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Cross-cultural challenges in product placement
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Department of Communication, Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois, USA
Taejun (David) Lee Yongjun Sung Received March 2010 Revised June 2010, July 2010, November 2010 Accepted December 2010
Department of Advertising, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA, and
Federico de Gregorio Department of Marketing, College of Business and Administration, The University of Akron, Akron, Ohio, USA Abstract Purpose – The purpose of this research is to examine US and Korean college student consumers’ attitudes towards product placements in three different media (films, TV shows, and songs), and product placement acceptability based on media genre and product type. Design/methodology/approach – The current study employed a self-administered online survey of 471 college students in the USA and South Korea. Findings – Korean young adult consumers express greater ethical concerns about product placement, particularly in TV shows, and more strongly support governmental regulation than their American counterparts. In contrast, American young adults respond more favorably to product placement’s enhancement of setting realism than Korean consumers. Findings also reveal cultural differences in product placement acceptability across a range of media genres and product/service types. Research limitations/implications – Only two countries were used as a proxy to characterize their respective cultural values and levels of contextuality. In addition, respondents are limited geographically to southwestern and southeastern regions in the USA, and to Korea’s capital, Seoul. Practical implications – Despite the widespread use of standardized product placement practices in different cultural settings, it is recommended, from the findings of this study, that managers should take caution when considering TV for placement in Korea when targeting young adults given their relatively strong concerns regarding the practice. Specific and usable information regarding appropriateness of genre and product type is also provided. Originality/value – This exploratory cross-cultural study builds upon and contributes to previous work by serving as a quantitative comparison of attitudinal responses to product placement across three media in the USA and Korea. Keywords Brands, Cross cultural studies, Product positioning, United States of America, Attitudes, South Korea, Information media Paper type Research paper
Marketing Intelligence & Planning Vol. 29 No. 4, 2011 pp. 366-384 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0263-4503 DOI 10.1108/02634501111138545
Introduction Product placement, the deliberate placement of branded products and services within media content (e.g. Will Smith drinking Coca-Cola in a film) has rapidly become a popular marketing communication tactic among practitioners around the world. Product placement has its roots in the USA is commonly considered to be an American phenomenon, and used to be considered primarily a movie-based tactic. However, as a result of the global flow
of and access to media content and technology (Crawford, 2004), the practice is becoming media-neutral and spreading to other cultures. Our understanding though of how consumers perceive product placement as an advertising form is largely limited to the US context, with a handful of exceptions. As marketers across the globe have sought to place brands into a variety of media formats and content to reach their consumers there is a need to develop an expanded understanding of how non-US consumers perceive such placements (Nelson and Devanathan, 2006). Given that, like traditional forms of advertising, product placements transmit and reflect the important symbolic meanings and values within a culture (Russell, 1998; Hackley and Tiwsakul, 2006), consumer attitudes toward product placement may also vary depending upon the fundamental cultural orientations and values of a particular society. Indeed, considerable empirical research based on Hofstede’s (1984, 1991) cultural dimensions and Hall’s (1976) cultural contextuality framework strongly supports the persuasiveness of advertising messages that reflect dominant cultural values of a particular nation (Shavitt et al., 2006; Choi et al., 2008). Not only may perceptions vary based on culture, it may also be that other sources of variation exist as well. Prior literature has indicated that consumers may differ in product placement perceptions depending upon cultural background (Gould et al., 2000; Karrh et al., 2001; McKechnie and Zhou, 2003; Nelson and Devanathan, 2006); the medium of placement (Sung and de Gregorio, 2008; de Gregorio and Sung, 2009); and type of product or service placed (Gupta and Gould, 1997; Brennan et al., 2004; Sung et al., 2009). While there are abundant cross-cultural comparisons of advertising and promotion in general, rather little is known about how consumers from different cultures perceive and process product placements. There has also been very limited knowledge about how and to what extent the medium of placement affects perceptions of the tactic. In the current study, the USA and Korea were selected for comparing attitudes towards product placements because consumers from these two countries are culturally distinct (Hofstede, 1984, 1991). Specifically, individualism-collectivism (Hofstede, 1984, 1991) is one of the most cited and central dimensions of cultural variability identified in cross-cultural research. In individualistic cultures, such as those of North America, and Northern and Western Europe, autonomy, emotional independence, privacy, and individual need are emphasized, social ties between individuals tend to be loose, and communication is relatively direct (Triandis, 2004). Consumers of individualistic cultures are relatively more concerned with clarity in conversations (Kim, 1994), and indeed, they view clarity as necessary for effective communication (Kim and Wilson, 1994). In contrast, collectivism is defined as a social pattern that consists of individuals who see themselves as a part of collectives such as family, community, and group (Triandis, 2004). Collectivistic cultures such as those of Korea, Japan, and China emphasize emotional dependence, group harmony, cohesion, and cooperation, and value the collective over the individual. People in collectivist cultures favor attitudes that reflect interdependence, sociability, and family integrity (Schwartz, 1994) and identify themselves based on the social system to which they belong (Cha, 1994). In the same vein, the USA represents a typical individualistic culture with a low-context communication style, whereas Korea is characterized as a collectivistic culture with a high-context communication pattern (Taylor et al., 1997; Choi et al., 2005). However, despite the cultural differences of the two countries, the product placement landscape in Korea has been similar to that of the USA since the mid-1990s as the practice
