Three ways to eat "Fang Hua" - different brands' entry strategies

The work "Fanghua" is like a colorful painting. Various brands have flocked in and displayed their unique marketing in completely different ways.

More than ten days have passed since the finale of "Fang Hua". Who is still silently shedding tears for "Goodbye Jianghu"? It is Morketing himself.

This TV series, which was described by CCTV as a unique work, set a new record at the beginning of the year. The number of users who made pre-broadcast reservations on Tencent Video exceeded 3.5 million. After it was launched on CCTV-8, the ratings quickly exceeded 2, and it ranked No.1 in the ratings during the same period. Its commercialization far exceeded last year's advertising king "The Three-Body Problem", and it truly achieved a win-win situation in commercial realization and word of mouth. It's really clever.

According to statistics from Douban netizen "Come and See the Moon", "Fang Hua" has a total of 286 advertisement placements, and found that there are an average of 9-10 advertisements per episode, with the most being 11 advertisements. The total number of brands reached more than 40, ranging from food and beverages, clothing and beauty to Internet platforms. Such large-scale commercialization did not arouse netizens' disgust, but instead sparked nostalgia and imitation.

Although the most heated discussion period has passed, the characteristic of a good drama is that it has a very long long tail effect. Some phenomena can only be seen clearly after some time has passed. It can be said that "Fanhua" is a textbook on brand implantation.

The first step of product placement marketing is to bet on a hit drama. Directed by Wong Kar-wai, adapted from a Mao Dun Literature Prize-winning work, starring Hu Ge, Tang Yan, Ma Yili, etc., "Fang Hua" has undoubtedly attracted much attention since its birth and has the absolute genes of a hit drama.

The advantage of working with a great director is not just that the film will be more well-known. The director's own requirements for the quality of the film determine that the brand's appearance will never be a sham. Netizens commented, "Fanhua is also known as "Hu Ge and Armani Runway Show in Shanghai Directed by Wong Kar-wai" and "Wong Kar-wai has shot the most handsome Hu Ge so far. Every shot looks like an Armani commercial."

Although the King of Sunglasses is famous for his free-spirited style and it took him thirteen years to polish "The Grandmaster", it is very rare for Wong Kar-wai to shoot TV series, which is an absolutely scarce resource. Interested brands have entered the market before filming begins, such as the first-tier brands.

01. The first echelon: drama and advertising are integrated

Representative brands include Remy Martin, Estee Lauder, Bausch and Lomb, PepsiCo, Ferrero Rocher, Bright...

Morketing believes that the most successful brands have one thing in common: they are deeply involved in the drama and play a finishing touch at certain moments, such as promoting the plot development or showing the character of the protagonist. In this way, after the drama ends, whenever the drama is recalled, the brand can also be recalled, leaving a deep memory for the audience.

For example, Remy Martin always appears at any drinking party.

The story of "Flowers" begins on the Yellow River Road. The business on this Yellow River Road is not just about a few dishes. A lobster is an opportunity. The competition for fame and fortune in the business world and the entanglements and tugs of love are all melted into the wine. Wine is both human affection and business.

Mr. Fan and Mr. Wei, the little prince of fur, were discussing business at Zhizhen Garden. Li Li brought Remy Martin to toast and said, "Eat good food, drink good wine, make good friends, and discuss good business." On the other side, Mr. Bao and Mr. Xu of Hulian Department Store also had Remy Martin on their wine tables. Mr. Fan used the opportunity to talk about business and said, "Good things will come naturally when Remy Martin is opened." When Mingzhu Company opened, the waiter said, "The boss lady sent a bottle of Remy Martin to each table, wishing Miss Wang and Mr. Wei success." In addition to the gold ornaments on the top, the bottom of the Jinmeilin lottery is Remy Martin, and he kept saying that he wanted to change his luck.

On the one hand, the director implanted the high-end image of Remy Martin as a business wine in the minds of consumers through the classic visual symbol of the wine bottle; on the other hand, the good meaning of Remy Martin was expressed through the lines, instilling in consumers the idea that if they wanted to add some luck to their business, they should choose Remy Martin.

Estee Lauder is also implanted in the form of visual symbols + spoken lines, conveying the concept that Estee Lauder is a high-end product everywhere.

