Saint Josephs University Center for Consumer Research

A place where ground-breaking research and seminars help forward-thinking organizations better understand consumer needs

Fall 2012

Research Fellows

Dr. David Allan is the Chair

Theyre Playing My Brand: Product Placement in Popular Music

David Allan, Ph.D.

Product placement, or branded entertainment, in popular music has often been used, but understudied. Whether you believe that advertising reflects or dictates society, the proliferation of brand names in songs is undeniable. But does it grab your attention? Is it recalled like the song or a jingle you cant get out of your head? More important to advertisers is product placement in popular music something that should be considered as part of a nontraditional Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) strategy to supplement or even replace commercials? This study for the first time compared the unaided recall effectiveness of a familiar brand in a popular song and in a 60second radio commercial. The results showed that the recall of a familiar brand in a song was not as effective as the recall from a radio commercial. However, the

recall for the brand in the treatment for the combination of a brand in an ad and the brand in a song, while not significant, was greater than the recall for the brand in just the 60-second commercial. This study suggests that brand placement in popular music should be considered to supplement a commercial campaign as part of an Integrated Marketing Communication strategy and provides the foundation for future research on this popular yet understudied alternative. As marketers continue to search for new integrations for their Marketing Communications strategy, brand placement in popular music should remain a viable alternative. It is hoped that this study will not only enable but encourage additional research into this popular yet neglected area of product placement.

and Associate Professor of Marketing at Saint Josephs University as well as a Research Fellow for the Center for Consumer Research. He started full-time at Saint Josephs University in 2002 and specializes in Media, Marketing, and Music and its advertising

Dr. Jane N. Burkhalter

is currently an Assistant professor of Marketing at Saint Josephs University. Prior to returning to academia, Dr. Burkhalter spent several years in financial services marketing focusing on niche markets. In her academic career, she incorporates her knowledge of niche markets and researches new media and nontraditional marketing practices, such as brand placement.

Radio advertising: Blip commercials

In a comparison of the separate effectiveness of a 2-second radio commercial and a 60-second radio commercial for the same well-known product, a 60-second commercial was significantly more effective than the 2-second commercial in generating unaided proven recall of the brand message. However, the combination of the 2-second commercial preceding the 60second commercial was significantly and greatly more effective than the 60-second commercial alone. The results of this study are clearly good news for the radio industry as it struggles to find additional sources of revenue while reducing the length of, and thus the revenue received from, commercials. Now, in addition to selling standard 60-second commercials to brand advertisers, radio stations can offer a supplemental schedule of 2-second blip commercials to increase the proven recall of the main commercials.

Tweet This, Not That: A Comparison Between Brand Promotions in Microblogging Environments Using Celebrity and Company-Generated Tweets
In conjunction with Dr. Natalie Wood, Dr. Burkhalter studies how despite the popularity of social media in general and Twitter specifically, little empirical research exists to assist marketers on how to successfully connect with consumers in these environments. The purpose of this study was to identify the ways in which brands can connect with consumers through Twitter and to examine how the category of Tweet impacts brand engagement. Findings reveal that whereas celebrity Tweets may be successful at capturing attention and disseminating brand information, they have minimal impact on changing brand opinions. What influence celebrities do have may be best served with unfamiliar brands rather than familiar ones.

Contact Us
Center for Consumer Research Haub School of Business Saint Joseph's University 5600 City Ave. Philadelphia, PA 19131 Email: InfoCCR@SJU.edu Phone: 610-660-2244

Faculty Contacts: Michael R. Solomon, Ph.D Director, Center for Consumer Research Natalie T. Wood, Ph.D Assistant Director, Center for Consumer Research

Advertising to the Beat: An Analysis of Brand Placements in Hip Hop Music Videos
Dr. Jane N. Burkhalter

Other Research Projects by our Research Fellows Include:

On the Dangers of Pulling a Fast One: Advertisement Disclaimer Speed, Brand Trust, and Purchase Intention . Are you ready for some football commercials? A content analysis of popular music placement in Super Bowl ads 2002 -2012 . Eating & Drinking Merrily: A Content Analysis of Food & Beverage Depictions in Film. Celebrity Tweets: Personal Communications or Sponsored Messages? @SJU_ CCR

Hip hop is a multi-billion dollar industry influencing everything from fashion to advertising. The current study documents the overwhelming presence of brands in hip hop music videos. Through the use of content analysis, we capture not only the branded products and their associated categories, but also the execution and connotation of those placements. Findings indicate that over 93% of all hip hop videos contained some reference to branded products varying in prominence, prestige and consumption.

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For more information visit Other Research our website at: http://www.sju.edu/int/ academics/centers/ccr/index.html