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is rapidly evolving and expanding in usage (Sung et al., 2008). Sung et al. (2008) document that product placement has matured and become more sophisticated due to a convergence of advertising, new media, and entertainment, notwithstanding social acceptability issues and regulatory pressures concerning the practice. The growth of product placement has increased rapidly for similar reasons in many emerging Asian societies such as Thailand, Malaysia, and in particular South Korea (PQ Media, 2007). Indeed, several studies have empirically documented the increase in placements over time in the USA and Asian countries such as Korea and India (Devanathan et al., 2003; Galician and Bourdeau, 2004; Sung et al., 2008). However, despite the growing use of product placement, ethical and legal issues surrounding the practice have gained increased attention in both the USA and Korea. For example, in the US consumer advocates such as Commercial Alert have petitioned the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission arguing that the failure to clearly identify and disclose product placement arrangements is deceptive and injurious to consumers (Lee, 2008). In Korea, Korea communications standards commission (KCSC) recently rejected a request for full and open acceptance of product placements in broadcasting based on three factors KCSC (2008a, b). First, product placement is presumed to undermine entertainment and artistic considerations in the development of media content. Second, they may lead to over commercialization of TV stations, and consequently to the lowering of programming quality. Third, the official sanctioning of product placement would run counter to governmental policies related to terrestrial broadcast advertising set by Korea Broadcasting Advertising Corporation (The National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, 2007). The main purpose of this research is to examine: (1) US and Korean consumers’ attitudes towards product placements in three different media (films, TV shows, and songs); and (2) product placement acceptability based on media genre and product type. These three mass media were selected because they are saturated with images of and information about branded products, and as a result, placed brands enjoy high profile, distinctive qualities, and attractive images in the minds of the public (Hirschman and Thompson, 1997; Sung and de Gregorio, 2008). This exploratory cross-cultural study builds upon and contributes to previous work by serving as a quantitative comparison of attitudinal responses to product placement across three media in the USA and Korea. Literature review Attitudes towards product placement Prior studies of product placement attitude reveal three key issues with regards to consumer opinion – perceived realism of the placement, the perception of product placement in terms of its ethicality and in turn support for its regulation, and the perception of being influenced by the tactic (Newell et al., 2009; Sung et al., 2009). Overall, there is strong agreement that product placements enhance the realism of the settings film and TV content (Nebenzahl and Secunda, 1993; Gould et al., 2000; Gupta et al., 2000). Audiences have also indicated that placed brands reinforce the integrity of a film’s world and aid in viewers becoming absorbed within the storyline, while expressing admiration for naturalistic portrayals of brands (DeLorme and Reid, 1999). Furthermore, placements are not perceived as unethical or misleading, although they are considered
advertisements in disguise (Nebenzahl and Secunda, 1993; Gupta et al., 2000; Karrh et al., 2001; Sung and de Gregorio, 2008). Indeed, studies have indicated distinct opposition to government-imposed limitations (Ong and Meri, 1994; Gupta et al., 2000). Prior cross-cultural research suggests that consumers show attitudinal differences toward product placement depending upon their cultural orientation (Gould et al., 2000; Karrh et al., 2001; McKechnie and Zhou, 2003; Nelson and Devanathan, 2006). Gould et al. (2000) found that American consumers are generally more likely to accept and purchase products placed in films than their Austrian and French counterparts. However, their study showed all three audiences show similar concern with the placement of ethically charged products (e.g. cigarettes, alcohol, guns). Among Asian cultures, Karrh et al. (2001) found that Singaporean consumers are more supportive of government regulation of and have greater concerns about the ethics of product placement in comparison to Americans. However, American and Singaporean consumers were equally likely to report paying attention to placed brands and admit that they influence purchasing patterns. McKechnie and Zhou (2003) found that Chinese consumers are generally less accepting of product placement than Americans, and have greater concerns about placement of ethically charged products. However, individual differences such as gender and movie viewing frequency were found to have minimal influence on the acceptability of product placement in both cultures. Limited but emerging research has also found differing attitudes depending on genre of placement content (de Gregorio and Sung, 2009) and product/service category (Gupta and Gould, 1997; Brennan et al., 2004; Sung et al., 2009). Initial work has indicated that film and TV have more genres considered appropriate for product placement than music or video games (Sung and de Gregorio, 2008). Meanwhile high-involvement products such as automobiles, electronics, and cameras were the most acceptable product for placement, whereas ethically charged products such as tobacco, alcohol, and guns are among the least acceptable product categories (Sung et al., 2009). Perceived influence of product placement Puto and Wells (1984) conceptualized the informational versus transformational advertising message styles. An informational strategy provides consumers with factual and relevant information in a clear and precise manner that increases their confidence in assessing the merits of buying the brand after having seen the advertisement. In contrast, a transformational strategy is characterized by associating the experience of using the advertised brand with a unique set of psychological characteristics which would not typically be associated with the brand experience to the same degree without exposure to the advertising. Based on this theoretical framework, Russell (1998) suggested that product placement typically mirrors the transformational message strategy rather than informational in that most product placements do not provide audiences with factual information about the brand but experientially engage consumers with brands in an entertainment context. At the same time, Russell (1998) noted that product placement enhances the aesthetics, integrity, and realism of the settings created in media by literally and figuratively representing consumption imagery regarding the brand, which could be considered an informational aspect of the practice (Russell, 1998; Hackley and Tiwsakul, 2006; Hirschman and Thompson, 1997).