The visual symbol of Estee Lauder appears in Ling Hong's boutique shop. When Lingzi was selecting accessories, Estee Lauder was deliberately given the center position. There was also a close-up shot of Mr. Bao passing by the Estee Lauder window. The visual effect was integrated very well.

The most memorable dialogue scene for the audience is when Ling Hong says to Lingzi, “New product, platinum face cream, take a bottle to try.” Lingzi: “Does it work?” Ling Hong: “It’s very useful.” Another one is when Minmin, the foreman of Zhizhen Garden, shows off her lipstick to everyone, “This is from Estee Lauder.” The dialogue is very natural and fits the character very well.

It is said that Wong Kar-wai even researched the true history of Estee Lauder in order to restore the cosmetics for Shanghai women at that time. In 1993, Estee Lauder's first counter in China opened in Shanghai, which completely matches the timeline in the plot.

Outside the drama, Estee Lauder officially announced Ma Yili as its skincare ambassador, continuing the popularity of "Flowers in the Sky".

The three heroines have different temperaments. Li Li and Lingzi correspond to Remy Martin and Estee Lauder respectively, while Miss Wang's commercialization is more everyday.

Careful viewers should have discovered that whether Miss Wang wears contact lenses is a hint of her relationship with Mr. Bao and a change in her mentality. On the terrace of the Peace Hotel, Miss Wang received Mr. Bao's first gift, Bausch and Lomb contact lenses, which marked the beginning of their revolutionary friendship; after leaving No. 27 without waiting for Mr. Bao, spare ribs were spare ribs and rice cakes were rice cakes, and Miss Wang put on framed glasses again, which meant that Little Wang in Hongkou was going to start working hard on her own.

What’s clever is that in the whole scene on the rooftop, when Miss Wang put on her contact lenses and said, “It’s so clear,” Mr. Bao said, “Only by seeing the future can there be a future.” This was the slogan of Bausch and Lomb at the time. On the one hand, it advertised the brand, and on the other hand, it also hinted at the direction of the characters. At that time, they all had beautiful visions of the future. This kind of placement also made the slogan from more than 20 years ago a golden sentence again.

Another company that has integrated its advertisements into classic lines is Pepsi. One metaphor tells the story of the Yellow River Road: Brother Jingxiu from the grocery store said to Miss Wang, "The Yellow River Road is like a soda bottle. It won't make any sound unless you open it. But as long as you pick it up and pry it gently, it will immediately spray out. The bottle is open and cannot be closed."

In addition, the visual hammers of Pepsi, Guangming and Ferrero are also cleverly designed. In addition to displaying glass bottles with logos, Pepsi also put its advertisements on trams, which is very realistic of the scene at that time; Guangming did not directly display its products but used milk trucks and milk boxes with Guangming logos to evoke memories; Ferrero's golden packaging echoed the luxury of the Peace Hotel and was very memorable.

Overall, the reason why this drama can be so well embedded with advertisements is that the director is indeed very skilled, and it is also inseparable from the subject matter. The drama "Flowers" itself is a commercial drama of the period, telling the story of how Mr. Bao rises and falls in the business world, so the integration of brands such as Remy Martin and Estee Lauder does not feel out of place at all.

In addition, the plot is set in the late 1980s and early 1990s, a period when the wave of consumerism was rising in China. With the deepening of reform and opening up and the development of the market economy, many brands poured into China, and advertising became richer in people's daily lives, which gave old brands a good opportunity.

For some brands with rich history and stories, the commercial dramas of the period are like solemates. It is a rare opportunity to showcase the brand history in such an immersive way and endorse the brand with a sense of sedimentation. From the perspective of the plot, the whole drama has a deep span, with high-end luxury and down-to-earth everyday scenes, which can give brands in different tracks room to play.

02. The second tier: work hard on gameplay

In addition to the above-mentioned brands that directly insert advertisements into the plot, there are some brands that are not suitable for being placed in the plot, but they are equally successful and very impressive.

The first to bear the brunt is Meituan’s new concept theater, which consists of four creative short films that made people exclaim that after watching for a long time, they turned out to be advertisements.

