. Talking about a product, showing it, but never saying it's name.
According to Mediaweek, branded entertainment is forecasted to grow 5.1% in 2010 to $22.1 billion. It is Branded entertainment is emerging as a leading alternative media strategy," said Patrick Quinn, CEO of PQ Media. "Brands and their agencies have been forced to rethink a lot of their long-held strategies. It is more possible for brands to reach their target audiences when they have them there in a movie or a tv show that tier audience will watch rather than spending millions on a commercial that most people will never see thanks to Tivo's, DVR's and bathroom brakes during said show.
Looking at this new way of business from the media companies view, I would have to say that it makes you have to be creative when speaking with potential "clients". Many of them still feel that it is "pay to play" when essentially, it is almost free advertising for them if product, service or company it is featured on a show that has embraced the branded entertainment way of business. Given, there will always be some type of money involved for television, however, being featured on a nationally watched show on a major network thetas in tune with its target audience is way less expensive than paying for a full blown, all out national commercial that still may not reach whom you would want it to.
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