Every time we go to the movies name brands subtly try to influence our purchasing habits. They do this with a method called product placement. This method appears in plays, movies, television shows, video games and even books. When a brand’s logo is included in a scene or sentence we are victims of product placement. The goal of these major companies is to raise brand awareness in a way that seems authentic to the environments and characters shown. It is obvious that movies are a prime place for advertising companies to show their brands. Movies are a “highly cost effective way to gain huge exposure and visibility at a fraction of the traditional advertising costs” (Pick, 2007). Because we live in an age where advertisements and marketing are so common sometimes we do not realize when we are being exploited as an audience. If we actually pay attention, it is apparent that many movies have sold-out to big companies and sacrificed much of their creative integrity and the integrity of their audiences. People go to the movies because they want to relax and watch a film. They do not go to find out about a new car or discover the most refreshing soda. Unfortunately, companies do not realize how annoying and distracting their product placement can be. Ford Motor Company is a prime example of large corporations using the movies to sell their products in a pushy and apparent way. Ford has blatantly advertised in the movies I am Legend and The X-Flies Movie: I Want to Believe.
Ford Motor Company was once the world’s number two automaker after General Motors. This is somewhat hard to believe considering Ford does not have the best track record for reliable cars. However, these negative feelings about Ford have only recently developed. In 2000, Ford owned Volvo, Aston Martin and Jaguar and bought Land Rover. Thus, forming the Premier Automotive Group. It looked like they were on the road to success. It was only after the Firestone tires on the Ford Explorer, the country’s most popular sports utility vehicle, started exploding that people gave up on American made cars. Today, foreign cars are much more popular and are responsible for the lower sales and declining margins within the Ford Company. In fact, in 2006, Toyota passed Ford in United States sales. Then, later that year Ford reported losing a staggering 12.6 billion dollars (“Ford Motor Company”). These substantial losses are forcing Ford to consider selling Jaguar, Land Rover and perhaps even Volvo. In order to avoid the worst, Ford has started using movies to sell their product and in July of 2007 the company announced it had earned a profit of 750 million dollars, which was their first quarterly profit in more then two years (“Ford Motor Company”). Perhaps all their advertising is paying off but what exactly are they doing to get new customers?
Ford tries to reel in new customers in the movie I am Legend starring Will Smith by strategically placing their car models throughout the film. In the movie Robert Neville is a scientist unable to stop the spread of an incurable man-made virus. This virus is so dangerous because it turns its victims into flesh hunting zombies. Immune and all alone as the last human survivor in New York City, Neville desperately tries to find the cure for this horrible virus. However, when he’s not down in the lab trying to create a vaccine, he’s out scouting the empty streets in a candy apple red Ford Shelby Mustang GT500 with white racing stripes across the hood. In the decaying city covered with dirt, wild plant life, and old broken down cars this bright red vehicle sticks out like a sore thumb. By putting a car like that in I am Legend, Ford is trying to communicate the message that their cars can withstand the test of time. It shows that the entire world is a mess but Ford cars are still reliable and in good condition. Ford realizes that we have a need to feel safe therefore; they portray the car as something that will satisfy this need (Fowels, p. 85). Also, Because Will Smith is driving this car as a “superhero” trying to save the human race; it taps into people’s need for prominence (Fowels, p. 83). The ad is trying to depict that if you buy this car you will be admired and respected. Neville also drives a Ford Explorer throughout the film mostly during scenes when he is trying to catch a zombie for experimentation. During these scenes the Ford Explorer keeps him safe and even the incredibility strong supernatural zombies cannot break into the vehicle. This is once again reinforcing the reliability of Ford products.
This product placement has the potential to be highly effective but it all depends on who is watching the movie. I believe in I am Legend Ford is appealing to both their current customers and a different set of customers. First of all, it is obvious that this is not a chick flick therefore the old “Ford Tough” motto still applies in this film and is reaching out to all the rugged men in the audience. These men will also probably like that Neville is trying to save America from this terrible virus and they will identify with his all-American image. But most of all the male audience members will enjoy the first scene with the bright red Ford Mustang. It taps into their need for speed and makes them want to buy a new Ford car. However, Ford is reaching a wider audience that includes more then just rugged all-American males. Appearing in a science fiction movie, they are reaching a totally new fan base as well. The film’s main message about the human race and preserving the earth allows Ford to reach an environmentalist crowd. In the past, Ford has not really been known for environmentally friendly products but now they have a chance to show off their new hybrid cars to the perfect audience. When I see the Ford Mustang in I am Legend I think it is a shameless example of product placement. This makes for a less effective ad because the situation is so unrealistic. Why would Robert Neville drive such an ostentation car is such decrepit times? If Ford toned down their product placement by only using the Ford Explorer in I am Legend, the ads would be even more effective. However, the main point is that Ford used this movie as a way to target customers.
