StartupTalky

Tag: product placement

  • LG’s Marketing Strategies: Driving Innovation for Smart Living

    Looking for a brand that combines sleek design, cutting-edge technology, and exceptional customer service? Look no further than LG! As a leading global electronics company, LG has established itself as a household name with its innovative and stylish products that enhance every aspect of your life. From state-of-the-art TVs and appliances to advanced smartphones and home entertainment systems, LG offers an unparalleled level of quality and performance. With a commitment to sustainability and social responsibility, LG is not only a top choice for consumers but also a leader in the industry.

    LG, short for Lucky Goldstar, was founded in 1947 by Koo In-hwoi in South Korea. Originally, the company focused on producing plastics, such as toothbrushes and radio components. However, in the 1960s, LG shifted its focus to electronics, establishing itself as a major player in the industry. The company continued to expand its product line over the years, introducing home appliances, personal computers, mobile phones, and more. Today, LG is a globally recognized brand with a reputation for quality, innovation, and reliability. Despite its success, LG has remained committed to its roots of sustainability and social responsibility, ensuring that its products and practices are environmentally friendly and socially conscious. From its humble beginnings as a small plastics manufacturer to its position as a leader in the electronics industry, LG’s success story is a testament to the vision and hard work of its founder and the dedication of its employees.

    LG Target Audience
    LG Marketing Mix
    LG Marketing Campaigns
    LG Marketing Strategies

    LG Target Audience

    When it comes to consumer electronics, LG has a broad target audience that spans age, gender, and socioeconomic demographics. From tech-savvy millennials to busy families and seniors looking for easy-to-use appliances, LG products appeal to a wide range of consumers.

    LG’s smartphones, for instance, are designed to cater to a younger generation who demand fast processing speeds, sleek designs, and advanced camera features.

    LG’s home appliances are engineered to simplify household tasks for busy families, while still maintaining a stylish and modern aesthetic.

    In terms of market share, LG has been successful in targeting middle to high-income households who prioritize quality and reliability in their electronics purchases.

    The brand’s commitment to sustainability and social responsibility also resonates with environmentally conscious consumers who seek products that align with their values.

    Whether it’s for personal or professional use, LG’s diverse product line is tailored to meet the needs of a wide range of consumers, solidifying its position as a leading global electronics brand.

    LG Marketing Mix

    When it comes to marketing, LG is a master at the four Ps: product, price, promotion, and place. Here’s a breakdown of how LG uses these elements to deliver exceptional products and experiences to its customers:

    Product

    LG’s product line is diverse and extensive, covering a wide range of consumer electronics. From smartphones and TVs to home appliances and home entertainment systems, LG products are known for their sleek designs, cutting-edge technology, and exceptional quality. LG invests heavily in research and development, ensuring that its products are always at the forefront of innovation.

    Price

    Despite its reputation for quality and innovation, LG products are priced competitively. The brand offers a range of products at various price points, ensuring that there’s something for every budget. LG also provides financing options and promotions to make its products more accessible to consumers.

    Promotion

    LG’s marketing strategy is focused on creating emotional connections with its customers. The brand uses a mix of traditional and digital marketing channels to showcase its products, including TV commercials, social media campaigns, and influencer partnerships. LG also invests in experiential marketing, allowing consumers to interact with its products in innovative and immersive ways.

    Insane Marketing Strategies Successfully Implemented Ever | StartupTalky
    Do you love Marketing? Which is your Favourite? Here, we’ve made a list of some Insane Marketing Strategies that were successfully implemented. Check the article.
    StartupTalkyKaran suri

    Place

    LG’s products are available in a wide range of retail locations, including online retailers, electronics stores, and LG-branded retail stores. The brand also has a strong distribution network, ensuring that its products are available to customers all over the world.

    LG’s marketing mix is a testament to the brand’s commitment to delivering exceptional products and experiences to its customers.

    LG Marketing Campaigns

    Over the years, LG has launched several successful marketing campaigns that have helped establish the brand as a leader in the consumer electronics industry. Here are a few notable campaigns:

    “Life’s Good” Campaign

    Perhaps LG’s most famous campaign, “Life’s Good” emphasizes the brand’s commitment to enhancing the lives of its customers through innovative products and exceptional customer service. The campaign features a range of LG products and showcases how they can make everyday life better and more enjoyable.

    Life’s Good

    “LG OLED TV: Perfect Black, Perfect Colors” Campaign

    This campaign highlights the advanced technology behind LG’s OLED TVs, which offer unparalleled picture quality with perfect black and perfect colors. The campaign features stunning visuals and emphasizes the immersive viewing experience that LG’s OLED TVs provide.

    The Panther – Perfect Black, Perfect Color – LG OLED 

    “LG Gram: Lighter Than Air” Campaign

    The LG Gram laptop is known for its incredibly lightweight design, and this campaign emphasizes that feature with a playful, lighthearted tone. The campaign features a range of celebrities and influencers showcasing how easy it is to carry the LG Gram wherever you go.

    LG gram | All This, Light As Ever – 2021 All New LG gram

    “LG Signature: Art Inspires Technology” Campaign

    LG’s Signature Line is a collection of premium home appliances that combine advanced technology with elegant design. This campaign emphasizes the idea that art and technology can work together to create something truly beautiful and innovative.

    LG SIGNATURE WASHING MACHINE – Art inspires technology. Technology completes art.

    LG’s marketing campaigns are known for their emotional appeal, stunning visuals, and emphasis on the brand’s commitment to innovation and quality. By showcasing the unique features of its products and highlighting how they can enhance everyday life, LG has been able to create a strong emotional connection with its customers and establish itself as a top player in the consumer electronics industry.

    LG Marketing Strategies

    LG is a brand that’s known for its innovative products, quality, and exceptional customer service. However, those qualities alone aren’t enough to make a brand stand out in today’s crowded market. That’s where LG’s marketing strategies come in.

    Let’s take a closer look at how LG uses marketing to build brand awareness, connect with customers, and drive sales.

