CASE STUDY: MASTERCHEF AUSTRALIA 2011
MasterChef Australia Season 3, Episode 1, Aired on Channel 10, Sunday May 1 2011
PRODUCT PLACEMENT
MasterChef became a runaway ratings hit after its first season and as a result expanded into a $100 million dollar empire by the time the Second Season had wrapped.[35] In the 3rd Season Masterchef had a reported 9 major sponsors -
“Last week, Ten announced it had signed nine broadcast and digital partners, with MasterFoods, Qantas and Mitsubishi Motors joining returning sponsors Coles, Campbell's, Fonterra, Handee Ultra, Sunbeam and Telstra. Industry sources said several of the broadcast sponsors paid between $2.5 million and $3.5m for their package, with higher-profile brands understood to have paid substantially more”[36]
Below are some instances of how the product placement crops up in the first few episodes of MasterChef for Season 4
“Last week, Ten announced it had signed nine broadcast and digital partners, with MasterFoods, Qantas and Mitsubishi Motors joining returning sponsors Coles, Campbell's, Fonterra, Handee Ultra, Sunbeam and Telstra. Industry sources said several of the broadcast sponsors paid between $2.5 million and $3.5m for their package, with higher-profile brands understood to have paid substantially more”[36]
Below are some instances of how the product placement crops up in the first few episodes of MasterChef for Season 4
Product Placement during an episode of MasterChef
Although the shots really only last for about 1-4 seconds the fact that they are included at all is interesting. The MasterChef Contestants needn't arrive in identical black Mitsubishi cars, nor does the Coles pantry really need to be that overstocked with items.
Perhaps the most interesting case was with the contestant eating Ski Yoghurt whilst ironing in the laundry, this pretty left-field action could have been ignored if the advertisements immediately following it's occurrence were not for a competition for Ski Yoghurt then followed by a regular advertisement for Ski Yoghurt. This instance of product placement was picked up by the general public.
Perhaps the most interesting case was with the contestant eating Ski Yoghurt whilst ironing in the laundry, this pretty left-field action could have been ignored if the advertisements immediately following it's occurrence were not for a competition for Ski Yoghurt then followed by a regular advertisement for Ski Yoghurt. This instance of product placement was picked up by the general public.
Despite a certain disdain for over the top product placement this instance outlines two things. That there really is a partnership formed between producer and sponsor that flows on from onscreen promotion to other forms of brand associative promotion. This has real flow-on effects for sponsors. Despite the fact that this one particular instance of product placement was widely disparaged (and there are many more ongoing examples of people's critiques to the product placement evident in MasterChef's running) sponsors such as Coles have enjoyed the varied benefits of being heavily involved in such a production. Their end of episode tie-ins that advertise the ingredients and recipe cards for the evening's recipes would be available at the Supermarket ended up generating sales spikes of up to 1400%[41] for ingredients that had been made popular solely because of it's featuring in the program. The value for sponsors through product placement is clearly outlined here, and the reason behind why product placement is so popular in Reality TV revealed. The simple fact of the partnership producing tangible positive financial results would be reason enough for businesses to view Product Placement a positive financial outlay.
So if MasterChef is able to secure $35 million in sponsorships what is the significance of this for future entrants into the media landscape like us? Well $35 million is quite clearly a sizeable amount of money. This results in several outcomes:
This last point refers to how MasterChef, in Season 3, has invested a lot of the money that it has received in recruiting top Chefs and locations in order to give the loyal viewers something new and exciting to look forward to. MasterChef managed to be able to secure chefs like Matt Moran and Nigella Lawson to appear on the show, no easy feat considering the high status of both chefs (one with an already impressive line of books and TV shows - she didn't need the money necessarily). They were also able to execute such spectacle moments as this in the season debut.
