Jeff Gordons hosting stint on NBCs Saturday Night Live this past weekend enabled his main racing sponsor Du Pont and 10 other Hendrick Motorsports sponsors to earn nearly $1 million of comparable exposure value during the live, 1.5-hour telecast. Additionally, five other NASCAR sponsors got in on the act during Gordons appearance, bringing about a cumulative exposure value of more than $1.8 million for the brands more commonly seen on Sunday afternoons at the race track. According to research conducted by Joyce Julius and Associates Entertainment Marketing Research Services which specializes in documentation and analysis of exposure stemming from product placements in television programs and motion pictures Du Pont was the most effective of the 16 corporate brands monitored during the “Saturday Night Live” broadcast, appearing for one minute, 48 seconds (1:48) and leading to a value of $405,000 when comparing the on-screen time to the estimated cost of a 30-second commercial during the telecast. Other Gordon-related brands sharing the spotlight during the drivers foray into the entertainment world included Chevrolet, Delphi , Haas, Eagle/Goodyear, Fritos,. GMAC, Pepsi, Quaker State and Tyvek.. Additionally, Coca-Cola, Interstate Batteries, MBNA, Pontiac and Thermos also received some camera time. The majority of the exposure value resulted during Gordons monologue at the beginning of the show when a pair of would-be NASCAR fans, clad in Gordon and Bobby Labonte team jackets, shouted their support of the driver from the stands. The remainder of the sponsors exposure originated from still photographs of Gordon in his driver suit coming in and out of commercial breaks throughout the telecast.( Joyce Julius and Associates )(1-14-2003)
