Tag Archives: entertainment

by | Thursday, April 11, 2024 · 7:22 am

Walmart Buys VIZIO to Grow Advertising

No longer content to be just a retail powerhouse, Walmart wants to expand into the advertising business and compete with online rival Amazon. To that end, Walmart is buying smart TV manufacturer VIZIO for $2.3 billion.

Why buy VIZIO? Mainly because VIZIO’s SmartCast Operating System will allow Walmart to connect with consumers using innovative entertainment. (Or should we say it will allow Walmart to advertise more easily.) VIZIO has more than 18 million accounts on SmartCast, which offers free, streamed content that is supported by ads. VIZIO’s advertising business has more than 500 direct advertiser relationships, including a number of Fortune 500 firms.

Today, Walmart does sell ads at its 10,500 physical stores and websites. But once it acquires VIZIO, Walmart will be able to sell ads through streaming services on televisions, similar to how Roku and Amazon operate.

Walmart stores serve 160 million visitors each week; a whopping 90% of all Americans shop at Walmart. And while Walmart’s advertising business generated revenue of $3.4 billion, that amount is less than one percent of its total retail sales. Compare this to Amazon which generates ad sales of about 15% of its total sales and the reason for the acquisition becomes clearer.

By buying VIZIO, Walmart keeps its valuable shopping data and gains operating systems and hardware that are used to deliver ads. It expands Walmart Connect, which brings advertising partners into contact with its extensive customer base through sponsored products ads.

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Discuss the various approaches for promoting products.
  2. Show Vizio website: https://www.vizio.com/en/home
  3. Show Walmart Connect website: https://www.walmartconnect.com/
  4. Divide students into teams. Have each team analyze how Amazon and Walmart use sponsored ads to drive sales.
  5. In teams, have students develop a promotional plan that uses VIZIO to advertise.

Source: Meyersohn, N. (20 February 2024). Why Walmart is buying Vizio. CNN Business; Peiser, J. & Gregg, A. (20 February 2024). Walmart to buy TV maker Vizio for $2.3 billion to expand advertising. The Washington Post; other news sources

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by | Tuesday, February 20, 2024 · 7:46 am

Super Bowl LVIII Sets a Viewing Record!

Winter may be cold, but the Super Bowl game always pumps up the heat! The thrills, the chills, the excitement and surprises – and that’s just the advertisements! The Super Bowl has become one of the premier venues for marketers. And, according to Nielsen and CBS, this year’s event broke a viewing audience record at 123.4 million. (The Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce romance certainly helped to increase female and youth viewership.)

At a cost of a $7 million for 30 seconds of air time, the Super Bowl is also the most expensive advertising placement of any event or show. Add to the air time the costs of designing and producing ads, plus the integration into other marketing tactics, and a company can easily spend upwards of $8 million on a single day.

However, the ads aren’t limited to just the Super Bowl viewers; 39 brands released their ads in advance of the game as well. There were also a number of new brands making their Super Bowl debut, including Starry (owned by PepsiCo), Etsy, SNAP, Nerds, Lindt, and more.

Love them or hate them, Super Bowl advertisements have become a talking point before, during, and after the game. More than 50 brands took out ads designed to help them stand out to consumers, many with high-profile athletes and celebrities such as Ben Affleck, Jennifer Lopez, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny DeVito, Jennifer Aniston, and Michael Cera.

While the metrics for sales linked to Super Bowl ads won’t be available for months, many respondents watching the game stated they would be open to purchasing products by Doritos, M&Ms, and Budweiser. Ads also led to increased global YouTube views with Booking.com, T-Mobile, and Beyonce’ (of course) generating the most engagement and social mentions.

Commercials were all over the place with top ads as ranked by viewers going to State Farm, Dunkin’, Kia, Uber Eats, Dove, and NFL. And for animal lovers, the Budweiser Clydesdale horses made an appearance and were in fine form.

Which ad is your favorite this year?  

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Show one of the Web sites that have all the Super Bowl ads: https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/Ad-Meter/2024/02/12/best-super-bowl-2024-commercials-ad-meter-rankings/72538932007/
  2. Divide students into teams. Have each team select a Super Bowl ad to analyze and present in class.
  3. What is the target market, key message, and offer from the ad?
  4. How does the ad integrate with a company’s other promotions?
  5. Are the messages integrated with a company’s Web site and social media?
  6. As a class, after each commercial have students assign one to five stars for the advertisements.
  7. Which advertisement won the class vote?

Source:  Koblin, J. (12 February 2024). Super Bowl viewership rose to 123.4 million, a record high. New York Times; Nerkar, S. (6 February 2024). $7 million for 30 seconds? To advertisers, the Super Bowl is worth it. New York Times; Schultz, E. J. (12 February 2024). Super Bowl alert: Big game ad winners and losers. Ad Age Daily; other news sources.

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by | Wednesday, January 3, 2024 · 7:01 am

Rom-Com now means Romance-Commerce for Walmart

Product placement has maxed out with Walmart’s new shoppable show.  Released in December, the 23-episode video series combines romantic comedy with shopping – two of our favorite things in one place!

The series, named “Add to Heart,” is available on TikTok, Roku, and YouTube. While watching, viewers can buy more than 330 featured items directly from Walmart. Each video is about three-minutes and has at least 10 shoppable items.

The plot? Well, it’s a typical romantic-comedy where girl and guy meet and fall in love. The series follows Jessica, who after losing her luggage while traveling, visits Walmart and bumps into an old flame. There are some twists of course. If this sounds like a Hallmark movie to you, you are right on track.

Almost every item in the videos – including fashion, furniture, and décor – can be found and shopped at Walmart. The company calls it a “fun, unique way for customers to be entertained while shopping for the great deals on top brands that they expect from Walmart.”

According to Walmart, nearly half of U.S. consumers say they have made a purchase through social media. This video series hopes to capitalize on that trend, as well as watching the series as a family for entertainment.

Sshhh… the show is on…

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Show series videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOM80Etqef8&list=PLs6zAwIMDe3POfn2wEXb5mOLmLwaJ1M0u
  2. Wall Street Journal video analysis: https://www.wsj.com/video/series/news-explainers/rom-com-meets-shopping-why-walmart-launched-a-shoppable-series/24941BEA-E081-41FB-A4C9-376446B54FA2
  3. OPTIONAL: Instructors might show an episode and buy an item in class. Students could also participate.
  4. Then, evaluate the entire process from viewing to receipt of products.
  5. What other companies might try this?
  6. Divide students into teams. Have each team select a brand and develop a one-paragraph pitch on how a similar tactic might be used.

Source: Riley, C. (1 December 2023). Walmart launches shoppable ‘Romcommerce’ series. Supermarket News.; Wall Street Journal. (4 December 2023). Rom-com meets shopping? Why Walmart launched a shoppable series. (Video.) Wall Street Journal.

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