This Helicopter scene was done in two takes if you look closely, so the producers paid for two helicopter fly-overs and actor sin army uniform to reveal a giant crate of food. Despite the fact there would have been an easier way to do this, this moment brings a certain element of 'wow' that allows MasterChef to consistently engage it's audiences with something new and exciting.
So if MasterChef is able to secure $35 million in sponsorships what is the significance of this for future entrants into the media landscape like us? Well $35 million is quite clearly a sizeable amount of money. This results in several outcomes:
- Networks are less anxious about the financial future of the show
- Production Costs are lowered because products are donated
- MasterChef is able to be 'grander'
This last point refers to how MasterChef, in Season 3, has invested a lot of the money that it has received in recruiting top Chefs and locations in order to give the loyal viewers something new and exciting to look forward to. MasterChef managed to be able to secure chefs like Matt Moran and Nigella Lawson to appear on the show, no easy feat considering the high status of both chefs (one with an already impressive line of books and TV shows - she didn't need the money necessarily). They were also able to execute such spectacle moments as this in the season debut.
This Helicopter scene was done in two takes if you look closely, so the producers paid for two helicopter fly-overs and actor sin army uniform to reveal a giant crate of food. Despite the fact there would have been an easier way to do this, this moment brings a certain element of 'wow' that allows MasterChef to consistently engage it's audiences with something new and exciting.
This Helicopter scene was done in two takes if you look closely, so the producers paid for two helicopter fly-overs and actor sin army uniform to reveal a giant crate of food. Despite the fact there would have been an easier way to do this, this moment brings a certain element of 'wow' that allows MasterChef to consistently engage it's audiences with something new and exciting.
AESTHETICS
MasterChef is a reality competition/gameshow, sub-catagorised as a ‘job search.’ MasterChef uses a documentary or observational style approach to capture the competition, incorporating interviews with the contestants, and profiles about their lives external to the show. It is a format that Australian audiences will identify with other reality competitions such as So you think you can dance? Australian Idol and Biggest Loser. During ‘cook-offs’ the contestants and judges work in a large warehouse, and cook with Australian products, which are clearly on display as part of the mise-en-scene. Given the large spaces available, there is a lot of dramatic camera movement, utilising all the space available in the location. Dramatic shallow focus exaggerates the narrative drama throughout the series, providing loyal audiences a personal connection to the contestants.
AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION
How does the audience participate or engage in the different shows - Avid viewers of the MasterChef program are able to participate in the show in many different ways directly and indirectly. The show both invites audience participation and allows for audiences to involve aspects of MasterChef in their lives independently. While watching an episode, a viewer is engaging in the products being promoted through product placement as well as MasterChef specific products being promoted. In the first episode, the judges express the importance of being able to get a Masterchef apron by attaching values to the product. According to the judges, being able to own an apron is a symbol of achievement in terms of determination and self-belief and most importantly, cooking skills. Contestant Sarah comments on the apron, “That’s like the holy grail, I want one of those aprons.” By attaching these values to the product and then making this product available to purchase (public can purchase aprons almost identical to the aprons on the program) viewers are participating with these emotions and values through the merchandise.
More direct ways that viewers can participate go from caption competitions, the participatory ‘community’, voting for a winner during the finale, being able to find recipes that contestants have used/made and entering competitions of all sorts.
MasterChef appeals to a huge audience. The existence of the spin-off Junior MasterChef alone proves that viewers watch the show with their families and consider the show suitable for all ages and demographics. A simple observation of the MasterChef website shows a banner accross the top which promotes the contestants themselves as a family. (see below)
CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR
As the appetite for interactive content grows, viewers are no longer satisfied with just watching a program. They are finding a hunger for participating with the content they are watching. As Darlow writes, production houses are no longer just programme producers who ran business but often businesses that produced programmes. [27] By this I mean a show such as MasterChef is not just a programme, but a massive money making business as well. By reacting to consumer behaviour, the MasterChef industry has come up with all the participatory aspects mentioned already. As much as these aspects of the show (competitions, forums, voting, interviews) are to get viewers more involved, the viewers themselves are asking for these features in the way they are responding and reacting to the content.