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The cross-cultural literature has shown a wide range of distinctions, particularly between Eastern (e.g. Korea) and Western (e.g. American) cultures (Choi et al., 2005; Triandis, 2004). Notably, a number of studies have found inter-country differences in attitude towards advertising practices and promotional messages (Ramaprasad, 2001). While many studies of attitude toward advertising have been undertaken in the USA, La Ferle and Lee (2001) found that due to different cultural orientations and socio-economic stages, consumers in the Asian countries of South Korea, Taiwan and China tend to held more favorable attitudes toward advertising in general compared to American contemporaries. Key cultural differences have also been reported in response to advertising message strategies (Shavitt et al., 2006). For example, people of individualistic cultures typified by the US rely more on factual information for decision making and insist on drawing their own conclusions, whereas those in collectivistic culture prefer emotional rather than rational appeals (Han and Shavitt, 1994; Taylor et al., 1997). In line with the extant findings, and our rational regarding the benefit of cross-cultural analysis, we ask: RQ1. What similarities and differences exist in the influence/attention of product placement between the USA and Korea across media? Realism Another important cultural determinant that has been used for examining marketing and advertising across cultures is based on the high-/low-cultural context framework. Hall (1976) classified high- and low-context cultures according to the degree of how much the listener knows about the subject under discussion. For example, low-context cultures place high value on words, and communicators are encouraged to be exact and unambiguous whereas high-context cultures consider verbal communications to be only part of the overall message, and communicators rely much more heavily on implicit messages and contextual cues. Prior studies suggest that consumers from a high-context culture like Korea or Japan tend to prefer indirect cues or unspoken words for communication, which often leads to more emotional approaches to communication (Taylor et al., 1997; Choi et al., 2008). In the same vein, cultural contexts play an important role in how people make sense of product placement (Karrh et al., 2001; McKechnie and Zhou, 2003). Indeed, product placements travel within and across cultures via movies and TV shows and foreign audiences may also see and interpret them differently within a cultural basis (Gould et al., 2000; Nelson and Devanathan, 2006). For example, given that consumers in low-context cultures (e.g. the USA) tend to prefer informational messages over transformational ones, whereas those in high-context cultures (e.g. Korea) are more likely to favor transformational messages than informational (Hall, 1976; De Mooij, 2003), Korean consumers are more likely to pay attention to and be influenced by product placement which is usually utilized as an implicit expression of brand information. However, when it comes to the informational dimension of product placement, it is expected that American consumers are more prone to value the realism aspect of product placement due to being an explicit, direct, and minimally ambiguous rhetorical style valued by low-context and realistic cultures. Thus, to examine cross-cultural differences in the attitudes towards product placement between US and Korean consumers, the following research question was put forth: RQ2. What similarities and differences exist in the realism enhancement of product placement between the USA and Korea across media?
Ethical and regulatory concerns Culture affects what is perceived as acceptable or unacceptable, and ethical or unethical (Lu et al., 1999). Cultural values are implicitly and explicitly related to the accepted rules and standards of behavior or a code of ethics that are part of a culture (Singhapakdi et al., 1999). With the continued proliferation of product placements, there has been a commensurate rise in ethical concern among scholars, policy makers, and civic groups (Lee, 2008). Many have expressed concern about the extent to which content creators, media owners, and advertisers make (or more to the point, do not make) their product placement strategies explicit to consumers (Petty and Andrews, 2008). Furthermore, some have cautioned that associating ethically charged products with characters in entertainment programs may lead vulnerable audience members (e.g. children, adolescents) to hold positive attitudes toward these products, which may lead them to try and to regularly use these products (Campbell, 2006). In this backdrop, it is assumed that different cultural values influence consumers’ marketing ethics related to product placement. Individuals in collectivistic cultures are more likely to be influenced by cohesive in-group regulations of behavior and interdependence than individuals in individualistic cultures (Triandis, 2004). Collectivism emphasizes active protection or enhancement of others’ welfare and restraint of actions that are likely to harm others and violate sanctioned norms (Schwartz and Bilsky, 1987). Collectivist cultures have stronger moral obligations to their families and societies to which they belong (Yoo and Donthu, 2002). Similarly, people with a long-term orientation tend to have a sense of harmonious and stable hierarchy and complementarity of roles, support interrelatedness through social contracts, stress the keeping of commitments, and have concerns about the demands of virtue. Schwartz and Bilsky (1987) indicate that such people are more likely to obey the rules and conform to social expectations and norms to avoid a sense of shame or guilt. Based on the above reasoning, Korean audiences are more likely to show ethical concern regarding product placement, thereby supporting more strict government regulations on the practice. Based on this body of literature, the following research question was put forth: RQ3. What similarities and differences exist in the ethical/regulatory concerns of product placement between the USA and Korea across media? Media genres and product types Finally, previous studies indicate that audiences have specific notions of whether certain media genres (Sung and de Gregorio, 2008; de Gregorio and Sung, 2009) and product/service category (Gupta and Gould, 1997; Brennan et al., 2004; Sung et al., 2009) are particularly acceptable or unacceptable for product placement purposes. Specifically, US audiences tend to feel that comedy, action, drama, and romance is particularly acceptable for film placements (Sung and de Gregorio, 2008). Furthermore, the effect of product placement on audiences varies depending on the category of product and service (Brennan et al., 2004; Sung et al., 2009). Thus, the following research questions were advanced: RQ4. Which media genres are considered appropriate (vs inappropriate) for product placement purposes? Are there any cross-cultural differences and similarities between the USA and Korea?
