New Study from BENlabs Reveals Product Placement in Media Drives Consumer Behavior

Findings from ‘State of Product Placement 2023’ report show 86% of U.S. marketers who have tried product placement rate it highly, while 75% of U.S. consumers have searched for a product or brand online after seeing it in a TV show or film

BENlabs, the leading entertainment AI company for brands and creators, released a new report finding that 63% of consumers have positive emotions after seeing products or brands in TV content, while 47% say they enjoy seeing their favorite brands in shows. The report, “State of Product Placement 2023,” analyzed product placement’s ROI, and consumers’ feelings on it compared to traditional marketing and advertisements.

The survey focused on three areas: understanding marketers’ perspectives on product placement, understanding consumers’ perspectives on product placement and consumers’ research and purchase behaviors.

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The report found that:

• Marketers’ are overwhelmingly optimistic about product placement – In fact, 86% of U.S. marketers who’ve tried product placement rate it highly, while 81% consider it to be an effective marketing channel. Additionally, 91% see it as effective in reaching non-ad supported audiences.
  • To top it off, eight-in-10 marketers consider AI to be very important when making a decision about what marketing company to use for product placement opportunities.
• Successful product placement can elicit positive emotions in viewers – A little over six-in-10 (63%) of respondents reported feeling positive emotions (happiness, inspiration, interest, and/or curiosity) after seeing a product or brand in a film or TV programs, while 47% like seeing their favorite brands and products in TV shows and films. Given a choice, a majority (52%) of consumers would prefer to watch a TV program with product placement over advertising.
• Consumers are quick to research products and brands they see on screen – Three-quarters (75%) of consumers have searched for a product/brand on at least one platform after seeing it on TV/film, furthermore, 57% of those consumers go on to purchase the same product, or a different product from the same brand.
  • Almost one-in-five (17%) made the purchase as they were watching, 12% did so within two hours, 14% waited more than a day and 18% took longer than one week.

“We found that 46 percent of consumers have actually learned about a product for the first time after seeing it on TV or in movies. That’s a staggering number and speaks to the effectiveness of product placement throughout the marketing funnel, from driving awareness and cultural relevance all the way down to sales and marketing,” says Erin Schmidt, Chief Product Placement Officer of BENlabs. “Combining the power of this marketing channel with AI allows brands to target the audience most likely to drive ROI for their entertainment marketing investments.”

Ad avoidance is at all-time highs, with over 41% of viewers habitually skipping or avoiding television advertisements. Combined with a massive shift to ad-free streaming platforms, this makes it harder than ever for businesses to reach audiences through traditional methods. BENlabs’ newest report, with insights from approximately 350 marketing managers and 650 consumers, found product placement offers a strong new avenue for businesses to reach, retain and grow their customer base.

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