    Emotional Marketing

    LG’s marketing campaigns are designed to evoke emotion and connect with customers on a deeper level. Whether it’s through heartwarming stories, beautiful visuals, or relatable experiences, LG’s marketing campaigns aim to establish an emotional connection with its customers. This emotional connection helps to build brand loyalty and creates a sense of community around the brand.

    Life is Good When We Care 

    Experiential Marketing

    LG’s marketing strategies include experiential marketing, which allows customers to interact with the brand and its products in innovative and immersive ways. LG often hosts events and pop-ups where customers can test out its latest products and experience the brand in person. These experiential marketing efforts help to create a memorable brand experience and establish a personal connection with customers.

    Influencer Partnerships

    LG has also partnered with influencers to help promote its products and create buzz around the brand. By partnering with influencers who align with the brand’s values and target audience, LG can reach a wider audience and establish credibility with potential customers.

    Social Media Marketing

    LG’s social media strategy is focused on creating engaging content that resonates with its followers. The brand uses a mix of product-focused content, lifestyle content, and behind-the-scenes content to showcase its products and connect with its audience. LG also uses social media to engage with customers and respond to questions and concerns in real time.

    Product Placement

    LG’s marketing strategies also include product placement in movies, TV shows, and other forms of media. By featuring its products in popular media, LG can reach a wider audience and create a sense of familiarity and trust with potential customers.

    LG’s marketing strategies are designed to build brand awareness, establish emotional connections with customers, and drive sales. LG can create a comprehensive marketing strategy that helps to establish the brand as a leader in the consumer electronics industry.

    If you’re looking to establish a strong brand identity and connect with customers, take inspiration from LG’s marketing strategies. LG has been able to create a comprehensive marketing strategy that resonates with its audience and drives sales. So why not try incorporating some of these strategies into your marketing efforts? Whether you’re a small business or a large corporation, LG’s marketing strategies can provide valuable insights and inspiration for creating a strong and effective marketing strategy.

    FAQs

    What is the target audience of LG?

    LG has a broad target audience that spans age, gender, and socioeconomic demographics. From tech-savvy millennials to busy families and seniors looking for easy-to-use appliances, LG products appeal to a wide range of consumers.

    What are some successful marketing campaigns launched by LG?

    LG has launched several successful marketing campaigns that have helped establish the brand as a leader in the consumer electronics industry. Here are a few notable campaigns:

    • Life’s Good Campaign
    • LG OLED TV: Perfect Black, Perfect Colors Campaign
    • LG Gram: Lighter Than Air Campaign
    • LG Signature: Art Inspires Technology Campaign

    What are the marketing strategies followed by LG, making it a strong consumer electronics brand?

    Marketing Strategies followed by LG are –

    • Emotional Marketing
    • Experiential Marketing
    • Influencer Partnerships
    • Social Media Marketing
    • Product Placement

  • What Is Creator Economy & How Is It Driving India’s GDP?

    A software-facilitated economy created on platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitch, Spotify, Substack, OnlyFans, Tiki, and Patreon that allows creators and influencers to earn revenue is known as the Creator Economy.

    As the internet evolved over the years, so did its use. The virtual universe of the world wide web became the home of not just users and consumers, but creators. Individuals turned producers managing their own brands. This resulted in revolutionizing the way content was produced, distributed, and consumed. And the Creator Economy came into being.

    How Did It Start?
    The Working
    Business Models of Creator Economy
    India & The Creator Economy
    Conclusion

    How Did It Start?

    It was Paul Saffo from Stanford University who suggested that the creator economy came into being in 1997 as the ‘new economy’. Creators during that time were people who worked with animation and illustrations, although, with no discernible marketplace infrastructure to generate revenue. It was YouTube that coined the term ‘creator’ in 2011 that, at the time, applied to individuals who were famous on the platform. The term has rapidly gained popular acceptance and now applies to individuals who create online content. Hence, the creator economy is defined as an economic system built by independent content creators who are connected to their audience and businesses via the internet. The content created can be in the form of text, podcasts, music, videos, digital books, games, etc. This content can be monetized by sharing it on ad-sponsored platforms, partnering with brands, charging subscription fees, providing services, and much more. Some examples of content creators are TikTok stars Charlie D’Amelio, PewDiePie, and Addison Rae.

    YouTube: The Birthplace of the Creator Economy

    The Working

    The umbrella of the creator economy covers an entire ecosystem encapsulating creators, consumers, advertisers, and other stakeholders that significantly affect the way content is created, distributed, consumed, and monetized. The stakeholders within this realm are –

    1.      Creators also known as infopreneurs who engage in creating various types of content on a variety of topics to build and engage their audiences and monetize their creations. These creators can be Vloggers or Bloggers who give information and advice on specialized topics, Entertainers using their skills of writing, creating music or expressing through other art forms, Guides and Experts sharing their knowledge on products or services and Celebrities who use their popularity to create content.

    2.      Consumers are the target audience of the creators who engage with them or follow their opinions for entertainment or information. Consumers also support creators monetarily through content subscription.

    3.      Platforms are used equally by the creators and consumers to engage with each other. These are third party facilitators that help creation, distribution, consumption and monetization of content. YouTube and Instagram are examples of such platforms.

    Why Influencers Are An Integral Part Of Instagram: A Case Study
    Instagram has 800 million active users and around 500,000 Influencers and 60% trying to become an influencer and make a lot of money thorough this platform
    StartupTalkyPV Vyshnavi

    4.      Businesses advertise their wares and services through content creators. Partnering with influencers allows these businesses a direct access to their target audience. It also helps to make marketing campaigns effective. Influencers earn highly from brands through this partnership.

    5.      Tools are solutions that help the stakeholders to create and distribute content and also provide valuable performance insights to creators and businesses.

    Business Models of Creator Economy

    As new and emerging as this economy is, it has introduced innovative business models that has allowed successful career sustainability for creators. Off the many business models that have sprung around this economy, some commonly successful ones are –

    1. Platform Revenue Sharing

    As the most popular business model with the least barrier entry, it is used by creators who enjoy a significantly large following and want to diversify their earning sources. Creators monetize their content by earning a portion of the advertisement revenue that is generated from their channel pages and posts.

