After sitting down with my Big Mac this weekend, I thought about what made McDonald’s the successful and ever-so distinctive fast food chain it is today, and I made a connection to “points of difference” we covered in class.McDonald’s has always been ahead of its competition, and that’s why it’s on top nowadays. So I drew up a list of its POD’s:

• McDonald’s is part of a select few chains that offer a dinner and breakfast menu. McDonald’s offers 24 hour drive thru’s at many locations
• McDonald’s targets children with the famous “Happy Meal”
• McDonald’s offers the relatively cheapest fast food
• McDonald’s  offers special recipes for burgers and sauces.
• McDonald’s has some of the highest health standards out of all chains.
• McDonald’s offers free wifi at every location.
• McDonald’s offers plan pens and video games for kids at select locations
• McDonald’s spends a ton of money on creative advertising.
• McDonald’s advertises towards children as well as adults
• McDonald’s offers an extensive menu of burgers
• McDonald’s offers scholarships to its employees
• McDonald’s restaurants sometimes have multiple floors

After coming up with my list of POD’s, it was easy to see why McDonalds became the largest hamburger chain in the world

After reading Three Questions You Need to Ask About Your Brand”, by Keller, K.L., Sternthal, B., and Tybout, A, I thought I knew it all about product positioning. In my pre-class research, I came across an additional subject; product permission. In it’s essence, product permission is a question of whether a certain brand can be successful in a certain industry. It pertains to both well established brands moving into new territories, and fresh companies trying to break into the markets. Some examples of large companies the article talked about were bleach producers. Nobody wanted to buy bleach other than Clorox, because they were known best for bleach. Wendy’s Restaurants used to have  taco bars, but they were deemed unprofitable. The public did not perceive Wendy’s at a restaurant that should serve tacos. Brand permission also determines how much a specific product can be changed without public protest. One example I found, was years back, Tropicana tried to change it’s packaging, but the public’s desire for the traditional packaging caused  a drastic drop in sales.  I agree with author Chris  Grams. If you’re introducing a new product, do your research first, and take things slow.

Here is a video on Tropicana  fiasco.

Zero-Live’s “Adformer”

Ever since the Reese’s Pieces in Steven Spielberg’s ET, product placement in media has seemed to climb almost exponentially every year. According to Brandcameo, in last year’s Transformers: Dark of the Moon, there were a total of a whopping 42 brands, in the mere 154 minute long motion picture. Some of the brands included Louis Vuitton, Starbucks, and FedEx. This made me ask the question; Am I watching a movie, or just a 2 and half hour-long commercial?

It’s scary how desensitized and unaware the average person these days is to these placements. I had no idea there were this many in this movie, until coming across this website. It goes to show you how well marketers are at getting their message out to consumers, despite the thousands of messages and stimuli we experience each day. Through the process of product  positioning, companies can get their products embedded in the minds of target market, through the simple knowledge of knowing the target audience for the movie.

Sex and The City- 101 PP’s

                                                                     Blades of Glory- 54 PP’s

Think about what you’re watching next time you see a movie! Those marketers are sneaky.