Iron Man 3 China-only product placement branded as 'abrupt' and 'amusing'

Hollywood blockbuster Iron Man 3 is topping box-office charts, but has also become the talk of the town in China for other reasons.

The China-only cut of the movie opens to a question appearing on screen: “What does Iron Man rely on to revitalize his energy?” Three large Chinese characters appear: “Gu Li Duo."

Gu Li Duo is a Yili-brand milk drink in mainland China. "The Yili appearance is really abrupt," said one Chinese consumer.

The Yili placement, though awkward, out-of-place and deliberate to some, is considered more subtle than the screen time main character Tony Stark shares with the Sun Oracle logo—which Sina Weibo users found to be overboard.

For the embedded products, the visibility and the characteristics of the brand itself need to be considered, he said. For Iron Man 3, the slots for Audi, the most prominent brand associated with the movie, were suitable because they had "a natural effect of publicity that is much better than rigid advertising", he told Campaign Asia-Pacific.

TCL TVs and Zoomlion crane equipment are two other Chinese brands that got screen time during the movie.

Wang Qian, chairman of Zoomlion's agency Herun Media, said more and more companies select product placement in their marketing strategy due to the rapid growth of the film market. Zoomlion's slots in Iron Man 3 serves two roles: not only for domestic and foreign counterparts to sit up and take notice but also to 'culturise' the brand so cold, mechanical equipment can become "more humane", thus closing the psychological distance with consumers, she said.

"In view of the final results arising from the product placement in Iron Man 3, it depends on how the brands communicate with respective target audiences outside of the cinema and integrates  with consumer preferences and spending habits," said Fu.

TCL has followed up with online marketing efforts on Weibo with special promotions, including promoting the Iron Man as a role model to raise awareness of 'civilian heroes'. Children at the Yanjing Little Swan public school in Beijing were singing and raising their hands in 'Iron Man hero style', mapping TCL's appearance in Iron Man 3 "to a climax".

According to data from PQ Media, the fastest growth in product placement spending was seen in China, up by 27.2 per cent in 2012.

Still, the most direct and blatant product placement tactics may just be the most effective, because people will be laughing at them for some time, according to another movie-goer.