    2. Affiliate Marketing

    As the name suggests this commission earning based model helps both the creators to generate revenue and the businesses to generate credible leads. Through this business model, creators share coupon codes or special links that they receive. These are then tracked by the platform to ascertain if such leads have converted into actual sales.

    3. Product Placement

    This type of business model works on brand partnerships where creators and influencers are paid to use or feature brands and products in their content. Creators are remunerated for mentioning the products and services and providing website links in their content. Product Placement model is preferred by influencers who enjoy a large following as their fees per mention depends on their audience reach and penetration.

    Influencer Marketing Industry – How It Started and What Is Its Future?
    Influencer marketing is a type of social media marketing. It is a rapidly growing industry, having grown from $1.7 billion in 2016 to $13.8 billion in 2021.
    StartupTalkyKinnary Nensee

    4. Brand Sponsorship

    This model works on exclusive contracts between a business and the influencer. The influencer agrees to exclusively promote the business or brand by featuring it in their content.

    5. Subscription

    There are several platforms like Instagram that offer a subscription based business model. This entails viewers paying a subscription fee to watch exclusive content, live streams and videos which are otherwise not accessible. This type of business model presents a great opportunity for creators to grow their direct fan-to-creator revenue.

    6. Self-Brand Offering

    There are creators who also launch their own products and services including accessories, clothing lines, bags, purses, etc that helps them in generating revenue and establish their own separate business that is sustainable.

    India & The Creator Economy

    Between the years 2018 and 2022, startups within the creator economy in India have raised USD 2.5 billion and as per reports, it is growing at a CAGR of 25%. The main reasons behind its growth trajectory are flexible office hours, remote work and renewal of passion pursuits.

    According to Tamseel Hussain of Livemint – “Doctors are joining the creator economy and creating shows on various health issues, farmers teaching other farmers organic farming through story telling or even brands enabling their own community members to share powerful stories instead of going to influencers.”

    The driving indicators of the Indian creator economy’s growth potential are the fundamental changes in consumer behaviour, consumption patterns and the increasing number of first-time creators showcasing their talent.

    Reiterating this Tamseel Hussain said – “The rise of affordable smartphones and internet-access packages, coupled with digital media, has made being a creator easier. The capacity of hungry audiences demanding a variety of content is also a massive driver. Today stories are everywhere, from social media platforms to televisions, OTT, offline screens and even food and shopping apps. This is changing the landscape for the creator economy, especially in smaller Indian towns and cities, by building new opportunities for creators and offering unique stories to people where they spend the most time.”

    The already growing creator economy was, then, disrupted by the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. The severe lockdowns pushed imaginative boundaries as creators flocked the digital space showcasing a wide variety of talent and monetizing their content.

    What is also fuelling its growth is the increasing penetration of digitization of the rural areas of the country. It is widening prospects that is ably supported by cutting-edge technology. The rapid expansion of the Tier II and Tier III cities of the country means that more than 100 million new creators are expected to join the creator community further adding to the growth of the creator economy.

    Conclusion

    The rapidly growing creator economy is also facing obstacles and challenges. However, the constant technology evolution is quickly answering those challenges making the future look very promising. The creator economy of India is set to scale with people able to generate revenue doing what they love and connecting with their roots. It will be interesting to watch how the evolution shapes in the coming years.

    FAQs

    What is the Creator Economy and how is it transforming the way people earn a living?

    A software-facilitated economy created on social media platforms that allows creators and influencers to earn revenue, transforming the way people earn by providing opportunities for self-employment and income from a direct audience.

    Who are the key players in the Creator Economy and how do they generate revenue?

    The key players in the Creator Economy are creators and influencers who generate revenue through sponsored content, merchandise sales, and direct audience support such as tips, subscriptions, or paid memberships.

    What are some popular platforms that are driving the Creator Economy, and what kind of content is most successful?

    Popular platforms driving the Creator Economy include YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Patreon. Successful content includes video content, tutorials, lifestyle, and entertainment.

  • Product Placement: Marketing Through Shows and Movies

    “We live in a world of advertisements”. This quote is aptly said as it constantly reminds us of advertisements everywhere. They are like gods, Omnipresent. You open a youtube video, an ad appears, you go to social media, an ad appears, you say “F you” to the online world and switch on the television and, yes you are guessing it right, an ad appears.

    They are so omnipresent that we now think that they are the reality. Guess, they’re not. Advertisements are all a marketing technique and the purpose is to make a product look like a blessing. It was cool and all until advertisements were manufactured claiming they were ads. In this digital hyper-connected world, we have arrived at a junction where we don’t know what is advertisement and what is not. This article is about marketing that is diffused within other forms of content, especially movies and TV shows. Let us read and see how cleverly we are made-to-believe products.

    Brand Marketing Over the Years
    Product Placement in Films
    Need for Product Placement
    Benefits of Product Placement
    Problems with Product Placement

    Brand Marketing Over the Years

    There are many forms and types of advertisements. We can see examples of ad print media, broadcast media, Online social media advertisements and many more. As technology evolves we tend to see it everywhere. We can see newspapers filled with advertisements, we can see our dish TV filled with all sorts of advertisements. Now, when the world is online, we can see ads everywhere online. They are on our social media timelines, on our Youtube account, on websites we travel and much much more.

    Except for every other factor, there is always one thing that is sure. We can immediately tell that we are watching an advertisement when we see one, but this surety is vanishing gradually. Now we can’t really be sure if we are watching an advertisement or an actual real thing that we would like to watch…

    Product Placement in Films

    What we are seeing is that brands are trying to diffuse brands even in the content we want to watch. Imagine watching your favourite actor Hrithik Roshan saying “I love coke” in a movie, how weird is that? This is a very common trick that brands apply to our favourite types of content. This feels like getting backstabbed. Whatever you can say about it, we can clearly see signs of it everywhere. However, it is a super-risky thing to do but can do very well wonders if done smoothly.

