Creativity Revisited: Branded Content/Product Placement
- by Staff Writers , November 2, 2011
Leading up to the 2011 Creative Media Awards, which will be held Dec. 14th in New York City, MediaDailyNews will re-publish the most creative media campaigns of 2010, beginning with the winner and finalists in the “Branded Content/Product Placement” category.
- Protect Ur Rep for Qwest
Communications by McKinney
McKinney
With the help of agency partner McKinney, broadband provider Strategy Qwest sought to do the impossible: engage hard-to-reach, hard-to-distract, ad-resistant gamers. In-game ad placement was the obvious answer, so they used it as a starting point. To really get the attention of Xbox LIVE users, Qwest’s “Protect Ur Rep” campaign gave gamers the chance to show off their skills to the broader gaming community by plastering their Xbox LIVE avatars on in-game ads. In other words, if a gamer posted high enough scores, the entire community would see their custom-made avatars occupying Qwest-branded ad space. Cool, right? The only problem was execution; there was no way to dynamically push new content into Xbox LIVE. Working with Xbox, McKinney invented a process to assemble and traffic 300 unique in-game units throughout the campaign. Clearly earning a little street cred, a full 50 percent of gamers who competed for a chance at in-game fame opted to receive Qwest information.
Qwest Communications, “Protect Ur Rep”
Winnner General Motors TNT Men of a Certain Age Integrations for General Motors, Chevrolet by Turner Boradcasting Systems, LLC
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Turner Broadcasting System/Starcom MediaVest
The best measures of branded content are the emotional strength of the content in which a brand/product is placed, and the seamlessness of the placement. Chevrolet’s leading role in TBS’ new series, Men of a Certain Age, is masterful on both counts, creating a lingering, emotional connection with the General Motors brand that no average “ad” could achieve. Credit goes to TBS and Starcom MediaVest for facilitating the experience, and to General Motors for subjecting its brand to such a charged environment. The glory, however, goes to actor Andre Braugher who, as a soul-searching car salesman at his father’s dealership, brilliantly transposes his own integrity, likeability and humaneness onto Chevrolet. In quantitative terms, Nielsen IAG found that a full 63 percent of viewers recalled Chevrolet’s connection to the show. But beyond mere recollection, we’re betting the placement leaves a lasting impression on viewers.
General Motors, Chevrolet, “Men of a Certain Age integrations”
FinalistMediaVest
Sprite, which prides itself on "insider status" among African-American youth, needed a fresh way to engage this target demo. With a focus on authenticity, community support and higher education, it worked with agency partner MediaVest to connect through the naturally passionate pursuit of "stepping" - a synchronized group-dance style popular among college fraternities and sororities. The brand and agency created the first nationwide "Sprite Stepping" competition. It began with 89 teams at local and regional events around the country, and culminated in six nationally-televised competitions on MTV. Hosted by rapper Ludacris, the shows also served to tell some of the teams' personal stories, and rewarded them with over $100,000 for their participation. The result? The show's premiere was the highest rated program launch on MTV2 since 2006, while, following the campaign, Sprite volume sales were up 6.7 percent year-over.
Coca-Cola North America/Sprite, "Sprite Step Off"
Finalist
