People love the Geico caveman. He appeared in commercials as a throwback dressed in “yuppie” clothing who struggles against Geico’s insensitivity when its ads claimed, “It’s so easy even a caveman can do it.” How much do viewers love him? Well, ABC decided to develop a sitcom (okay, a short-lived one) about a group of caveman roommates who battle prejudice in modern-day America. This nouveau Fred Flintstone isn’t alone. Burger King’s creepy “King” mascot shows up in a series of video games, and the fast-food chain is arranging for him to star in a feature film. And the mythical Simpsons family debuted in real life as 7-Eleven transformed many of its stores into Kwik-E-Marts to promote the cartoon series’ movie. During the promotion, customers snapped up KrustyO’s cereal, Buzz Cola, and ice Squishees, all products from the show.

Reality engineering occurs when marketers appropriate elements of popular culture and use them as promotional vehicles. Reality engineers have many tools at their disposal; they plant products in movies, pump scents into offices and stores, attach video monitors in the backs of taxicabs, buy ad space on police patrol cars, or film faked “documentaries” such as The Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield. A New York couple funded their $80,000 wedding by selling corporate plugs; they inserted coupons in their programs and tossed 25 bouquets from 1-800-FLOWERS. Internet casino GoldenPalace.com paid people a total of $100,000 to tattoo the company name on their foreheads, cleavage, and pregnant bellies. In one poll, about half of the respondents said they would consider accepting money from corporations in exchange for naming rights to their babies. Others do it for free: In 2000, the latest year for which data is available, 571 babies in the United States were named Armani, 55 were named Chevy, and 21 were named L’Oréal.

Traditionally, TV networks demanded that producers “geek” (alter) brand names before they could appear in a show, as when Melrose Place changed a Nokia cell phone to a “Nokio.” Nowadays, though, real products pop up everywhere. A script for ABC’s soap opera All My Children was reworked so that one of the characters would plug a new Wal-Mart perfume called Enchantment. Daytime TV stars eat Butterball turkeys, wear NASCAR shirts, and use Kleenex tissue. And the characters on the soap have been drinking a lot of Florida orange juice—not only because they’re thirsty. Product placement is the insertion of real products in fictional movies, TV shows, books, and plays. Many types of products play starring (or at least supporting) roles in our culture; in 2007, for example, the most visible brands ranged from Coca-Cola and Nike apparel to the Chicago Bears football team and the Pussycat Dolls band.

For better or worse, products are popping up everywhere. Worldwide product placement in all media was worth $3.5 billion in 2004, a 200 percent increase from 1994. New advances in technology are taking product placement to the next level, as producers can insert brands into shows after filming them. Virtual product placement put a box of Club Crackers into an episode of Yes, Dear; producers also inserted Cheez-It crackers, a can of StarKist tuna, and Nutri-Grain bars into the show. This new procedure means that a brand doesn’t have to be written into the script, and it can’t be deleted by late editing changes.

Is the placement worth the effort? A 2006 study reported that consumers respond well to placements when the show’s plot makes the product’s benefit clear. It found that the year’s most effective brand integration occurred on ABC’s now-cancelled Miracle Workers reality show, where physicians performed novel, life-changing surgeries. Audiences reacted strongly to CVS Pharmacy’s role in covering the costs of medications that patients needed after the procedures.