While browsing through brandchannel.com, I immediately got excited when I saw the words “Dunder Mifflin” pop up in one of the articles. Being an avid fan of the famous TV show “The Office”, I was curious to see what the article was about. “The Office” is an American comedy television series that depicts the everyday lives of office employees in the Scranton, Pennsylvania, branch of the fictional “Dunder Mifflin” Paper Company and “Staples” web site – Quill.com has reached a licensing deal with NBC Universal to create a “Dunder Mifflin” brand of papers based off the popular TV series! How cool is that?
I learned that this kind of marketing strategy carried out by “Staples” is called “reverse product placement”, in which products or brands created in movies, television shows or other elements of pop culture are created in real life by companies.
“The Office” is already on its 8th season, has almost 10 million fans on Facebook alone, and has created a clear emotional connection and attachment with its loyal fans over the years. When people think of the brand “Dunder Mifflin”, they would immediately relate it back to “The Office”. For fans to see their favorite fictional paper brand brought to life and actually being able to purchase it would mean the world to them as it would make them feel as if they were part of the show. Thus, I think that it is a smart move for Staples to produce this brand of paper in order for them to create significant product differentiation and stand out among its competitors. Each case of the paper will be sold for $34.99 which is well below Staples’s higher-priced cases of $70-$80, which is why I think price would not be an issue for its customers. The “Dunder Mifflin” brand will definitely increase Staples’s visibility in the industry which will then translate into positive brand equity for the company.
Can’t wait to get my hands on some “Dunder Mifflin” paper! 🙂
Great post, I never knew of “reverse product placement” or anything like it, really interesting!