Publisher Inks Product Placement Deal for Young Adult Book

Running Press, publisher of a young adult novel being released in September, has signed an unusual marketing deal with P&G’s makeup division Cover Girl; while no money exchanged hands, Cover Girl makeup is showcased in the book and in return, the book will be promoted on Beinggirl.com, a website directed at adolescent girls that includes, among other things, makeup tips, the New York Times reports.

The book includes references to Cover Girl Lipslicks, a brand of lipstick, and a specific color of Cover Girl eyeliner. And in at least one cartoon supposedly drawn by the main character in the book, a caption refers to Cover Girl: “Artist! Detective! UnderCover Girl.” The references existed in the manuscript before the marketing deal was made, but only in a generic form (a made-up lipstick color, etc.). After the partnership was defined, the references were changed to specifically mention Cover Girl and its products.

This is not the first time that product placement has reared its head in fiction. For example, a book by Fay Weldon titled The Bulgari Connection was actually commissioned by Bulgari, the Italian jewelry company, for an undisclosed amount.

Still, product placement in books is relatively rare. And even subtle sales pitches aimed at youth could raise questions - and ire - about marketing to kids. A recent initiative by a company called BusRadio, which aims to bring commercial radio to school buses, has been attacked by commercial alert in an open letter to the Massachusetts governor asking him to halt the initiative.

But as consumers’ attention becomes fragmented, product placement has become a practice increasingly sought after by marketers. In March, for example, an analysis of network prime-time TV showed that brand appearances made up 11 percent of all programming minutes.