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RQ5. Which product/service categories are considered acceptable (vs unacceptable) for product placement purpose? Are there any cross-cultural differences and similarities between the USA and Korea? Method Sample The current study employed a self-administered online survey of 471 college student consumers. Both the advertising and the entertainment industry consider this group to be a high-value segment because young adults consume brands, media, and entertainment with greater discretionary incomes and materialistic values, and generate new popular culture and market trends (McQuail, 2002). Indeed, college-aged students comprise 24-44 percent of the music buying audience (Recording Industry Association of America, 2007), and 38 percent of the movie going population (Motion Picture Association of America, 2008). Korean young adults aged 19-29 are in step with their American contemporaries, buying more tickets than all other ages (Korean Film Council, 2008) and are also loyal TV viewers (Hyundai Research Institute, 2007). The initial American sample consisted of 277 students at three universities, one in the southwest and the others in the southeastern USA. All respondents were provided extra course credit. Eliminating respondents who exhibited extreme response sets (n ¼ 18) and submitted incomplete questionnaires (n ¼ 10) yielded a final sample size of 249. Of respondents, 45 percent were males, and the majority ranged from 18 to 30 years in age with an average age of 23. Caucasians comprised about 43 percent of the sample. Overall, these respondent characteristics were similar to the national demographic profile of American college students (National Center for Education Statistics, 2009). The Korean sample consisted of college students from three different universities located in Seoul, Korea. Respondents received extra course credit for participation. Some were eliminated due to consistently high- or low-rating patterns (n ¼ 15) and incomplete questionnaires (n ¼ 11), yielding a final total of 222. Approximately, 51 percent of the respondents were female. The average age was 24, with a range between 19 and 30 years. Survey instrument The survey consisted of four sections: (1) attitude toward product placement across media; (2) genre appropriateness for the practice; (3) product/service type acceptability for the practice; and (4) demographic information. To ensure the survey was conceptually equivalent in meaning and would be clearly understood by respondents in the USA and Korea, we performed translation and back translation steps. The researchers formed a team of five Korean graduate students fluent in English and Korean and also knowledgeable about the local conventions and the cultural contexts of the two countries. Next, translators each translated the questionnaire into Korean. The next step involved pretesting each language version of the questionnaire by administering it to four bilingual respondents, which resulted in the detection of some errors in translation and differences in connotations. Based on these
processes, a final version of the survey questionnaire was developed for each country. The order in which the items were presented for the three media (i.e. films, TV shows, and music) and the order in which the three media were presented was systematically rotated. Attitude toward product placement across media. About 16 attitude items were adapted from Gupta and Gould (1997) and used for the current study. All items were measured using a five-point Likert scale, with 1 being “strongly disagree” and 5 being “strongly agree”. Respondents were asked to rate their attitudes toward product placement in three different media: films, TV shows, and songs. Since Gupta and Gould’s (1997) scale was developed to measure attitude toward product placement in films only, the scale was modified as necessary. For example, “I prefer to see real brands in movies rather than fake/fictitious brands” was modified to “I prefer to hear real brand names in music rather than fake/fictitious brands” under the music section. Genre and product/service type. Ten film, TV, and music genres were identified from major industry trade publications and academic journals (PQ Media, 2005). The extent to which different genres would be particularly appropriate or inappropriate for product placement was measured using a five-point Likert-type scale with 1 being “very inappropriate” and 5 being “very appropriate”. Respondents were also asked to rate and evaluate the acceptability of product categories for placement in the three media based on a five-point Likert-type scale with 1 being “not acceptable at all” and 5 being “very acceptable”. In the present study, 17 product categories were chosen. About 13 product categories (i.e. cigarettes, soft drinks, surfing equipment, alcohol, fatty foods, autos, race cars, healthy consumer products, guns, candy/snacks, sunglasses, cameras, and stereo equipment) were adopted from Gupta and Gould (1997). Additionally, to examine the acceptability of product placement in other non-Western countries as suggested by Brennan et al. (2004), four additional categories were added (i.e. condoms, gambling services/products, new media/entertainment, and service) because they are relevant to the sample of college students not only in the USA but also in Korea. Results Dimensions of product placement While prior research suggests that there are three primary dimensions of product placement attitude (i.e. ethical concern, realism enhancement, and influence), we first conducted a principal component analysis (PCA) with varimax rotation to examine whether these three dimensions existed in the current study. Next, a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) ensured factor-structure invariance between the two samples: USA vs Korea. We first conducted a series of PCA for each medium using the US data set and found a consistent three-component solution for all three media, which was determined by: . eigenvalue for each component greater than 1; . amount of variance explained; . scree plot; . meaningfulness of the components; and . reliability of component items greater than 0.60.
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Four items loading below 0.40 were removed. In the following paragraph are the results of the PCA for TV in the USA, meant to serve as an illustration of results of all three media. The three components explained 60.2 percent of the variance. The first component, labeled “Ethics/regulation,” accounted for 24.8 percent of the variance in attitudes toward product placement, and its five items formed a reliable scale (a ¼ 0.86). The second component, labeled “Attention/influence,” was formed with four items and accounted for 20.4 percent of the variance (a ¼ 0.89). The third component was “Realism,” accounting for 15.0 percent of the variance. Three items under “Realism” were found to be reliable (a ¼ 0.74). Details regarding factor loadings for Americans’ attitudes regarding product placement on TV are shown in Table I. The results showed that the same three components resulted, and similar weights for the three components existed for film, TV, and songs in the US data. Thus, attitude items across three components were averaged and used for the subsequent data analyses. Next, we assessed the robustness of the identified three components with the Korean data set. Using a CFA, we examined the fit for a model with three latent components.
