“Leaving on a (Branded) Jet Plane”: An Exploration of Audience Attitudes towards Product Assimilation in Television Content

Abstract

Abstract As advertisers work to break through commercial clutter, they are investigating ways of connecting advertising messages with program content in television and feature films. This study investigates the relatively new phenomenon of product assimilation, that is, when the brand becomes the "star" of the show. Using a new reality program, "Airline," participants in an experiment were queried as to their perceptions of the brand featured in the program both before and after viewing the show, as well as several weeks after viewing. Results indicate that attitudes were positively affected among those who were familiar with the brand featured in the program but who had never actually used the brand. The change in attitudes did not diminish over time.