    Share of Product Placements 

    Welcome to the world of “Product Placement”. Where you cannot tell if something is real or it is an advertisement. Brands and movie directors do it so smoothly that it is often left behind in the scenes and no one notices them. In fact, your brain (That smart little organ) does notice that and subconsciously notes it down for future use. Like you see an actor drink ‘Coke’ in a film, you don’t really notice it but your brain does. You will then most probably and most likely order a coke when you go for lunch after that movie. Tweaks like these, here and there, are supposed to make a lot of difference in the long run. Brands are crazy about this and are paying huge sums of money to make this happen as smoothly as possible.

    Need for Product Placement

    We are going to see some examples to prove the fact that ‘Product placement’ is a real tactic of marketing. The reason for this is that normal people don’t really pay that much attention to these little “stranger things”. Let us see some unnoticed brand placements that only your subconscious mind notices,

    No matter your age, a Bollywood movie that almost everyone knows about is Koi Mil Gaya starring Hrithik Roshan and Preity Zinta. The movie is famous for the appearance of an alien named ‘Jaadoo’. Apart from this, the movie makes for a great example of the product placement of Bournvita. In this movie, it is shown that the young Rohit (Hritik’s character) loves to drink his milk with Bournvita in it. In some scenes, he even boasts about it to his friends and also offers some Bournvita to a winning kid in a game.

    Koe Mil Gya Movie Scene with Bournvita

    Another example from a movie starring Hritik is the Bollywood film “Yaadein”. It was a hit, like all other movies that star Hrithik Roshan. He is an all-time favourite actor in the business. But could you notice Coke’s ‘Product placement’ throughout the entire running time of the movie? This one rigid frame tells the same story, the “Coke in hand” almost everywhere. You might not remember but your brain must have noticed, “Cool people like Hrithik drink Coke”.

    The popular movie franchise “James Bond” did it all the time. Since the release of Dr No in 1962, the James Bond franchise has been associated with a number of brands. Many brands came in line to pay for promotions in future instalments for the famous cinema piece. The early films featured Pan-am Airlines and smith and Wesson firearms. The early films feature tie-ins with popular companies like Pan-Am Airlines and Smith and Wesson firearms. The iconic cigar that Bond fashioned is also a very popular brand placement. It is reported that Lark Cigarettes paid as much as $350,000 to feature their brand of cigarettes in Licence to Kill. Besides the aforementioned brands, some of the other popular brands to be associated with the franchise are Microsoft, Gillette, Playboy, Toblerone, 7Up, and KFC.

    James Bond with an Aston Martin

    Even after we have talked about so much brand placement in the movie, we can still remember the iconic ride of James Bond. It was the luxury car brand Aston Martin that was honoured with bond’s feet on their product. Aston Martin, the luxury car brand jumped at an opportunity to be associated with the British spy. Starting from Goldfinger in 1964, this partnership has endured the test of time.

    Benefits of Product Placement

    Why does this happen? Why do brands want to create a persona of a famous/popular actor using a brand product as an advertisement in product placement? This is a legit question and it has to be answered.

    Social Proof

    Social proof is a real thing in the marketing world. It is a social and psychological trick that business people use. Social proof means that people tend to believe whatever fellow people are using without a rationale. That clearly means that if you watch a crowd do a certain behaviour with a certain product, then you are most likely to follow the trend without asking for a reason or a why.

    For a quick example, we can take the case of Redbull. Redbull is a carbonated drink maker and the company sells by packaging it as a power drink. The company knew the phenomena of social proof and its drinks were not famous among the masses in India. So what they did was they threw empty cans of Redbull outside every club and pub. This little activity added a lot of value to the brand red bull and made its revenue very high. What the ‘little hack’ did was it took the value proposition of red bull and made it appear “cool” in society. Once it was established that people “who visit clubs and pubs drink red bull”, then everyone started mimicking the behaviour by actually drinking red bull. This small trick can do wonders without even letting people think about what they are actually doing.

    Indirect But Subconsciously Strong

    As we mentioned before in the article, these types of advertisements are silent and much more effective than regular ones. It is quite evident from the society that we live in. We are most probably a collectivist society and we love to have status to show off. If we see a movie star do something, we are most likely to mimic it. This raises questions about whether brands can pay movie makers to make them do certain activities.

    If code is something that scripts machines then it can be clearly said that media is something that scripts human beings. Balaji Srinivasan said in a report that he shared on Twitter that media is what scripts human beings. It is thus, whoever controls the media, controls the mind or can control the mind. Media here is any sort of media, it can be print media, a film, a piece of content on youtube, or anything that can hold attention for a significant amount of time.

    Wayne’s world super product placements.

    Problems with Product Placement

    Imagine being a trusted brand and then losing all the trust that you generated from all the years of hard work. That is so bad but most easy to happen. Imagine cinema and over-the-top content giants selling screen time to brands for product placements. This little rash on the smooth road to great revenues can derail the growth train. People could just boycott anything that feels like backstabbing.

    When we watch a movie we don’t think or expect that we will be interrupted by an advertisement or a brand showcasing their product. We go to theatres carefree as we pay for that sort of entertainment. If moviemakers dilute this excitement for us by including ads in the movie then it can most likely spoil the mood of many cinephiles.

    However, Netflix clearly mentions that it does not allow brands to show anything or any sort of advertisements on their show, there are many unnoticed instances of them being caught with product placement. Well, according to the reports, Netflix one hundred per cent refuses the question of “Product placement”, and they will never cheat the paying user base. As we know that Netflix is a paid or subscription-based platform and if its users find it selling advertisements to them, this can lead to a huge slowdown. The company always says that it supports and protects user rights and works with dignity, no brand has ever paid anything to Netflix for any sort of product placement.

    Conclusion

    We know that product placement is a very bumpy ride and can be a huge interruption for a movie or series fan. Moviemakers know it very well. However, if done smoothly and carefully, it will go unnoticed by the audience and it will also make revenue for the brand. Thus, product placement in movies or series can do wonders for a brand, if done correctly.

