Oprah’s Not So Subtle Product Placement

The article on AdAge.com today explains the awkward product placement for McD’s during a show about Oprah’s upcoming Ultimate Australia Adventure. On brand messaging? No. Brand killer? Not even close. Oprah has so much positive brand stock that a slight misstep like this is no big deal, but it’s a good reminder why it’s so important to build equity in the “brand bank.” When companies do this, customers are more willing to forgive (or not even notice) mistakes. Case in point: remember “Antennagate”…the troubles Apple had launching the iPhone 4? Probably not.