MasterChef Australia airs six nights a week, from Sunday to Friday. Each episode varies slightly in format depending on the stage of the competition.
Sunday night is the Challenge night. It features two challenges; the Mystery Box challenge, where each contestant is required to create a dish from the same ingredients, and the Invention Test, where contestants are required to create a unique dish relevant to a provided theme. The judges select a winner from the Mystery Box challenge, and in the Invention Test challenge the bottom three contestants are selected to face off in an elimination challenge the following night.
On Monday night these contestants feature in the Pressure test in which they are given a recipe to create within time constraints. The judges then eliminate the contestant out of the three that performed least adequately in the test.
In 2010 MasterChef flexed its reality television muscles as it pushed Australia's primary (and only) political debate between Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott from the traditional 7:30pm timeslot, to an hour earlier at 6:30, admid fears that the public would chose to watch the MasterChef finale instead of a debate concerning the future running of the country. In an article on The Age website, Gillard announced that "Australia's a great country and one of the things about it is you get to pick what you want to watch on TV" [37], and it seems that the public is more engaged through a reality televsion program then the political future of their country. If the debate had been left at 7:30pm, it would "have been a ludicrous programming decision", as the finale of MasterChef in 2009 (the first year it was run), " attract[ed] an extraordinary 4.1 million people across the nation" [38] and these ratings were believed to be similar for the 2010 finale. In the weeks leeks up to the finale, MasterChef was "pulling in more than 2.3 million people each night in the five capital cities alone." [38]
MasterChef Australia airs six nights a week, from Sunday to Friday. Each episode varies slightly in format depending on the stage of the competition.
Sunday night is the Challenge night. It features two challenges; the Mystery Box challenge, where each contestant is required to create a dish from the same ingredients, and the Invention Test, where contestants are required to create a unique dish relevant to a provided theme. The judges select a winner from the Mystery Box challenge, and in the Invention Test challenge the bottom three contestants are selected to face off in an elimination challenge the following night.
On Monday night these contestants feature in the Pressure test in which they are given a recipe to create within time constraints. The judges then eliminate the contestant out of the three that performed least adequately in the test.
In 2010 MasterChef flexed its reality television muscles as it pushed Australia's primary (and only) political debate between Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott from the traditional 7:30pm timeslot, to an hour earlier at 6:30, admid fears that the public would chose to watch the MasterChef finale instead of a debate concerning the future running of the country. In an article on The Age website, Gillard announced that "Australia's a great country and one of the things about it is you get to pick what you want to watch on TV" [37], and it seems that the public is more engaged through a reality televsion program then the political future of their country. If the debate had been left at 7:30pm, it would "have been a ludicrous programming decision", as the finale of MasterChef in 2009 (the first year it was run), " attract[ed] an extraordinary 4.1 million people across the nation" [38] and these ratings were believed to be similar for the 2010 finale. In the weeks leeks up to the finale, MasterChef was "pulling in more than 2.3 million people each night in the five capital cities alone." [38]
ZAPPERS, CASUALS, & LOYALS
At the beginning of each episode (including the first episode of season 3), a quick recap of the events of the past is shown, giving all audiences the chance to become engaged with the program. As the only narrative arch in MasterChef is that of the contestants being eliminated until finally there is only one, ‘zappers’ (consumers who constantly flick through channels, not engaging fully with the content given, only absorbing portions at a time) and casual viewers (consumers who’s television interaction is at times loyal to certain shows, but can be swayed away if the content no longer appeals to them) [14] are able to easily integrate themselves into the program. With each episode dealing with a different challenge or topic, audiences can come freely to individual episodes, be engaged by content that is self contained, and from there not need to loyally watch each proceeding episode.