Product placement attitude measures
Table I. Component loadings of TV product placement attitude measures (US-TV)
It is highly unethical to influence the captive viewers by using brands in TV showsa Manufacturers are misleading viewers by disguising brands as props in TV showsa I hate seeing brands in TV shows if they are placed for commercial purposesa The government should regulate the placement of brands in TV shows Brands placed in a TV show for which the producers receive payment from advertisers should be disclosed at the beginning of the show I have bought brands because I have seen or heard of them in TV shows When I see TV show characters I like, I pay attention to the brands they use I am more likely to buy brands I am exposed to in TV shows than those I see advertised I have learned about new brands from watching TV shows I prefer to see real brands in TV shows rather than fake/ fictitious brands The presence of brand name products in a TV show makes it more realistic The brands in TV shows are “true” to what the characters in the shows would use in real life Eigenvalue Variance (%) Cumulative % Note: aThe item was reverse coded and scored
1 Ethics/ regulation
Components 2 Influence/ attention
3 Realism
0.86
20.02
20.04
0.85
0.09
20.08
0.78
20.05
20.05
0.77
0.19
20.11
0.68
0.17
20.01
0.01
0.85
0.13
0.01
0.84
0.22
0.14 0.12
0.79 0.68
0.08 0.10
20.04
0.09
0.86
20.10
0.07
0.85
0.01 3.23 24.8 24.8
0.16 2.65 20.4 45.2
0.51 1.95 15.0 60.2
Because researchers have cautioned that x2-tests should not be relied on exclusively to evaluate model fit (Steenkamp and Baumgartner, 1998), we used the following fit indexes: chi-square statistic (x 2), normed fit index (NFI), incremental fit index (IFI), Tucker-Lewis index (TLI), goodness-of-fit index (GFI), and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA). As for product placement in TV, the CFA yielded adequate model fit indices (x 2 ¼ 61.43, p ¼ 0.11 (df ¼ 49, x 2/df ratio ¼ 1.25), NFI ¼ 0.93, IFI ¼ 98, TLI ¼ 0.98, GFI ¼ 0.98, RMSEA ¼ 0.04). In addition, to provide convergent support for the robustness of the structure, an exploratory PCA was conducted using a varimax rotation for each medium. The results showed that the same three components resulted, and similar weights for the three components existed for film, TV, and songs in the Korean data. Thus, attitude items across three components were averaged and used for the subsequent data analyses.
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Attitudes, realism and regulation in product placement A series of independent samples t-tests were conducted for each of three media. As shown in Table II, regarding film and TV, Korean respondents showed higher mean scores on the influence/attention component than did American respondents. However, the difference was not statistically significant. The findings also suggested that Americans are more likely to be influenced by and pay attention to the brands placed in songs than are their Korean counterparts. However, the difference was again found to be non-significant. In sum, the results reveal somewhat inconsistent findings across media. In addition, the results suggest that regardless of media types, Americans are more likely to agree that product placement enhances the realism of media content than are Koreans. That is, across media, American respondents were more likely to believe that product placement increases realism, and to prefer to see real brands rather than fake/fictitious brands in comparison to Koreans. Finally, the results suggest that Koreans are more likely than Americans to have ethical concerns about product placement and to support government regulation across each of the three media. For example, American respondents disagreed more strongly that the government should regulate the placement of brands in TV than did their Korean counterparts. However, as shown in Table II, this difference was found to be statistically significant only for product placement in TV.
Component
Media
Influence/attention
Film TV Music Film TV Music Film TV Music
Realism Ethics/regulation
USA (n ¼ 249) 2.94 3.00 2.70 3.44 3.49 3.13 2.65 2.59 2.83
(0.92) (0.92) (1.00) (0.90) (0.87) (0.87) (0.85) (0.82) (0.70)
Korea (n ¼ 222) 3.02 3.13 2.55 3.20 3.14 2.96 2.69 2.84 2.94
(0.89) (0.89) (0.94) (0.72) (0.71) (0.82) (0.74) (0.80) (0.72)
t-test
p-value
20.93 21.63 1.78 3.29 4.83 2.15 20.54 23.35 21.64
0.35 0.11 0.08 0.00 0.000 0.03 0.59 0.00 0.10
Note: Each item was scored along a five-point scale (1 – strongly disagree and 5 – strongly agree)
Table II. Mean comparisons of product placement components between USA and Korea
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Media and products/services in placement Next, we examined attitudes regarding genre-specific product placement. The mean scores for each media genre are summarized in Table III. American respondents tended to be more accepting of product placement in most film genres. Specifically, American respondents indicated that comedy, action, and drama are particularly appropriate movies genres for product placement whereas Korean respondents indicated that drama is the most appropriate genre, followed by romance, and action. Both American and Korean respondents equally felt that product placement in historical films is the least appropriate, followed by animated and political films. American respondents also tended to be more accepting of product placement in most TV genres. American respondents indicated that both situational comedy and comedy/skit are the most appropriate TV genre, followed by sports, game shows, and premium pay cable. Indeed, other than two genres (i.e. cartoon and reality shows), they showed high acceptability scores for all other TV genres. On the other hand, Korean respondents indicated that soap operas, situational comedy, comedy/skit, and soap operas are the most appropriate TV genres, followed by premium pay cable and sports. Media