The small theater has a Wong Kar-wai vibe from the beginning, with classic 12-frame bursts, blue and yellow retro tones, hazy jazz music, and even the scene layout is exactly the same as in the play. In addition, the protagonist is Jing Xiu, the "intelligence station chief" on the Yellow River Road, which makes it even more difficult to tell whether it is in the play or an advertisement.

Many people thought it was just a scene change when Jingxiu and a man were talking about the plot in the first half, until the Meituan guy appeared and realized it was a Meituan advertisement.

Chunzhen's creativity is also reflected in the gameplay. In the play, the protagonists set off fireworks, and outside the play, the audience used bullet comments to turn them into fireworks. The fireworks interacted with the bullet comments, which maximized the audience's sense of participation. In addition, the New Year's Eve time in and outside the play overlapped, and the fireworks bullet comments brought emotional value to the audience, mobilizing the audience's spontaneity, reaching more than 10,000 user bullet comments within 20 seconds.

In addition to the fireworks barrage, Chunzhen's opening advertisement is also very memorable. Xin Zhilei, as the character Li Li in the play, speaks the slogan: "This is the signature of our Zhizhen Garden", using the characters in the play to empower the brand.

Another similar advertisement is Vipshop's mid-roll advertisement, in which Ma Yili said, "Only cashmere is good enough when given to friends." However, this advertisement also sparked some controversy. Some netizens believed that since the advertisement was too different from the exquisite image in the drama, it would instead tarnish the brand. But it must be said that after watching thirty episodes, this slogan is indeed memorable.

In this way, brands that are consistent with the plot tone or have a high degree of correlation should be integrated into the plot as much as possible. Brands that are not highly correlated can also choose innovative gameplay such as small theaters and barrage designs to participate in the audience's viewing experience as much as possible.

03. The third echelon: Seizing the long tail effect

The brands in the first two tiers either have sufficient financial resources or sufficient potential. For some young brands, there are indeed some limitations. Does that mean these brands cannot reap the benefits of hit dramas? Of course not.

The commercial value of a good drama goes far beyond the episodes. When the IP is formed, more brands can participate in the popularity by co-branding or launching the same products, just like "Empresses in the Palace" is still co-branded.

Heytea, a veteran player in the joint venture, acted quickly. One week after the closing of Fanhua, it released: "The latest news on Huanghe Road: Heytea Zhizhen Teahouse is about to open", and launched a joint product, which was officially launched on January 22. Netizens speculated that Zhizhen Garden is Cantonese cuisine and the joint product might be Hong Kong-style milk tea, and the new product should be related to flowers. I believe this wave of joint ventures will set off another wave of craze.

Fanhua and Yuanmengzhixing have a dreamlike linkage. Yuanmengzhixing has Tencent Video built in, so you can invite your friends to watch Fanhua in the game, which makes watching the drama more interesting. Judging from the comments on Weibo, many netizens are willing to download the game just for this drama.

Taking advantage of the popularity, Amap also launched Mr. Fan’s voice pack.

In addition, Morketing also observed that many restaurant chains have put "the same style as Mr. Bao" on the shelves. Taotaoju and Tang Palace Cantonese restaurants have launched dry fried beef noodles set meals, and Jiangchuan You Congee Shop has launched pork ribs and rice cakes.

In general, whether it is "Kuangchao" at the beginning of the year or "Fanghua" at the end of the year, good content is still a scarce resource for brands, because what modern society lacks is national consensus and content that can coordinate the minds of the entire nation.

Behind such a lively brand carnival, Morketing saw the strong strength of old brands. Those old brands that usually do not do embedded marketing are still extraordinary when they make a move. To borrow a sentence from Fanhua: "Doing business is not about who makes more money, but who lives longer. Don't think about reaching the sky overnight, but take one step at a time and make steady progress."

There are also young brands that have come from behind. Whether they are quickly adding to the market after the explosion of popularity, or racing against time to seize the hot spots, they all show the vitality of the brands. Just like the line says: "Today's sun cannot dry tomorrow's clothes. Time determines everything."

The movie "Fang Hua" is like a textbook for product placement, with high standards in both filming and marketing. More and more brands are realizing that quality is still the ultimate skill.

Author: Tiana, WeChat public account: Morketing (ID: Morketing)