Download Overt and Covert Advertising Techniques

Cultural Assumptions in Marketing - Advertising
Overt and Covert Advertising Techniques
Overt advertising is the typical blatant advertising found in magazines and
newspapers, on television, on billboards, on leaflets, and in film trailers. Covert
advertising techniques are the opposite of overt advertising techniques. Covert
advertising is sneakier and it is cheaper.
Typical covert advertising techniques are:
1. Product placement within films and on television programmes.
If a film or television programme contains many visual references to a certain
product then you can be pretty certain that product is buying covert advertising on
the show or in the film. Nokia phones were used extensively in “The Matrix” and
Federal Express Couriers were used too much in “Castaway”.
The advantages of product placement are;
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You have a captive audience (they have chosen to watch the film or regularly
tune in to the television show).
It is cheaper than overt advertising or sponsorship
If the programme or film is a success your advertising gets a wider audience
The product becomes linked to the film or programme and the
ideology/lifestyle inherent in that text. This attracts people to buy into the
image through the product.
2. Sponsorship of television programmes.
In Britain this was only recently introduced in 1995. Now we see ‘Emmerdale Farm’
sponsored by Daz, ‘Coronation Street’ sponsored by Cadbury and ‘Countdown’
sponsored by Lyons Cakes to name a few. American programmes have been
sponsored for many years and now we also see ‘Friends’ sponsored by Nescafe and
‘Frasier’ sponsored by Eriksson (the sponsorship is different in the USA).
Sponsorship is a covert technique because it is not actually advertising overtly, the
sponsorship advert is usually entertaining, it is never a hard sell and it is never very
informative. Sponsorship hopes to link the product more directly to the film or
programme and it is more expensive than product placement but also more
effective.
The advantages of sponsorship are similar to product placement.
3. Plugging products. Plugs occur in many places.
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In supermarkets reps plug products by getting you to try them before you
buy them.
In cinemas, restaurants and pubs you may get special promotional offers to
encourage you to buy a product. (Free products with your beer, film, pizza
Cultural Assumptions in Marketing - Advertising
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etc. McDonalds regularly plug Disney films by giving free toys with their
‘Happy Meal’)
One of the more controversial plugging attempts was the regular plugging of
Marlboro cigarettes, which were given away in student pubs.
Promotional Plugging: On television chat shows people plug their new film,
book, record or product. This is basically free advertising. This is different to
a covert plug technique by a corporate company.
The advantages of plugging are:
 Consumers feel happy because they have a cheap or free product. People
rarely realise that plugging affects the retail price in the shops.
 It’s a quick way to get people using or thinking about your product.
 Plugging is ‘hands on’ advertising; people can’t just ignore it like they can in
magazines or on television.
4. Freebies
Free products like toys and CD’s are regularly given away in the hope that you will
love it and buy into the real thing. MacDonald’s regularly give away free toys (often
linked to current film releases). In breakfast cereal you may find free hologram
stickers for the latest movie or toy. In Sunday papers you may find a CD pops out
unexpectedly. These are not overtly advertising, they are sneaking into your food, or
your shopping basket masquerading as honest freebies!
TASK
Go to the supermarket
 Find as many examples of covert advertising as possible.
 List ten brand names and find out what other products are under the brand
umbrella.
TASK
Think back to the brand named products you researched.
Get into groups and create an adverting campaign for one of these products and
target it to a new audience. E.g. Nike trainers for retired women.
Use covert ideas in your campaign.
You only need bullet pointed ideas and a basic sketch of adverts that you would
create.