Genre
Film
Comedy Action Drama Adventure Romance Crime Science fiction/fantasy Political Animated Historical Situational comedy Sports Game shows Comedy/skit Premium pay cable Prime time (late night) movies Talk shows Soap operas Reality shows Cartoon Hip-hop/R&B/rap Pop Rock Country Electronic/dance/techno Blues Reggae Jazz Christian/gospel Classic/opera
TV
Music
Table III. Mean comparisons of media genre for placement purposes
USA (n ¼ 249) 3.84 3.79 3.75 3.73 3.65 3.43 3.40 3.11 2.99 2.94 3.81 3.80 3.73 3.72 3.70 3.64 3.56 3.52 3.46 2.74 3.74 3.65 3.31 3.25 3.17 3.01 3.00 2.80 2.60 2.53
(1.00) (1.02) (1.03) (0.96) (1.03) (1.08) (1.08) (1.20) (1.26) (1.29) (0.94) (1.00) (1.02) (1.02) (1.08) (1.11) (1.04) (1.04) (1.22) (1.29) (1.11) (1.02) (1.11) (1.20) (1.17) (1.19) (1.18) (1.26) (1.37) (1.31)
Note: Numbers in parentheses indicate the standard deviation
Korea (n ¼ 222) 3.50 3.57 3.71 3.09 3.65 3.24 3.18 2.77 2.68 2.60 3.79 3.50 3.40 3.30 3.65 3.39 3.33 3.79 3.36 2.64 3.54 3.52 3.23 2.59 3.13 2.75 2.95 2.84 2.13 2.23
(1.08) (1.20) (1.20) (1.20) (1.11) (1.16) (1.27) (1.18) (1.21) (1.19) (1.13) (1.13) (1.08) (1.09) (1.09) (1.12) (1.13) (1.11) (1.34) (1.16) (1.15) (1.16) (1.11) (1.15) (1.16) (1.16) (1.10) (1.15) (1.18) (1.17)
t-test 3.56 2.12 0.38 6.35 2 0.03 1.80 1.99 3.08 2.74 2.97 0.24 3.03 3.42 4.30 0.54 2.44 2.29 2 2.68 0.79 0.91 1.95 1.31 0.74 6.07 0.39 2.44 0.39 2 0.35 4.02 2.59
p-value 0.000 0.03 0.70 0.000 0.98 0.07 0.05 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.81 0.00 0.00 0.000 0.59 0.02 0.02 0.01 0.43 0.36 0.05 0.19 0.46 0.000 0.70 0.02 0.70 0.73 0.000 0.01
However, soap operas were considered more suitable for product placement by Koreans than by Americans. In both countries, cartoons were considered the least appropriate TV genre for product placement (Table III). Regarding music genres, both American and Korean respondents indicated that hip-hop/R&B/rap and pop genres are particularly appropriate for product placement. Further, both American and Korean respondents indicated Christian/gospel and classic/opera are inappropriate music genres for product placement. RQ5 examined which product/service categories are considered acceptable and unacceptable for product placement. As shown in Table IV, for films, healthy consumer products and clothing/fashion products were rated the most acceptable products by the American respondents, followed by new media/entertainment and automobiles. However, cigarettes and guns were considered to be least acceptable product categories. Similarly, individuals in Korea indicated that the clothing/shoes/fashion products category is the most acceptable product type, followed by automobiles, electronics, and sports equipment. Furthermore, the findings suggested that guns are the least acceptable product type in Korean films. Regarding cross-cultural differences, the results of t-test revealed that American respondents regarded healthy consumer products, candy/snacks, soft drinks, fatty food, and fast food as more acceptable product categories for placement than did Korean respondents. In contrast, Korean respondents showed higher acceptability mean scores for cigarette placements than did American respondents. For TV shows, in the USA, the most acceptable product category was healthy consumer products, followed by clothing/shoes/fashion, new media/entertainment, cameras, and electronics. The least acceptable product type in TV shows was guns, followed by cigarettes and gambling. In Korea, however, respondents indicated that clothing/shoes/fashion products were the most acceptable, followed by automobiles and electronics. Regarding the least acceptable products, the results were similar to those of the US sample. That is, guns are the least acceptable, followed by cigarettes, gambling, and condoms. When compared to Korean respondents, American respondents tended to agree more strongly that healthy consumer products and fatty foods are acceptable. However, Korean respondents thought of condoms, gambling services/products, and guns as less acceptable than did their American counterparts. Finally, in regard to music, American respondents rated healthy consumer products as the most acceptable for the use of branded products, followed by automobiles and electronics. On the other hand, Korean counterparts showed uncertainty/lack of consensus (i.e. between 2.5 and 3.5 on the scale) towards most products and services categories but they viewed guns, condoms, fatty foods, and gambling as less acceptable. In comparison, American respondents showed stronger acceptances for the categories of electronics, cameras, fashion, and candy/snacks than did Korean respondents. Discussion and implications In general, our research findings suggest that management decisions regarding product placement should be based on an understanding of cultural characteristics influencing consumers’ beliefs, values, norms, and attitudes. First, the results indicate that college students consumers in the USA and Korea show similarly neutral reports of paying attention to and being influenced by placement across all three media. Individual cultural orientations appear to be overridden by personal and situational factors toward product placement that make other values more accessible. For example, enduring
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Media
Genre
Film
Cigarette Clothing/shoes/fashion Fast food Condoms Gambling Candy/snacks Sports equipment New media/entertainment Healthy products Cameras Electronics Automobiles Guns Services Alcohol Soft drinks Fatty foods Cigarette Clothing/shoes/fashion Fast food Condoms Gambling Candy/snacks Sports equipment New media/entertainment Healthy products Cameras Electronics Automobiles Guns Services Alcohol Soft drinks Fatty foods Cigarette Clothing/shoes/fashion Fast food Condoms Gambling Candy/snacks Sports equipment New media/entertainment Healthy products Cameras Electronics Automobiles Guns Services Alcohol Soft drinks Fatty foods