In addition to I am Legend Ford decided to market their cars in another science fiction thriller movie entitled The X-Files Movie: I Want to Believe. This movie’s plot begins when women are abducted in the hills of Virginia during a harsh winter. The only clues connected to their disappearance are grotesque human remains that are discovered in snow banks along the highway. An old priest’s questionable psychic visions send the police to a secret medical lab that may or may not be connected to the women’s disappearances. Ex-FBI agents of the X-Files, Fox Mulder and Dr. Dana Scully, must reunite to solve the mystery. In order to commute from crime scene to crime scene, Dr. Dana Scully drives a new hybrid Ford Taurus. She is a doctor in a community hospital so a Taurus was a sensible choice for her to drive. The other government officials throughout the movie drive Ford Expeditions. This was another sensible choice because in reality, the government and FBI do run Expeditions in their fleets. Ford is relating their vehicles to the strength and professionalism that the government represents. Many people feel the need for prominence (Fowles, p. 83). Therefore, because the government is driving these cars, the audience will believe that Expeditions will give them the high social status they deserve. Also, throughout the movie many of the crime scenes that Dr. Scully has to drive through are surrounded by snow and ice. This shows the sustainability of Ford vehicles in the snow and other harsh weather conditions. Representing that Fords can once again satisfy your need to feel safe (Fowles, p. 85).
I found the product placement within The X-Files Movie: I Want to Believe to be quite realistic thus creating a more effective advertisement. However, it was still apparent and somewhat distracting that Ford vehicles were in to movie solely to persuade and influence the audience. By appearing in this movie, Ford is advertising to a new and old audience. First, Ford cars in The X-Files Movie appeal to smart and sensible women who want to be like Dr. Dana Scully. She is not necessarily rich but people want to be like her because she is an intelligent, successful, independent career woman. This strays away from Ford’s original “Built Ford Tough” audience and appeals to middle-aged women, like the working mothers and businesswomen. But Ford has not totally abandoned their core audience. By making the government officials drive Expeditions, Ford once again identifies with the rugged men in the audience. However, the most apparent new audience they are trying to reach is the environmentalists. Recently, around the country everyone has become obsessed with the idea of “going green.” In turn, it has become an effective marketing slogan to say that your product is “green.” Naturally, Ford has jumped on the bandwagon and now markets their cars as hybrids in the X-Files Movie. Just like in I am Legend, Ford is trying to appeal to an environmentalist audience by putting their products in a Science Fiction film.
Overall, it is apparent that Ford has mercilessly used films to endorse their new products. This company is one of the worst offenders of exploiting the audience during feature films. Throughout movies like I am Legend and The X-Files Movie the directors constantly include beautiful shots of Ford vehicles to influence the audience. The worst part is, as an audience we cannot control what production studios are putting in their films. Therefore, we could walk into a theatre thinking we are going to have a relaxing experience and walk out with the urge to buy a new Ford Mustang. This is ultimately the goal of product placement. If placed naturally within the film and directed at the right audience, there is no stopping big corporations like Ford Motors from taking over the movie industry.
Works Cited
Ford Motor Company [Online Exclusive]. The New York Times Business. Retrieved from
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/ford_motor_company/index.html
Fowles, Jim. Advertisings Fifteen Basic Appeals. In M. Petracca & M. Sorapure (Eds.),
Common Culture: Reading and Writing About American Pop Culture (pp. 73-91). Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Pick, Michael (2007, January 9). Product Placement And Hypercommercialism Pervade
Hollywood Film Industry: But No-One Seems To Notice [Online Exclusive]. Master New
Media. Retrieved from http://www.masternewmedia.org/news/2007/01/09/product _
placement_and_hypercommercialism_pervade.htm
Press Release (2008, August 27). Ford Vehicles Star in Feature Films. Ford Motor Company.
Retrieved from http://media.ford.com/NEWSROOM/release_display.cfm?release=28951
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