Beats Headphones featuring Pitch Perfect 2

Beats Headphones featuring Pitch Perfect 2

             

              Per Investopedia “A product placement is a form of advertising (usually not involving ads) in which branded products and services are noticeable within a drama production with large audiences.”. These products are offered in a way that will cause the audience to generate a positive attitude towards the product or products. This is achieved by having the brand continually “implanted, discussed or mentioned” (Investopedia) throughout the film/production. From this, the audience experiences a firmer linking with the brand and offers validation for their buying decision. For these reasons, it seems fitting for Beats, a high-profile music accessory brand, to invest in the placement of their product into a motion picture centered around music. Through the implementation of Beats headphones in Pitch Perfect 2, the Beats brand was able to successfully advertise to an appropriate audience.

              There were many instances where the product appeared, but one of the greatest scenes ones was when Anna Kendrick was editing music. The camera depicted a stunning Anna Kendrick completely focused on her computer screen which was displaying some sort of editing software when suddenly we see her clearly wearing a pair of beats headphones, logo and all. Beats was aiming to create a personal linkage with the viewer during this moment through ethos. “When people are trying to convince you of something, it’s important (and natural) to ask: Whose interests are they Serving? How will they profit from their proposal?” (Reading and Understanding Arguments: Arguments based on character: Ethos). Beats was trying to communicate that their brand of headphones is reliable and sophisticated enough to handle the careful editing of music.

              It was clear to me that the film was centered around the group of girls and boys from the previous film (Pitch Perfect 1) that we have come to love while in stark contrast, positioned against the opposing teams whom we came to dislike. The film worked the logos of the Beats brand by making sure that the ones wearing the brand were all characters we were rooting for as a general audience. Not only does this appeal to logos, but also our pathos as viewers. We are happy when we see the characters we love succeed and pursue things they are passionate about, so subconsciously, we should feel the same when we wear Beats. The advertising song for the film was called Crazy Youngsters ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpRpzbY9QU8 ) and almost every other person in the music video was wearing a pair of Beats headphones. The scene opens with Ester Dean on a bus wearing silver headphones and then pans to a character in red beats headphones dancing in a room.

              It seems that the argument for the audio company revolves mainly around the talent, passion for music and hip-ness of the characters in the film. The brand worked well with the directors to integrate their product into the likeness of the film, and although some viewers may complain about a number of presence Beats has in the film, the brand was ultimately recognizable and therefore was majorly successful.