378
TV
Music
Table IV. Means of product acceptability
USA (n ¼ 249) 2.84 (1.33) 4.12 (0.98) 3.71 (1.04) 3.33 (1.25) 3.04 (1.22) 3.86 (0.98) 3.97 (1.02) 4.02 (1.03) 4.12 (1.00) 3.91 (1.04) 3.98 (1.01) 4.00 (1.15) 2.67 (1.36) 3.88 (1.07) 3.29 (1.24) 3.83 (1.10) 3.39 (1.26) 2.68 (1.37) 3.99 (1.06) 3.57 (1.11) 3.13 (1.35) 2.96 (1.32) 3.74 (1.02) 3.83 (1.08) 3.98 (1.03) 4.10 (1.05) 3.97 (1.01) 3.94 (1.05) 3.83 (1.15) 2.63 (1.36) 3.83 (1.01) 3.11 (1.22) 3.72 (1.07) 3.45 (1.20) 2.83 (1.36) 3.80 (1.16) 3.42 (1.19) 3.12 (1.31) 2.99 (1.31) 3.55 (1.15) 3.68 (1.18) 3.79 (1.19) 3.93 (1.11) 3.78 (1.18) 3.82 (1.15) 3.88 (1.16) 2.65 (1.42) 3.69 (1.18) 3.17 (1.35) 3.61 (1.19) 3.33 (1.30)
Korea (n ¼ 222) 3.10 4.09 3.42 2.99 2.85 3.31 3.84 3.71 3.07 3.73 3.88 4.08 2.49 3.67 3.25 3.32 2.64 2.33 3.86 3.18 2.41 2.37 3.32 3.74 3.73 3.12 3.60 3.77 3.83 1.96 3.59 2.91 3.36 2.54 2.61 3.11 2.72 2.41 2.48 2.92 3.13 3.15 2.57 3.05 3.07 3.39 2.22 3.00 2.94 3.08 2.43
(1.31) (0.95) (1.09) (1.15) (1.25) (1.13) (0.97) (1.05) (1.13) (1.00) (0.99) (1.09) (1.31) (1.11) (1.15) (1.08) (1.21) (1.17) (1.10) (1.18) (1.21) (1.14) (1.07) (1.02) (1.07) (1.10) (1.01) (1.05) (1.09) (1.12) (1.05) (1.14) (1.10) (1.21) (1.26) (1.24) (1.13) (1.19) (1.24) (1.19) (1.19) (1.19) (1.17) (1.17) (1.15) (1.19) (1.21) (1.13) (1.25) (1.16) (1.20)
t-test
p-value
22.13 0.25 2.94 3.07 1.69 5.56 1.42 3.22 10.76 1.89 1.05 20.82 1.46 2.12 0.37 5.01 6.64 3.03 1.32 3.69 6.07 5.25 4.45 0.91 2.54 9.95 4.00 1.66 20.02 5.90 2.50 1.85 3.58 8.12 1.81 6.25 6.51 6.16 4.38 5.82 5.08 5.80 12.91 6.69 7.01 4.59 3.57 6.50 1.89 4.93 7.75
0.03 0.81 0.00 0.00 0.09 0.000 0.16 0.00 0.000 0.06 0.29 0.41 0.15 0.04 0.71 0.000 0.000 0.00 0.19 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.37 0.01 0.000 0.000 0.10 0.98 0.000 0.01 0.06 0.000 0.000 0.07 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.06 0.000 0.000
Notes: Mean scores are based on a scale of 1-5, with 1 being “not acceptable at all” and 5 being “acceptable”; numbers in parentheses indicate the standard deviation
individual characteristics (e.g. media literacy, persuasion knowledge, or attitude toward advertising) that reflect a person’s motivation and affective state in communication can play a role in attitudes toward product placement regardless of cultural distinctions. Another possibility is that a third-person effect is operating, wherein the respondents do not wish to admit to being influenced or paying attention to any kind of marketing tactic, and this effect is strong enough to mitigate differences in cultural orientations. Hence, future experimental studies would be conducive to addressing the cross-cultural differences and similarities in relation to actual behavioral responses to product placement. Second, compared to American contemporaries, Korean college students are less likely to believe that the practice of product placement can transfer the function or meaning of the placed brand on the basis of their everyday experiences and interpretations. As discussed, the realism enhancement ability of product placements has been credited with conferring consumers with factual descriptions and tangible evidence about branded products and demonstrating how they are deployed within a setting (Russell, 1998), which would function as an informational message strategy and resonate with the low-context communication characteristic of the USA. This result is consistent with the previous research findings indicating that the contextuality of a culture exerts a strong influence on the marketing communications strategy. In that regard, marketers should be careful to implementing product placement strategies that facilitate explicit and confrontational visual/verbal reference of the intended brand images, albeit to different degrees, in high-context cultures. Third, the result of this study found that Korean college student consumers tend to have more ethical concerns regarding product placement, and are more supportive of governmental restrictions on the practice, but only for TV shows. The finding suggests that personal moral philosophies and interpretations regarding marketing tactics vary across countries based on cultural orientations (Paul et al., 2006). Owing to its collectivistic cultural nature, Korean society emphasizes prosocial behavior and restrains actions that are likely to harm others and to violate sanctioned norms in marketplace. Koreans perceive that broadcasting is a publicly owned property, and thus may perceive that its use for commercial purposes should be strictly regulated (The National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, 2007). Thus, marketers considering placement in Korean TV content should take caution in how the manner and extent to which the carry out such a tactic. Future research needs to examine the impact of cultural values on ethical norms about product placement in other countries (e.g. Europe) and in other media (e.g. social networking media, podcasting, mobile device) to ascertain just how much these values are reflecting a global orientation to placements. Another interesting finding of the study is that American college students show higher levels of acceptance of product placement in film, TV, and music genres than Koreans. Indeed, our findings provide advertisers with a clear signal – both the American and Korean samples tend to place more values on film drama and action, and TV situational comedy and skit comedy in comparison with other media genres, thereby suggesting that product placements are more preferred in genres that are conducive for plot connection, narrative development, dramatic storytelling, and character empathy (Russell and Stern, 2006). In addition, our research findings reveal that Korean consumers were less accepting of the use of socially sensitive products and services such as cigarettes, guns, and condoms in the three media compared to American contemporaries, although both cultures exhibited concern about placement of such products. The research findings suggest