    FAQ

    Which TV show has the most product placement?

    A study conducted in early 2022 found that the U.S. version of “The Office” was the TV show with the highest number of product placements worldwide.

    Does Netflix use product placement?

    Since Netflix doesn’t sell advertising, the most common way that brands get into Netflix originals is through product placement. Brands and agencies work directly with the productions to place products in Netflix shows, similar to other streaming shows.

    Does Coca-Cola use product placement?

    Coca-Cola is one of the most visible brands in Movies and TV. Coca-Cola has a relatively long list of product placement appearances. One of its most obvious plugs is in American Idol, one of the most popular shows on American television that hosts a competition to find new solo singing talents.

    What are the 3 types of product placement?

    There are many ways of using product placement on TV: it can be physical, virtual, seen but not used, mentioned, contextual or even unbranded.

  • The Complete Psychology Behind Free Samples and Why they Work?

    Ever wondered why people in malls offer free samples of their snacks? Sometimes in the newspaper, you get a small sachet of shampoo.

    Why do brands offer free samples to consumers? After all, they don’t get any money by giving you free samples.

    According to research, 81% of consumers said that they usually try a new product after receiving a free sample. This shows that free samples are effective for brands to increase sales.

    But, how does a free sample make people buy the product? Keep reading this article to understand the psychology of free samples & why/how it works.

    How Free Samples Help Brand:
    Do Free Samples Increase Sales?
    Psychology of Free Samples & Why/How it Works:
    Unique Ways to Incorporate Free Samples in your Business:
    FAQ

    How Free Samples Help Brand

    • People who are unfamiliar with the brand get to know what products you offer.
    • Creates customer relationships with new customers and inspires loyalty with the existing customers.
    • Encourages repeat customers.
    • The feedback that the brand gets from free samples can help them improve the quality of products.
    • Brands get to understand what their target audience likes and dislikes.

    Do Free Samples Increase Sales?

    Product sampling is one of the effective ways to increase sales. Free samples can help your brand to increase sales and also creates brand awareness.

    According to a study done by Arbitron and Edison Media Research, 35% of customers who have tried the sample will eventually buy the sampled product on the same shopping trip.

    Psychology of Free Samples & Why/How it Works

    Helps to Remove the Risk Factor:

    Trying out new things is a very risky thing for many people. This is because many people think that the new product may not match their expectations. If the product is not good they will lose their money.

    Nobody likes wasting their hard-earned money right? But, when you offer a free sample you are taking out all the confusion from the minds of your potential consumers.

    Since they are not paying any money to try out the sample, the risk factor disappears.

    Power of Experience:

    People tend to remember the products that they have interacted with or experienced more than the ones they have read about or heard somewhere. This is quite obvious, isn’t it?

    If you have eaten delicious street food somewhere you will remember the taste of it even after weeks. If the sample product is good and satisfies your customer, they will remember its taste or experience even after weeks.

    After some time, when they will see the product somewhere, they will automatically remember the taste or feel of it and eventually buy the product.

    Principle of Reciprocity:

    If your friends give you an amazing gift at your birthday parties, don’t you also want to give them an amazing gift on their birthdays?

    Or if your relatives have done some good for you, a feeling to help them naturally occurs in your mind. This is called Reciprocity.

    The rule of reciprocity is a social norm where you feel obligated to return the favor if someone does something for you.

    This is what exactly happens when brands offer free samples to consumers. When people get a free sample they will be obliged to return the favour in some way – buying your product.

    Consumers usually feel guilty when they try the free samples. To get away from this guilt they tend to buy the product.

    Reciprocity may not always lead to sales but, they will always remember your brand. If you have provided them with a memorable experience they will buy your products shortly.

    The Secret Behind Apple’s Successful Marketing Strategy
    Apple is one of the world’s most valuable brand because it has consistent marketing strategy built on core disciples, simple marketing, customer experience.
    StartupTalkyPV Vyshnavi

    Unique Ways to Incorporate Free Samples in your Business

    Offer Online Sign-Up:

    You can make a separate landing page on your website to allow customers to order a free sample. Although keep the order number limited.

    You can give the free samples to the first 50 or 100 people. In this way, you will get their basic details like mobile number and email id which we will help you in retargeting. Although this is a bit costly as you need to pay for the delivery costs.

    Attach the Sample to the Purchased Product:

    Free Sample
    Free Sample

    You can attach the sample to the already purchased product encouraging your customers to try out the product. This is known as a passive form of sampling.

    Although this won’t generate the same reciprocity feeling but it gets the product in the hands of your customers.

    Offer Free Sample in Exchange for Specific Actions:

    You can ask your customers to share reviews on social media, tag your brand on social media or like your posts in exchange for a free sample. This is an effective strategy to get brand awareness on social media and allow the customers to try your new product.

    Conclusion:

    Now, you must have understood why brands use the free samples strategy right? For many years this strategy has been proven effective and even your brand should also use it.

    The key thing here is that your sample and products should be of high quality. A good sample which provides a memorable experience would guarantee sales.

    If your sample is not good it will create a bad image in the minds of the people. So, use the free sample strategy smartly and you will get the desired results.

    FAQ

    What is product sampling?

    Product sampling is a strategy where you provide free samples to your customers before they actually buy your product.

    Are free samples successful?

    Yes, free samples are very successful. They can create brand awareness and increase sales.

    What are examples of product sampling in India?

    People in the mall offering free snacks and getting a free small sachet of shampoo in the newspaper are all examples of product sampling in India.

    Can product sampling be done by all the brands?

    Yes, the majority of the brands use the product sampling strategy.

    What is the main psychology behind free samples?

    The main psychology behind free samples is the principle of reciprocity. When people get a free sample they will be obliged to return the favour in some way – buying your product.

  • How Does Category Design Help in the Success of Your Business?

    Surviving and thriving in the business world requires forward-thinking and innovation. Category design is a strategic approach that uses points of view to win customers and increase brand awareness. The traditional method of creating products followed by rigorous marketing doesn’t always guarantee results.

