Research Project - 1920630
Research Project - 1920630
Research Project - 1920630
Veeresh Sadarangani
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Certificate
This is to certify that the project report, titled “Impact of product placement in video
games on brand Recalln” submitted to CHRIST Deemed to be University, in partial
fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the Degree of Bachelor of Business
Administration, is a record of original research work done by Veeresh Sadarangani, during
the period of 2022-2023 in the School of Business and Management at CHRIST (Deemed to
be University), Bangalore, under my supervision and guidance. The project report has not
formed the basics for the award of any Degree / Diploma / Associate ship / Fellowship or
other similar title of recognition to any candidate of any University.
Date:
2
Declaration
I, Veeresh Sadarangani, hereby declare that the project, titled “Impact of product placement
in video games on brand Recall” submitted to CHRIST (Deemed to be University), in
partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the Degree of Bachelor of Business
Administration is a record of original and independent research work done by me during
2022-2023 under the supervision and guidance of Dr. Tijo Thomas, School of Business and
Management and it has not formed the basics for the award of any Degree / Diploma /
Associate ship / Fellowship or other similar title of recognition to any candidate of any
university.
Date:
3
Acknowledgement
I, Veeresh Sadarangani would like to express my profound gratitude to all those who have
been instrumental in the preparation of this Research Project Report. I wish to place on
records, our deep gratitude to my project guide, Dr. Tijo Thomas Assistant Professor, for
guiding me through this project with valuable and timely advice. I would like to thank Dr.
(Fr). Abraham V M, Vice Chancellor, Dr. Jain Mathew, Dean and Dr. Amalanathan S, HOD,
School of Business and Management for their encouragement.
Last but not the least; I would like to thank my parents and friends for their constant help and
support.
Veeresh Sadarangani
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INDEX
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CHAPTER - 1
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INTRODUCTION -
The Topic of the research Project is Product Placement in games and how it is
influencing Purchase Intention. Product Placement is a method through which makers of
goods or service providers get awareness for their products by paying to have them featured
in films and television shows. The study is focused on the wide topic of purchase intention
although the main area of study is focused on the game FIFA and the product placement in
the game. FIFA is a game played on the PS3, PS4, PS5, XBOX, XBOX1 and other consoles.
It is a Football game and it consists of Teams and Players from all across the world. These
players are animated and coded into the game of FIFA and we are made to control the players
and we can play with our friends either offline or even with strangers online. The game
supports various modes and has various types of playing styles and the entire product
placement is around the Jersey of the players and the ball used to play the game and also the
banners in the background of the game. The project focuses on understanding the consumers’
purchase intention of the brands and the products of the brands after seeing them in the game.
A consumer's propensity to acquire a product or service is referred to as purchase intention.
The Research is around the understanding of the brands and their usage in the games
specifically in the game FIFA and how consumers react to their usage in the game.
The research solves questions relating to brand recall, product placement in games
and purchase intention of gamers and usual respondents' who have been made to play the
game or have already played it in the past. When prompted with a product or service, or any
other relationship with it, a consumer's likelihood of recalling the name of a brand is
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measured. Simply said, brand recall is a qualitative assessment of a consumer's ability to
recall a brand's name. Questions related to brand recall are also solved as respondents recall
brands without being assisted or without any options given to them. This is the method of
brand recall used in the project and it’s a method without any assistance involved. The
respondents are not given any options before being asked to recall the brand. They were also
asked questions related to what they think about the brand they recalled and also what was
the reason they recalled the brand. The entire product placement in the game questions the
purchase intention it creates in the minds of the consumers and whether the brands used are
Prominent or Inconspicuous. The brands which are prominent are usually immediately
noticeable and the brands which are inconspicuous are not immediately noticeable to the
naked eye. The research also helps to differentiate how these brands are viewed in the eyes of
the customer.
The industry chosen for the Research Project is Marketing in the gaming Industry.
The Marketing industry has tremendous chances for growth and can make huge changes in
the lives of individuals. The entire marketing industry has great developmental scope and it is
the future of the country’s employment prospects. Without marketing there is no use of even
production of a product because if there is production and no sale there won’t be turnover and
the company would go in loss. Marketing is as important or in fact more important than other
industries in today’s day and age.
The way we play games is evolving, from tabletops to virtual reality. The world of
internet gaming has skyrocketed in popularity in just a few decades. It is expected to generate
$196 billion in revenue by 2022, making it one of the world's fastest-growing sectors. The
following infographic delves into the humble roots of the online gaming industry as well as
the technical possibilities that will shape its future.
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Advertising, selling, and delivering things to consumers or other businesses are all examples
of marketing. Affiliates perform some marketing on behalf of a company. Professionals in a
company’s marketing and promotion departments use advertising to attract the attention of
key potential audiences. The marketing industry’s goal is to get the word out to consumers,
clients, and the general public about what companies have to offer. Marketers serve as the
link between businesses and their clients. Place, pricing, product, and promotion are the four
Ps of marketing. Companies can ensure they have a visible, in-demand product or service that
is competitively priced and advertised to their customers by carefully integrating all of these
marketing methods into a marketing mix.
Access to new products and services, as well as capital and people, is being expanded.
Increased business productivity. Customer experience has changed, and customer service has
improved. New markets for the company’s products or services are created. These are a few
growth opportunities available in the field of marketing. There is various growth potential in
every field of marketing whether it comes to digital marketing or advertising or personal
selling or any of the areas even when it comes to focusing on one particular area of this vast
field.