Loyal viewers are rewarded through the websites in depth content and the amount of interaction and participation they are allowed to access, while zappers and casuals are given all they need to be engaged and thus, consume the program.
Loyal viewers are rewarded through the websites in depth content and the amount of interaction and participation they are allowed to access, while zappers and casuals are given all they need to be engaged and thus, consume the program.
ONLINE CONTENT- PARTICIPATION AND INTERACTION
MasterChef is a MasterConverger. The television show is only a small portion of the entire experience. The website contains a high amount of consumer participation elements with each recipe, every episode, every tweet, having the ability to be commented upon and shared through the social media platforms that MasterChef utilises, such as Facebook and Twitter.
Furthermore, a blog that’s produced by a past contestant expands the MasterChefs brand through into new age media outlets. Each entry is concerned with the episodes past or future, as well as commenting on how the new contestants might be feeling through drawing on the bloggers past experience as a participant in MasterChef. As this person already has a fan base, as a result of the previous series, it is a masterful stroke of genius to have him using new media to expand the product.
Online Forums also hold a place for people to talk about all things MasterChef, giving audiences more content by having a range of topics to discuss be it a particular contestant or a recipe that has appeared on the program. Furthermore there is an episode chat forum that opens every time there is an episode so that people can begin a diaolgue during the airing of the show. Also biographies of each contestant as well as Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris and Matt Preston, allows fans to comment about their favourite person on the program.
Including an online newsletter, magazines, competitions, photos, videos, trivia, food calculators and digital shopping lists that you are able to create through selecting a recipe you would like to make, as well as the ability to upload a photo of your attempt and the ability to vote on your favourite dish, the MasterChef range of media engagement is diverse.
What makes this so unique is that due to its real life content and characters, all these outlets for audience participation are open. If this were a narrative based, actor driven serial drama, although some elements, such as behind the scene footage and episodes would be possible, due to the possible economic issues (see Economics), the vast nature of possibilities would be lessened, as the main property, and creator of income would still have to be the television program.
Although MasterChef boasts a large amount of possibilities for participation, the program still offers nothing of an interactive style. In other words, the reality program may use new media, but still falls short of pushing the boundaries by not including some form of interactivity for the viewer, or a way for them to affect the outcome of the program.
Rather then focusing on the impressionistic quality that a television show can have, MasterChef asserts the need to see its expressionistic quality which develops a relationship between the consumer and the content [14]. Through food and new participatory media, it gives the consumer the ability to feel engaged and part of a wider society, creating a brand community that leads to continues brand expansion and profit to sponsors of MasterChef.
Furthermore, a blog that’s produced by a past contestant expands the MasterChefs brand through into new age media outlets. Each entry is concerned with the episodes past or future, as well as commenting on how the new contestants might be feeling through drawing on the bloggers past experience as a participant in MasterChef. As this person already has a fan base, as a result of the previous series, it is a masterful stroke of genius to have him using new media to expand the product.
Online Forums also hold a place for people to talk about all things MasterChef, giving audiences more content by having a range of topics to discuss be it a particular contestant or a recipe that has appeared on the program. Furthermore there is an episode chat forum that opens every time there is an episode so that people can begin a diaolgue during the airing of the show. Also biographies of each contestant as well as Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris and Matt Preston, allows fans to comment about their favourite person on the program.
Including an online newsletter, magazines, competitions, photos, videos, trivia, food calculators and digital shopping lists that you are able to create through selecting a recipe you would like to make, as well as the ability to upload a photo of your attempt and the ability to vote on your favourite dish, the MasterChef range of media engagement is diverse.
What makes this so unique is that due to its real life content and characters, all these outlets for audience participation are open. If this were a narrative based, actor driven serial drama, although some elements, such as behind the scene footage and episodes would be possible, due to the possible economic issues (see Economics), the vast nature of possibilities would be lessened, as the main property, and creator of income would still have to be the television program.