    If you’re looking to establish yourself in a certain niche, the category design principle is the way to go. Even in specialized niches, there’s a possibility of crowding. Category design helps create a unique company powered by unique processes and a great brand—ultimately achieving the ‘Category King’ title.

    The concept is premised on owning the market and tilting the thought process of your target clients in your favour. The mental shift in the appreciation of your brand is the end goal. In this article, we will talk about how category design helps businesses to achieve success.

    Harmonized and Laser Focus of Marketing Campaigns
    Discovering and Dominating New Category of Business
    Creating Dominant Products
    Tapping Into Existing and Working Systems
    Create Loyal and New Customers
    Impacting the Society Positively

    Harmonized and Laser Focus of Marketing Campaigns

    Marketing efforts and campaigns may contain different messages making it a trial and error method. The effectiveness of marketing efforts is a big success factor in a business. To dominate markets, a harmonized marketing campaign backed by a solid product can lead to ultimate success.

    One of the key marketing originators is your staff. A clear understanding of the Point of View (POV) can be beneficial in a variety of ways. This includes: –

    • Campaigns in Media– This will create an overall standard angle of blogs, messages in the radio and TV ads, and other assets such as influencer marketers.
    • Employee Marketing– They’ll have a harmonized way of tackling issues like customer service leading to brand authority.

    Brands that command markets use a standard way of doing things. Harmonized marketing messages can help a lot in achieving this.

    Discovering and Dominating New Category of Business

    Popular brands like Twitter, Coca-Cola, Airbnb, Uber, and Apple have one thing in common. They take time to study the market, develop a product that answers the needs and create a winning and unique marketing campaign.

    These companies don’t necessarily create new inventions. For instance, taxi services existed before, but Uber’s business model was created to meet a certain market need. This propelled them to become a global household brand.

    Creating a mind shift and new demand is what revolutionizes markets. Airbnb for instance is a unique service that offers cheaper alternative accommodation for guests around the world. Since it was launched in 2008, it has hosted 400 million guests and is present in 191 countries.

    The huge success of these unique companies is inspired by daily problems. These companies leverage existing technology, existing industries, and marketing platforms to monopolize these categories.

    Creating Dominant Products

    In a bid to make money in business, people tend to go with the flow. This leads to continued production of mediocre products, shrinking value to the customers, and, ultimately, poor response from the market.

    Listed below are ways in which great and legendary products are created and established: –

    • Study Competitors– This is an old principle but it’s very important in any business for success. Look at the model of operation to spot areas of improvement. Sealing loopholes in a competitor’s product can be a springboard to a great product.
    • Customer Pain Points– Words on the street, online reviews, and professional reviewers can help discover product ideas. Category design aims at creating products that offer genuine and niche solutions.
    • Product Presentation– Packaging products to dominate markets involves branding messages and an overall presentation that seals the existing loopholes.

    Using category design, your product can achieve the dominant player status. This is achieved through a thorough product development cycle.

    Tapping Into Existing and Working Systems

    One of the biggest reasons for creating businesses is making revenues, profits, and generating wealth. To shorten the journey to success, re-inventing an old principle doesn’t always translate into revenue. If a business can use the already existing models and systems, it’s much better.

    Let’s look at two businesses that utilized this model to succeed.

    • Netflix– Netflix and other similar programs made watching movies and other TV programs very affordable. Instead of paying a huge cinema entry fee, Netflix offers a revolutionary service where a nominal monthly subscription can provide access to unlimited movies and programs. The model of business is an agency that sign-ups movie productions and brings them to the masses.
    • Amazon– This e-commerce company made a $3.3b net income in 2019. Amazon doesn’t manufacture any of the products it sells and doesn’t own the internet or the delivery channels. This is an example of a successful company that brings ideas into an existing ecosystem.

    Leveraging existing business models helps eliminate huge capital expenditure. This lets you focus on solving customer pain points and popularizing your unique viewpoints.

    Create Loyal and New Customers

    Category design doesn’t bring big business to you, but loyal and new audiences do. People and the market get excited by new products, unique innovations, and ground-breaking ideas. This makes them reward you with continuous business and social applause.

    Loyal customers give you positive reviews and recommend you to other clients. This, in turn, creates a spiral effect that brings new customers to you. Ultimately, you can use customer support and free endorsement from them to create new and better products.

    Impacting the Society Positively

    Apart from profits, social impact at the community and the global level is one of the major objectives of a business. Category design can help create products coupled with marketing messages that can drift people’s mindsets.

    Apple, for instance, uses the tagline ‘Think differently’. Its products and brands reinforce the message. This makes such a brand have a positive impact on future business leaders and innovators. This has propelled the success of multiple brands such as iPod, iPhone, Apple Store, and iTunes.

    Conclusion

    Category design is a unique way of improving your business and putting it on the path to success. The idea is founded on creating a highly specialized niche that can help you dominate markets. Forward and revolutionary thinking are the secrets of the success of big and wealthy brands. To fully tap into this strategy in business, investing in your innovation hub should be a top priority. This will help you research, develop, and tilt viewpoints so that your company can thrive.

    FAQs

    What is Category Design?

    Category design is a strategy that helps a business develop its own classification of products and services.

    When was Category Design proposed?

    Category design was first proposed in a book called Play Bigger.

    Who was the writer of Play Bigger?

    Play bigger is written by Al Ramadan, Dave Peterson, Kevin Maney and Christopher Lochhead.

    What is a Category blueprint?

    A category Blueprint is a design of how a product or service will work in the future.

  • How Brands Market their Product in Movies | Product Placement in Movies (Case Study)

    There are many forms of advertisements right from Print, Broadcast,  Podcasts, Email marketing, and Digital Advertisements. These are merely some examples. Anyway, there is one thing in common that all these advertisements have. That is, you know that these brands are consciously and deliberately pursuing you to buy their products. You know they are marketing their products and services to you.

    Do you think people could advertise their products without doing it? Yes, there exists one such form of advertising which does it in a more subtle manner; and whether you know it or not, your brain unconsciously registers that. This type of advertisement is called product placement. It is a risky business, but when done correctly, product placement can have a huge impact.

