Greener Product Placement - Everybody In!

What’s Up

General Motors and Netflix are working together on the “Everybody In” campaign, created to accelerate the mass adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). The sustainability initiative from General Motors is a “call to action meant to reflect a movement that’s inclusive and accessible.” Netflix has committed to increasing the presence of EVs on Netflix-produced content and is pledging to take steps to enable more sustainable productions. GM electric vehicles will appear in Netflix's original series, including Love is Blind, Queer Eye, and Unstable. Part of the launch of this campaign was a Super Bowl ad starring Will Ferrell that highlights both companies’ commitments to sustainability.

According to TechCrunch, GM is a partner on Netflix’s ad-supported tier and the partnership between the two corporations is not part of any advertising deal. The aim of the collaboration is to expose consumers to EVs in an organic way.

What It Means

Streaming services are operating in a fiercely competitive space and SVODs (and AVODs and FAST providers) are launching interactive content, brand extensions, and novel collaborations to grab — and hold — viewer attention:

• Hello Fresh and Warner Bros. Discovery teamed up and brought holiday fans Buddy Elf Spaghetti as part of a limited edition meal kit based on a Christmas classic movie.
• Walmart+ members gained access to Paramount+ as a boosted benefit at no additional cost.
• Netflix recently launched its interactive trivia game Triviaverse and worked with Bumble to create a game to engage matches on their favorite streaming content.

Netflix and GM’s campaign is poised to appeal to young people who maintain that climate change is one of the most important issues. According to GWI’s Sustainability: The Consumer Dilemma 2022 report, 43% of Gen Z and 38% of Millennials say that climate change is their top worry, ranking second for each age group. The same report shows that 36% of consumers across age groups want brands to reduce their environmental impact.

For consumers who have high expectations of brands when it comes to improving sustainable practices, it will be increasingly important for companies to walk the walk and show proof of efforts to make greener choices. The collaboration between GM and Netflix displays the power of partnership and how working together can amplify both businesses’ best attempts at making good on sustainability pledges. Viewers who value brands working on climate change may choose content that literally features solutions to these problems within the content.