Does Product Placement Work?

Since Popeye ate Spinach, advertisers have known that product placement is a powerful way to get people to try their product. When children saw Popeye eating spinach, they wanted to eat it thinking it

would make them stronger too.

"Toy Story"- These toys were used as characters in the movie: Etch A Sketch, Mr. Potato Head, and Slinky. After the movie's release, Etch A Sketch sales increased 4500 per cent, Mr Potato Head sales increased 800 per cent and Slinkys, out of business for 10 years, was deluged with 20,000 orders and has sold $27 million US worth of the toy since.

"E.T."- Reeses Pieces in "E.T" as sales of the candy soared up 80%.

"Austin Powers"- Featured a Union Jack painted Jaguar XK8. In the United States of America the expensive British motor vehicle's sales increased by 70 percent.

"24" and "CSI"- After early success with shows like "24" last season, Microsoft funded the marketing team to strike again this year, particularly for the company's new Windows Media Center Edition 2004. The software, an advanced TV application with the PC as its hub, will be featured on upcoming shows of CBS's forensics show "CSI," as well as "24" and "The Wire," among others.

"The Firm" (1993)-When Tom Cruise visits Gene Hackman in the Cayman Islands, Hackman suggests that he "Grab a Red Stripe," so Cruise opens the fridge for a bottle of the Jamaican-brewed beer. Within a month of the film's release, Red Stripe sales in the U.S. had increased by more than 50%, and just a few weeks later, company owners sold a majority stake in their brewery for $62 million to Guinness Brewing Worldwide.

"Goldeneye"(1995)- BMW used 1995's GoldenEye, a film in the successful James Bond series, as an integrated element for introducing a new model, the BMW 328i. It was judged the most successful promotion of 1995.

"Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" TV Show- Illumination's sales of a product featured on the show went up 365% following the program.

"The Apprentice"- Crest's new Vanilla toothpaste recently had a placement on "The Apprentice". The Crest website was met with 4.7 million hits within 2 hours of the show with customers requesting samples of the new flavor. This is the highest amount of website hits ever from a marketing campaign of any type.