    The Origin of Product Placement
    How Product placement entered the mainstream in the 1980s: A Brief History
    Product Placement’s in Current scenario
    Product Placements in – To All The Boys I’ve loved before
    Product Placement in James Bond Series
    Product placement from Indian context
    Why the business of placing products in the movies continues to thrive?
    FAQ

    The Origin of Product Placement

    1882 – Edward Monet Painting

    Arguments for the first cases ever documented

    Though this is a debated topic, some scholars argue that the first product placement to be ever done started with a painting done by Edward Monet in the year 1882 for a beer-selling company.

    Edward Monet Painting
    Edward Monet Painting

    Another one is said to have been done for a movie none other than the Lumiere brothers’ film in the year 1896. It was a soap manufactured by a British company, the Lever Brothers. However, the first ever product placement to be documented was in the year 1920.

    1920 – The Garage, Red Crown Gasoline

    The first documented case of a company paying to place their product that was ever recorded was for a silent movie, The Garage starring Fatty Arbuckle and Roscoe Arbuckle.

    1927 – The Hershey’s chocolate, Wings

    The trend started emerging and the Marx Brothers caught up with it in the year. Fun fact: the first movie, which won an Academy Award, also did have product placement. It was, of course, for Wings, and the first appearance of Hershey’s Chocolate bars featured.

    Common Mistakes to avoid while Creating Advertising Campaigns (With Examples)
    An ad campaign is a great way to convey a message to your consumers but it can get your brand to new heights or can defame your brand. Avoid these ad Campaign mistakes.
    StartupTalkyMahenoor Mansuri

    How Product placement entered the mainstream in the 1980s: A Brief History

    So how did really the business of in-film product placement boom?

    The production team was not really paid back then to place their products in the movies. But it involved a different deal. Like asking: do you need a car for your movie? And if the team would say yes, then the brands would let them use their products for free or create cross-promotional campaigns that feature both the product and the movie. Until the 20th century, mostly the concept was pretty much informal.

    Guess the company that paid a million dollars to promote their company?

    Reeses Pieces Product Placement in Extra Terrestrial
    ‘Reeses Pieces’ Product Placement in ‘Extra Terrestrial’

    A hint: The company sells chocolate products. In the early 1980s, the trend went mainstream, and Steven Spielberg’s new film was to promote Hershey’s brand.

    Initially, the deal involved Mars, but it withdrew away from being featured, but then a deal was made between Hershey’s marketing executive. The Reese’s pieces were used and in exchange Hershey’s was to create a 1 million dollar campaign for the film. The sales of the product went up, which had only been introduced years ago.

    Until the 1982s, the movie, The Extra-terrestrial was a huge success, both as a movie and for doing product placement.

    Product Placement’s in Current scenario

    The practice of consciously placing products in movies is almost a common practice now in the twenty-first century. So much now that it does not only involve films and movies, but also many famous web series that were huge hit. And we know that Netflix does this all the time. Even though Netflix denies the fact. Namely, there are three types of product placements which are explained in brief below:

    The three types of product placements are:

    Screen placements

    Burger King Product placement in Stranger Things
    ‘Burger King’ Product placement in ‘Stranger Things’
    • In screen placements, the products are usually placed in the foreground or the background.
    • There is no mention of the name of the product, but the product is shown on screen and is given a fair amount of time to get noticed by the audience.

    Script placements

    'KitKat' Product placement in 'Sex Education'
    ‘KitKat’ Product placement in ‘Sex Education’

    Let us take an example of the Netflix show’s last episode of Sex Education from season 3. Both our characters Eric and Otis deliberately mention the product name KitKat, when Eric’s lines say it all.

    Otis: “What do you want?

    Eric: “Um… Oh, a KitKat. Always a KitKat”

    And when Otis offers Hope one when she is having a mental breakdown in the hospital.

    Hope: I don’t need a KitKat

    Plot Placement

    Beats Product placement in Only Murders in The Building
    ‘Beats’ Product placement in ‘Only Murders in The Building’

    Making the products connected to a character and integrating it as a part of your film. Let’s take Beats Studios Wireless Headphones in the web series “Only Murders in the Building” where Selena’s character’s first appearance as Mabel clearly features using the headphones when she steps into the elevator and the product is subtly mentioned by the other character _ trying to make a conversation with her.

    The product is so seamlessly blended with the character that even when their podcast gains popularity you can see the fans using the same headphones while sitting outside the building. It creates an emotional bond.

    We could say the same with Eggos and Evelyn intertwining the product with a character in Stranger Things.

    Netflix Viewership and its effects on economy & E-commerce
    Netflix is world’s most popular OTT service whose viewership is increasing hugely. Know how Netflix Viewership is affecting Economy & E-commerce.
    StartupTalkyHarshit Verma

    Let’s take a look at Hollywood’s one of the most watched and talked about movies adapted from Jenny Han’s book.

    Product Placements in – To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before

    Yakult:

    To All The Boys I Loved Before - Yakult Product Placement
    To All The Boys I Loved Before – Yakult Product Placement

    The fermented skim milk was created in the year 1935 in Japan and got a major sales boost after getting a cameo in an adapted movie from Jenny Han’s book ” To all the boys I’ve loved before” the drink is.

    Subway sandwiches:

    To All The Boys I Loved Before - Subway Product Placement
    To All The Boys I Loved Before – Subway Product Placement

    They gave Subway an emoji specially designed for the company to show the love that Lara Jeans, best friend has been craving for its sandwiches. They can also be seen sitting under the bleachers and having them.

    Mountain dew and Arizona iced tea:

    To All The Boys I Loved Before - Mountain Dew and Arizona Iced Tea Product Placement
    To All The Boys I Loved Before – Mountain Dew and Arizona Iced Tea Product Placement

    The conversation that takes place between Lara and Josh sitting in the stands at the beginning of the movie, with a flashback with Jean is shown having Josh as her first real boyfriend with a space in between. Though not mentioned by name, the products get enough screen time in the scene to get noticed by the audience and not to forget mountain dew is mentioned in one of Josh’s dialogues.

