The late Jack LaLanne of The Power Juicer (May He Rest in Peace)
First, we got Lean ’n Mean with The George Forman Grill. Then, we were dazzled by the Bedazzler. Oh, the 21st century infomercial has provided us with so many titillating, and downright hilarious, consumer goods.
So what, you ask, are the top-selling among them?
Weight loss remedies, exercise equipment, kitchen appliances, and skincare products.
Thanks to off-peak advertising space and late night shopaholics trolling the broadcast networks at 3am, we have… the infomercial. And yet, these days, the infomercial isn’t just saved for the 3am crowd. The infomercial has finally made it to the mainstream. In fact, by 2009, most US infomercial spending was during early morning, daytime, and evening hours and, if that’s not shocking enough, over $150 billion worth of consumer products in the U.S. are now being sold through infomercials.
Otherwise known as long-format or program length television commercials (that can often be a source of annoyance when you’d rather spy Tom Selleck’s long legs in Magnum P.I. re-runs), infomercials can last anywhere from 5-28 minutes. As Collette Liantonio says in StartUp Nation, “Short form works best for lower priced items that are easily grasped. Products that add intellectual properties that depend on testimonials for credibility are better served by long form.” So, although the term ‘Infomercial’ has become synonymous with short-form DRTV (Direct Response Television) advertisements of 60-120 seconds in length, the idea is much the same; a celebrity, or some eager beaver in Minnesota, is just dying to tell you how much better, easier, faster and prettier your life would be if you purchased your very own Facial Flex or Tiddy Bear.
However strange some inventions, or outrageous these late-night claims may be, today we’re witnessing a shift in perception thanks to the power of social media. Sure, some of us share links to YouTube videos on Facebook and Twitter about Forever Lazy, the wearable blanket with a poopie pouch, because it makes us laugh, but far more of us are charging our credit cards to purchase these items because we just can’t resist the comfort, and the humor, of owning a Snuggie or a pair of, you guessed it, Pajama Jeans.
Pajama Jeans
The evolution of the infomercial in the digital space is this: the ability to rapidly discuss and disseminate these advertisements via YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter.
Why – and how – has the infomercial spread so rapidly throughout the digital domain?
It’s not exactly rocket science. Almost every successful consumer social media campaign is paired with paid media to complement the strategy. The key is to craft the strategy carefully. Is it the holiday season when families are holed up watching television after gorging on turkey and stuffing? Insert a well placed advertisement for Pajama Jeans on the Food Network.
Certainly the product must appeal to the masses, but the strategic placement of the content is crucial. In addition, the ability for the infomercial to be easily shared on social media networks and channels clearly bodes well for the product and the platform. In addition, offices thrive on ridiculous ‘water cooler’ chatter, so, even if Snuggies or Pajama Jeans seem downright silly, they’re also a surefire way to get people talking.
Once they talk, they think. Once they think, they just might do.
Today, marketing executives and entrepreneurs may consider the viral potential of their infomercial in the online realm unlike ever before and, because infomercials now reach audiences beyond the 3am crowd and the television set, that means new opportunities for products and marketing.
Whether the product is campy or quotable, the ability to encourage a meme is evident. Once upon a time, infomercials lived in a vacuum of insomniacs and those that generated WOM attention were few and far between, but put Jack LaLanne, the He-man of Health, on TV to talk about The Power Juicer and you might build some buzz. After all, the charismatic man was seventy-one, full of energy, and jacked like a weightlifter on the Venice Boardwalk. Or, invent a handy product like the Magic Bullet and produce a corny sitcom infomercial that’s so awful you’ll be compelled to keep watching just to see much worse it can get. In the past, that might be where the spot began and ended. Now, Jack (and his brawny biceps) is immortalized on YouTube.
Today, almost every quirky infomercial gets play. Given this online environment, the age old adage, “Nothing kills a bad product like good advertising” doesn’t exactly apply anymore. So, whereas, The George Forman Grill was a quality product that earned WOM, Pajama Jeans and Snuggies don’t necessarily need to be good products, but they’ve succeeded in part because they’re quirky and notable. Let’s face it, we’re knee deep into an age when corsets have given way to Juicy Couture (with their own pink track suit featured at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London). The design, development, and dissemination of sportswear’s ultra-comfort have reached new heights or, as some might claim, lows.
What’s most fascinating about these crazes, however, is not the extreme level of comfort being sold to, and sought by, the consumer, but the speed by which an infomercial spreads to the online realm creating a veritable Laugh Factory of jokes (Is that an adult onesie?). As Inc. Magazine explains: “An infomercial should get people talking about your product—for better or worse. Shake Weight founder, Johann Verheem, found a surprise hit with his infomercial, which has been viewed millions of times on YouTube and lampooned for its sexual innuendo on Saturday Night Live.
“It’s not just that sex sells, but one of the other things very important in direct selling, in infomercials, is that a product looks different enough for someone to stop and watch it.” In addition, according to a recent New York Times article, 95% of Snuggie sales are derived from brick-and-mortar stores. “Many entrepreneurs consider an infomercial like an audition for shelf space in big-box retail chains, which is extremely competitive to get,” the NYT explains, “That’s why it’s important to position your infomercial to give it the greatest chance to be picked up by a national retailer.
Steven Marcus says that one crafty tactic employed by entrepreneurs is to launch the infomercial campaign in the hometown headquarters of a retail chain. “Let’s say they want to get it in Walgreens or Wal-Mart. They buy airtime in the home town of the corporate headquarters where the buyers can see it,” he says. “The [executives] see it on the air for a while, and they track down the guy with the product.”
So, while infomercials appear to be the catalysts for social media chatter, strategic placement is critical.
Everyone knows that Americans want comfort, convenience, and conversation. When I got my own pair of Pajama Jeans, I was beside myself with joy. Now, I can stroll into the office and model them for my curious co-workers. It was an easy gag. Or was it? Yes, they’re comfortable and, yes, I actually like them. I’m even wearing them now. Would I prefer a more well-placed pocket? Sure. And this is why I blog. I know that once I write this, I will post it around the internet and send it to Pajama Jeans because, just as their infomercial influenced me, my blog posting will influence them.
It’s a digital win/win.
Now hand me my Snuggie. I’m feeling Forever Lazy today.
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