Special forms of advertising such as sponsoring or
Product placement meets with a positive response from consumers of electronic media.
high level of acceptance. A study by Publicom and Infras shows that, among
which conditions with new forms of advertising can be used to generate good
mood can be created. Classic spot advertising on the radio and
Television is coming under pressure as viewers complain of oversaturation
and increasingly refuse to pay attention. Additional obstacles
are on the horizon when personal video recorders become established, which can
Making it possible to skip advertising blocks. The advertising industry is looking for
and is increasingly relying on special forms of advertising such as product
Placement, sponsorship or split screens. These allow advertising
closer to the program or even in the program itself.
The consulting firms Publicom and Infras examined these new
forms in a project financed by Publisuisse, Bakom and Publica Data.
study. The results were presented at a media conference.
Infras concentrated on the supplier side and held discussions with
with radio and TV broadcasters, marketing companies,
advertising clients, a production company, Bakom and an advertising agency.
Media scientist. Infras project manager Anna Vettori told us,
what options the experts see. In favor of the special forms of advertising
the proximity to or integration into the program and the
versatile application possibilities in the context of sponsoring, product
placement, teleshopping, competitions or infomercials. Insofar as the
advertising form fits the format or the target audience, it is suitable for
for almost all products, target groups and shipments. Not tolerated
In the eyes of the experts, special forms of advertising are only used in
News programs. One of the disadvantages mentioned was that
Only limited design options, especially for sponsoring
exist. The special forms of advertising could also be affected by inflationary
lose perception or attention. Another
The experts see a difficulty in the fact that the measurability of the
effect of product placements or sponsorships is difficult, because
they are often part of a whole bundle of advertising measures. For the
Organizers also fall short with the special forms of advertising compared to
classic advertising spots offer lower returns, as their embedding in the
program is more complex. Traditional spot advertising is not
The respondents on the supplier side are unanimous. New
Rather, forms of advertising will be a supplement.
Publicom had sounded out consumer opinion. In
In group discussions with 80 people, the acceptance of the
special forms of advertising. "Consumers are not particularly bothered by
Product placements, as they do not impair the user experience",
subsumed Stefan Thommen, Senior Consultant at Publicom. The
The number one disruptive factor for TV viewers and radio listeners is
Interruptive advertising. In general, however, advertising is not a problem for
consumers, it is part of media use in the view of the respondents
The economic pressure to finance programs is being exerted by
consumers are well aware of this. According to
the study even met with greater acceptance among consumers than the
classic spot advertising. Consumers appreciate the discreet
character of this form of advertising. As a consequence, the perception
However, this is often not a conscious decision. The tolerance threshold was set at
exceeded by the respondents only if a visual overload
Excessive demands arose. Moral or ideological reservations
on the other hand, there are few concerns among the respondents. The threat to the
editorial independence was hardly mentioned by the interviewees.
is not discussed, even when explicitly requested. More importantly,
that the product matches the content. "One interviewee put it like this:
Chips in the bathroom would be annoying, but okay in the spit," explained
Thommen. PR contributions in the context of lifestyle programs also come up against
consumers appreciate them as a means to achieve their goals.
exciting information transfer. As a case study, the
interviewees were presented by SF DRS's "Musicstar", among others. The
Sponsors were perceived as fitting the program, which
However, brand recall was low in the unaided survey. A
Sponsorship announcements on the radio have a similar fate: although they go to the
The songs are not very popular with most listeners, but are quickly forgotten.
A final conclusion was drawn by René Grossenbacher, Managing Director of
Publicom: "It is not yet possible to estimate the extent to which, for example, the
new technologies imply changes for the advertising industry
be. However, our study has produced very consistent results with regard to
the good acceptance of special forms of advertising by the public."
Grossenbacher reminded the audience that product placement or
sponsorship cannot be increased at will. It is also necessary
greater transparency for both the public and marketers
and producers. At the moment, both marketing and
Price structures unclear.
Carole Scheidegger