    Converse

    The still shot that shows shoes of Lucas in the stall next to Lara is occupied when she runs away after kissing Peter for the first time on the running ground, and there goes them wearing Converse shoes which are already pretty much popular among the teens.

    Instagram

    Using Instagram was shown quite effortlessly by both Peter and Lara as the social media platform is very popular among the youth and especially teens. Looking from the point of view that the movie was azom.com for teens. They nailed it, getting placement in the right place and for the right audience.

    Apple’s MacBook Air:

    To All The Boys I Loved Before - Apple MacBook Product Placement
    To All The Boys I Loved Before – Apple MacBook Product Placement

    MacBooks are frequently shown throughout the movie when Lara and Kitty watch the movies when Margot leaves for college, and during movie marathons while fake-dating Kavinsky. The logo of Apple clearly gives out the message about the product Skype. iPhone when his dad takes their picture for entering new grades.

    Jeep Wrangler:

    To All The Boys I Loved Before - Jeep Wrangler Product Placement
    To All The Boys I Loved Before – Jeep Wrangler Product Placement

    Used by Peter Kavinsky when he comes to pick up Jean and Kitty the first time when he drops Lara off after clearing things about the letter in the cafe and driving her home.

    Some of the placements by brands were quite a success as they did the job for Yakult, making people nostalgic about it along with exposing many other products to the audience with it one of the most-watched movie series.

    How Zara Makes Billions while Spending $0 on Advertising?
    Zara is no doubt one of the successful fast fashion brands but spends $0 advertising. How is it so successful? Lets find out.
    StartupTalkyHarshit Verma

    Product Placement in James Bond Series

    Product Placements of Lark Cigarettes in the James Bond Series
    Product Placements of Lark Cigarettes in the James Bond Series

    The popular movie franchise “James Bond” did it all the time. Since the release of Dr No in 1962, the James Bond franchise has been associated with a number of brands. Many brands came in line to pay for promotions in the future instalments for the famous cinema piece. The early films featured Pan-am Airlines and smith and Wesson firearms. The early films feature tie-ins with popular companies like Pan-Am Airlines and Smith and Wesson firearms. The iconic cigar that Bond fashioned is also a very popular brand placement. It is said and reported that Lark Cigarettes paid as much as $350,000 to feature their brand of cigarettes in Licence to Kill. Besides the aforementioned brands, some of the other popular brands to be associated with the franchise are Microsoft, Gillette, Playboy, Toblerone, 7Up, and KFC.

    Aston Martin’s Placement in Goldfinger

    Product Placement of Aston Martin in Goldfinger
    Product Placement of Aston Martin in Goldfinger

    Even after we have talked about so much brand placement in the movie, we can still remember the iconic ride of James Bond. It was the luxury car brand Aston Martin that was honoured with bond’s feet on their product. Aston Martin, the luxury car brand jumped at an opportunity to be associated with the British spy. Starting from Goldfinger in 1964, this partnership has endured the test of time.

    Product placement from Indian context

    The movie with the most iconic dialogues and is very famous for the memes that make you go, say relatable!

    Domino’s, Baburao and Phir Hera Pheri

    Remember the scene from the movie when Baburao comes climbing down the stairs, asking everyone to gather around. The box that he holds is of Domino’s pizza and the also mentions to Sham how he tricks the Domino’s pizza delivery guy to get a free pizza according to the brand’s then ongoing scheme.

    Bournvita, Rohit, and Koi Mil Gaya

    Koi Mil Gaya Bournvita's Product Placement
    Koi Mil Gaya Bournvita’s Product Placement

    No matter your age, a Bollywood movie that almost everyone knows about is Koi Mil Gaya starring Hritik Roshan and Preity Zinta. The movie is famous for the appearance of an alien named ‘Jaadoo’. Apart from this, the movie makes for a great example of the product placement of Bournvita. In this movie, it is shown that the young Rohit (Hritik’s character) loves to drink his milk with Bournvita in it. In some scenes, he even boasts about it to his friends and also offers some Bournvita to a winning kid in a game.

    Another example of a movie starring Hritik is the Bollywood film “Yaadein”. It was a hit, like all other movies that star Hritik Roshan. He is an all-time favourite actor in the business. But could you notice Coke’s ‘Product placement’ throughout the entire running time of the movie? You might not remember but your brain must have noticed, “Cool people like Hrithik drink Coke”.

    Why the business of placing products in the movies continues to thrive?

    What are the advantages of product placement?

    • It can create trends and affect cultures.
    • Even bring a crashing product back into the business again on top of the market again.
    • People will prefer to see a real brand rather than a fake or a created one on screen.
    • Helps increase awareness about your product and the brand.
    • Gets money rolling in for production.
    • Ropes in money for production or advertising.
    • Helps in giving exposure and recognition to your brand
    • Reduces the cost required for the filming budget.
    • Helps integrate the brand’s values through storytelling
    • Creates a positive brand recall.
    • When used effectively, it can also help boost sales.

    Setbacks of Product placement

    • It can be quite distracting if the placement is done in an aggressive manner.
    • If not given much thought, it can bring negative reviews for the film.
    • Products require a certain amount of screen time and can get messy if not followed smoothly.

    Conclusion

    We know that product placement is a very bumpy ride and can be a huge interruption for a movie or series fan. Moviemakers know it very well. However, if done smoothly and carefully, it will go unnoticed by the audience and it will also make revenue for the brand. Thus, product placement in movies or series can do wonders for a brand, if done correctly.

    FAQ

    What is product placement

    Product placement is a form of an advertisement in which a branded item or object is placed in a movie as part of the movie.

    Which movie has the most product placement?

    Avengers Endgame is a movie that had a combined 76 million dollars in product placement advertising value.

    What is example of product placement?

    If in a movie, the lead actor is drinking a clearly labelled Coca-Cola beverage or using a clearly labelled Samsung cell phone, then it is product placement.