Product Placement on Reality TV

So I was thinking the other day about how easy it is for well-known and influential brand names to promote and place several products in hour-long reality competitions, as opposed to a scripted drama or sitcom. As many people just don't bother watching the commercials (between bathroom breaks and snack time); it makes much more sense for many popular brands to secretly advertise their products through the duration of the actual show. By "secretly" I mean none of this kind of advertising is rehearsed, scripted, and made into a commercial; although it is still quite apparent that episode after episode a number of popular reality shows continue to promote the same products.


The simplest example is American Idol, which is notorious for plugging a number of items and products each and every season. I'm sure everyone has realized by now that Coca Cola sponsors the show in some way, as the judges are ALWAYS drinking out of the same classic red Coca Cola cups. Whether it's at the auditions or the Kodak Theater, Simon is always taking a sip out of those cups as he tears each contestant's dreams apart. Coke is advertised so much throughout the show brainwashing its audience with repeated images of the hugely popular cola brand. It's basically a marketing tactic to give the brand some sort of credibility. When the American public sees the Coke cups being used (even though they are most likely filled with water) by the judges over and over again, it may persuade some that it is a much preferred and accepted product.

Also, Ford Motor Company always advertises its cars in the later stages of the competition. Each week, the contestants make some musical commercial of them driving a Ford car with a new location and situation. Ryan Seacrest always gives behind-the-scenes looks at these upcoming commercials and always previews into a new one. Yeah, they're technically commercials... but the audience is too easily convinced that it's part of the whole "Becoming Famous" theme of the entire show. The Ford commercials are portrayed as a part of the whole selection process and who can succeed on camera, even though they have pretty much nothing to do with the singing aspect of the competition. It's just another scheme for a huge corporation to advantageously place a product in a popular reality show where it will be seen and noticed.