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that international advertisers should exert “promotional stewardship” (Witkowski, 2005, p. 19) when designing and executing placement activities in different cultures. Finally, although it was found that both American and Korean college students did not hold particularly positive or negative attitudes toward product placement in music, the results of the study add further detail to understanding how songs are viewed as a potential product placement medium (Allan, 2008). Given that placement in songs is a new phenomenon, it seems that consumers are rather neutral/uncertain regarding this practice. Both Americans and Koreans do have opinions though on genre appropriateness, perceiving hip-hop/R&B/rap music as the most appropriate and Christian/gospel and classic/opera as the least for placement. Limitations and future research directions While our study has expanded our knowledge regarding attitudes toward product placement across media and cultures, there are some limitations and suggestions for future research. First, the present study is limited in that only two countries were used as a proxy to characterize their respective cultural values and levels of contextuality. Moreover, our subjects are limited geographically to southwestern and southeastern regions in the USA, and to Korea’s capital, Seoul. At a fundamental level, audience perception and predisposition of product placement might vary according to subculture within the country level. Within a specific culture, individuals endure multiple cultural orientations. Thus, future research should include a wider array of countries and cultures, and also needs to incorporate the treatment of subcultures within countries embracing nationality, ethnicity, religious affiliation, and neighborhood or local surroundings (Briley and Aaker, 2006), which will cross-validate the findings. Second, qualitative research is recommended to gain more insights into the ways in which audiences process product placements for meaning, and internalize the meaning of brands placed in media within a particular culture. References Allan, D. (2008), “A content analysis of music placement in prime-time television advertising”, Journal of Advertising Research, Vol. 48 No. 3, pp. 404-17. Brennan, S., Rosenberger, P.J. III and Hementera, V. (2004), “Product placements in movies: an Australian consumer perspective on their ethicality and acceptability”, Marketing Bulletin, Vol. 15, pp. 1-16. Briley, D.A. and Aaker, J.L. (2006), “Bridging the culture chasm: ensuring that consumers are healthy, wealthy, and wise”, Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, Vol. 25 No. 1, pp. 53-66. Campbell, A.J. (2006), “Restricting the marketing of junk food to children by product placement and character selling”, Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review, Vol. 39, pp. 447-506. Cha, J.H. (1994), “Aspects of individualism and collectivism in Korea”, in Kim, U., Triandis, H.C., Kagitcibasi, C., Choi, S.C. and Yoon, G. (Eds), Individualism and Collectivism: Theory, Method, and Applications, Cross-cultural Research and Methodology Series, Sage, London, pp. 157-74. Choi, S.M., Lee, W.N. and Kim, H. (2005), “Lessons from the rich and famous: a cross-cultural comparison of celebrity endorsement in advertising”, Journal of Advertising, Vol. 34 No. 2, pp. 85-98. Choi, Y.K., Hwang, J.S. and McMillan, S.J. (2008), “Gearing up for mobile advertising: a cross-cultural examination of key factors that drive mobile messages home to consumers”, Psychology & Marketing, Vol. 25 No. 8, pp. 756-68.
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(e.g. message, creative, appeal), brand placement, services advertising (e.g. financial services, travel, tourism), cross-cultural consumer behavior, and advertising regulations and public policy. He has published or has work forthcoming in Journal of Services Marketing, Journal of Applied Communication Research, and PRISM, among others. Taejun (David) Lee is the corresponding author and can be contacted at:
[email protected] Yongjun Sung (PhD and MA University of Georgia; BA Iowa State University) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Advertising at the University of Texas-Austin. His research focuses on brand personality, brand commitment, consumer-brand relationships, brand placement, and cross-cultural consumer psychology. He has published or has work forthcoming in Journal of Consumer Psychology, Journal of Advertising, Psychology & Marketing, Journal of Public Policy and Marketing, International Journal of Advertising, Journal of Marketing Communications, Journal of Brand Management, Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, and Journal of Health Communication, among others. Federico de Gregorio (PhD University of Georgia; MA Michigan State University; BA Hawaii Pacific University) is an Assistant Professor of Marketing in the College of Business Administration at the University of Akron. His research interests include product placement, academia-industry relationships, media efficiency issues, and cognitive processing of marketing communications. He has published or has work forthcoming in journals such as Journal of Advertising, International Journal of Advertising, Journal of Public Relations Research, Journal of Brand Management, and Journal of International Consumer Marketing.
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