Stealth Marketing in Movies
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But in certain ways, movies are useful to Marketers. Take the case of novelist Bill Fitzhugh, who became one of the first known authors to incorporate a product placement into a work of fiction. He'd sold the film rights to his 2000 book Cross Dressing to Universal Studios, which at the time was owned by distilling giant Seagrams.
He struck a deal to replace generic references to liquor in a bar scene with flattering references to seagrams spirits, and says he was rewarded with an ample supply of liquor. But here's the twist : Fitzhugh wasn't really interested in helping Seagrams sell liquor. He struck the deal because he knew that when his book came out, he could market its product-placement deal as unique, if lamentable, literary landmark.
In other words, by generating hand-wringing stories in Brill's Content, Publisher's Weekly, Time and Entertainment Weekly, Fitzhugh wasn't selling liquor as much as selling books.
Now that's stealth.
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