"The Persuaders" Response Questions

What in "The Persuaders" surprised you (or not)? Name one new thing you learned about marketing or politics from watching the film. Name one new thing you learned about yourself from watching the film, or one thing that the film reiterated about yourself.

The transformation of marketing techniques that has taken place over the past few decades does not surprise me. As the documentary pointed out, simply advertising "the best ____" no longer suffices in this day in age. Today, information is too accessible for consumers to believe such general claims without looking into products themselves. Additionally, so many products are available and all of high quality standards, so more emphasis is put into the presentation of the product rather than the product itself.

As the documentary explained, one of these general techniques is creating a personal connection, identity and devotion to a specific brand. I learned that examples of these are actually referred to as "lovemarks." Then, after some examples were given, I kept thinking of lovemarks in my life. I choose Asics running sneakers over any other brand. I haven't tried many other brands, but Asics is all about catering to a runner--not just any athlete: a personal connection is made, and I worship the brand as the best [even though I haven't even tried many others]. Folgers coffee has created a personal connection. Through their marketing methods, consuming Folgers coffee has transcended from just drinking a cup of coffee to taking a sip of glory and wonder that will make me feel at home, make me feel comforted, and make every morning feel delightfully sunny (just like the logo portrays). I devote myself to these kinds of brands because they are not just products--they are parts of myself and my life.

Where are things headed in the future? What are some possible scenarios that could play out as far as the direction that future persuaders may take their marketing techniques.

In the future, I think that the persuasion method of product placement across media will become more and more popular. Companies seem to be finding it convenient and successful to integrade their brands and products into forms of media as either essential or subtle parts. However, I think the direction will also tend to integrate them as essential parts.

Some examples popped into my mind immediately when the documentary was discussing this marketing method. I thought of Kevin Smith movies, particularly Mallrats, for weaving in a pretty condensed amount of references and alliteration to nerdy pop culture products and brands, such as Star Wars and Batman. References to Marvel Comics are condensed into Mallrats, and the master mind behind Marvel even makes an appearance and explains a critical plot metaphor through discussions of Marvel Comics. Mallrats in general is even structurally set up and played out the way a comic book would be. Another example of using a product or brand as an essential part of a medium is the video games Rock Band and Guitar Hero. You would not believe how many songs have accumulated into my iTunes library after playing them in Rock Band. Musical artists have the opportunity to use their music as the essential part of the game, which ultimately markets their music to the video game consumers. I think this concept is going to continue to be used more and more blatantly, such as through the way that some video games are completely designed for a movie. Some say there will be movies made for the games World of Warcraft and Bioshock, similar to the way a Pokemon series and movie was created after the card game. So in the future, product placement across media will not only market products in media, but also media in other media.