Anti-Product Placement For Negative Branding

An anonymous reader writes "Product placement to promote your brand just isn't enough any more. These days, apparently, some companies are resorting to anti-product placement in order to get competitors' products in the hands of 'anti-stars.' The key example being Snooki from Jersey Shore, who supposedly is being sent handbags by companies... but the bags being sent are of competitors' handbags as a way to avoid Snooki carrying their own handbag, and thus potentially damaging their brand."

Comments

Re:What?

[Red Flayer]

A "Snooki" is a delightful woman from a documentary about typical New Jersey residents

As a NJ native... the cretins on that show are *nothing* like typical NJ residents. They are typical only of a sub-type of seasonal NJ residents (just like the personalities on that show, most of the NJ guidos are from elsewhere).

New Jersey actually has about 6 or 7 culturally distinct regions... and the one region supposedly represented by the show is not like that at all... the BENNYs depicted on that show are despised by shorefolk in New Jersey as a whole.

Now, before I let my butt-hurt get out of hand...

I don't really mind if people think poorly of NJ; it keeps people from overcrowding the good parts of the state. But let's be honest... the cast of "Jersey Shore" is about as indicative of NJers as the cast of "Rehab: Party at the Hard Rock Hotel" is indicative of addicts in general.

Re:clever

[Dishevel]

You posted AC because you knew that this post would show you have way too much information on this show to have a brain.

Re:I call bullshit

[Lord_of_the_nerf]

First rule of PR: There is no such thing as bad publicity. No PR hack worth his MBA would deliberately generate publicity for a competitor's product.

It's a popular cliche, but I have no faith that's true.

One sniff of child molestation charges or overt racism has ended many a celebrity's career. Not always mind you, but often enough. It really depends on how far and how bad. Mel Gibson and Gary Glitter being popular examples.

This is nothing new

[jd2112]

Transformers: Autobots are mostly GM products, Decepticons that aren't military hardware tend to be Ford or Audi
24: Jack Bauer and his buddies drive around in Fords, the terrorists tend to prefer GM products or imports.

I'm sure I could come up with a dozen more examples if I wanted to.

This goes back a long way

[kevinatilusa]

Over a century ago Edison was making sure Alternating Current was used in the Electric Chair, in order to make it seem more dangerous and associate it in people's minds with electrocution.