Although MasterChef boasts a large amount of possibilities for participation, the program still offers nothing of an interactive style. In other words, the reality program may use new media, but still falls short of pushing the boundaries by not including some form of interactivity for the viewer, or a way for them to affect the outcome of the program.
Rather then focusing on the impressionistic quality that a television show can have, MasterChef asserts the need to see its expressionistic quality which develops a relationship between the consumer and the content [14]. Through food and new participatory media, it gives the consumer the ability to feel engaged and part of a wider society, creating a brand community that leads to continues brand expansion and profit to sponsors of MasterChef.
REASONS FOR VIEWING BASED ON THE 16 BASIC MOTIVES
During an episode of MasterChef the participants are give a monologue about their progress with the dish they are preparing. This monologue is predominantly concerned with the problems which they are facing. As an audience member you are constantly engaged by the failings of the participant throughout he creation of the dish.
Its rather obvious that the interviewer has asked the contestant to talk about what he is failing at during the coooking process, as he mentions "the first thing that's going wrong with my dish....". Included with the monologue is music which depends the susepense as he comments on his issues, as well as reminding viewers that there is a possibility of being eliminated from the competition.
This technique falls in-line with the 16 basic motives for reasons of viewership in reality television. As the audience watches the failings of the contestant, their viewers thoughts turn to that of superiority, which is connected to the basic motive, Status. This increase sense of the Status motive is then expressed through communication with a fellow audience member, or by participating in forums on the website, tweeting, as well as other social situations. Vengeance, which is second highest motive as reference in survey conducted in 2004 [11] is also heightend during viewing of an epsiode of MasterChef as it is closely linked with feelings of competitiveness. Due to MasterChef constantly reminding contestants that they will be eliminated, the pressure is high and the audience feeds (pun intended) off the atmosphere created.
This is an example of how the 16 basic motives, in conjunction with a survey relating to the need to watch reality television interlinks with MasterChef, as the competition (Vengeance) leads the contestants into making mistakes, which results in the audiences feelings of superiority (Status).
This technique falls in-line with the 16 basic motives for reasons of viewership in reality television. As the audience watches the failings of the contestant, their viewers thoughts turn to that of superiority, which is connected to the basic motive, Status. This increase sense of the Status motive is then expressed through communication with a fellow audience member, or by participating in forums on the website, tweeting, as well as other social situations. Vengeance, which is second highest motive as reference in survey conducted in 2004 [11] is also heightend during viewing of an epsiode of MasterChef as it is closely linked with feelings of competitiveness. Due to MasterChef constantly reminding contestants that they will be eliminated, the pressure is high and the audience feeds (pun intended) off the atmosphere created.
This is an example of how the 16 basic motives, in conjunction with a survey relating to the need to watch reality television interlinks with MasterChef, as the competition (Vengeance) leads the contestants into making mistakes, which results in the audiences feelings of superiority (Status).
FOOT NOTES[11] Reiss, Steven. Wiltz, James, Why People Watch Reality TV, MEDIA PSYCHOLOGY, 6, 363–378 2004, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. (http://nisonger.osu.edu/papers/Reisswiltz_2004.pdf)
[14] Jenkins, Henry (2006) Convergence Culture, New York University Press, New York
[27] Darlow, Michael. 2004. Independents struggle: The programme makers who took on the TV establishment, London: Boa Ms/Quartet.
[35] http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/television/how-masterchef-became-a-100-million-industry-for-network-ten/story-e6frfmyi-1225876741547
[36] http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/media/masterchef-attracts-new-off-air-sponsors/story-e6frg996-1226032919739
[37] http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/07/20/2959200.htm
[38] http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/leaders-defer-to-masterchef/story-fn59niix-1225894768168
[41]http://www.businessspectator.com.au/bs.nsf/Article/MasterChef-advertising-Coles-Wesfarmers-sponsorshi-pd20100722-7L6VY?OpenDocument