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The Objective of the research project is to find out how brand Recall and product
placement affects the purchase intention of customers and what it does when a sample size is
chosen at random. It is to discuss and find whether product placement in games actually lead
to positive purchase intention or negative purchase intention. It is also do discuss whether
product placement in games are preferred by consumers as banners in the background or by
making it more obvious. Another objective is to figure out if product placement in games
actually plays a major role in improving the sales of a company. Understanding how
conspicuous brands are recalled better compared to inconspicuous brands is also necessary
and is an important part of the research.
Product placement, the practise of paying for branded products (e.g., brand
name/logo, package, signage, and other trademarks) to be placed in the content of mass
media programming, skyrocketed to an estimated $7.5 billion in 2006, and is expected to
reach $14 billion by 2010. (Graser and Stanley 2006). In today's oversaturated and
fragmented advertising/marketing environment, product placement is no longer regarded a
unique marketing approach; rather, it has achieved "celebrity status" as a media form as
advertisers seek more effective ways of influencing customers' opinions. Not only do
marketers spend a significant portion of their promotional budgets on these types of
campaigns, but production companies also rely on them as a key source of revenue (e.g.,
Bensinger 2008).
Product placement is becoming more popular across multiple Internet platforms, new
social media, and interactive games. With the rise of the internet, have been
increasingly popular in recent years. A is a series of scripted or non-scripted videos,
often in episodic form, distributed over the Internet and is a part of the web television
media, according to Wikipedia. A "Webisode" is a term used to describe each episode
of a show.
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Vikas Katoch, founder and CEO, Adomantra Digital the share of ’ in digital is less
than 5% of the total digital ad spends in India. But it is expected that 10-15% of digital
advertising spend will be diverted to ’ in next two years through integration of brand
stories with content, product placement, creating characters for brands, integrated logo
unit, pre-roll ads, etc. For example, Tata Tiago is an integral part of the popular TVF
Tripling.
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Martin car in the movie Casino Royale and in the movie Castaway where Tom Hanks
is stranded on an empty island with numerous FedEx packages that helps him to
survive and he even creates a relationship with a Wilson volleyball, that he was aptly
named Wilson. The different types of product placement can be divided into two types
of placements; prominent and subtle.Prominent placements is easy to notice and can
be very obvious through showing, using or talking about the brand while subtle
placement is harder to notice and does often occur in the background
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CHAPTER - 2
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Literature Review -
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Mira Lee, Ronald J Faber (2013) This study analyses the conditions under
which product placement in an online game will be recognised and remembered using
the limited-capacity model of attention. According to the findings, brand memory is
impacted by the proximity of brand messaging in the game, game participation, and
past game-playing experience. Although experienced players recognise focal brands
better than peripheral brands in the moderate-involvement condition, the recognition
superiority of the focal brands over the peripheral brands reduces when experienced
players' involvement is high. The association between closeness and game
participation does not appear to exist for untrained players.
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Sara Peters and Glenn Leshner (2013) The impacts of game-product
congruence and product placement proximity on advergame players' brand memory,
brand attitude, game enjoyment, and future intention to play were investigated in this
study. The researchers utilised a 2 (congruity) 2 (proximity) repeated-measures
experiment. Players' implicit memory increased exclusively for congruent games,
according to the findings. In the congruent/central game condition, explicit memory
tests also revealed hints of improvement for brands. Surprisingly, the
incongruent/peripheral game condition appears to have delivered the greatest overall
outcomes, with the least amount of negative attitude change, the gamest enjoyment,
and the highest desire to play again in the future.
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Thomas MacKay, Fiona J Newton (2009) The fragmentation and
abundance of media, along with the falling effectiveness of television advertising, has
sparked interest in finding new ways to reach customers, particularly non-users of a
brand. The influence of active product placement in computer games on brand attitude
(Abrand) and recall is investigated in this study. According to the findings, exposing a
brand in a computer game can boost Abrand among customers who have a poor
pre-existing attitude toward the brand in issue. We find that product placement in
computer games is a powerful tool for increasing spontaneous brand memory and
even influencing consumers who are less favourable to a brand (analogous to
non-users). These findings have promising management implications for companies
aiming to increase client acquisition and conversion rates.
Mira Lee, Donald J Faber (2013) From the standpoint of the limited-capacity
model of attention, this study investigates the circumstances under which product
placement in an online game will be recognised and remembered. The closeness of
brand messaging in the game, game participation, and past game-playing experience
all interact to impact brand recall, according to the findings. Although experienced
players recognise focal brands better than peripheral brands in the
moderate-involvement condition, when experienced players' involvement is strong,
the recognition advantage of focal brands over peripheral brands vanishes.
Inexperienced players, on the other hand, do not see the relationship between
closeness and game engagement.
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José Martí-Parreño, Jesús Bermejo-Berros (2013) Product
placement in video games is gaining traction as a technique to reach consumers in a
more indirect and engaging manner. The effects of repetition and brand familiarity on
consumers' memory for brands put in video games are investigated using a two-factor
factorial design (high repetition versus low repetition) and a two-factor factorial
design (high brand familiarity vs low brand familiarity). Consumers recall recognised
brands included in the video game better than new brands, according to the findings.
In a brand identification test, recognised brands fared better than new brands. Because
no interaction effect of repetition was discovered, the effect of recurrence will help
both familiar and unfamiliar brands equally. The consequences for managers,
constraints, and future research are also discussed.
Haiming Hang (2011) This study adds to the body of knowledge on product
placement by examining the effects of interactivity on product placement efficacy.
The findings show that perceptual fluency is the underlying process that leads to good
emotion in youngsters who are unable to interact with the locations in video games.
As a result, the effects are only visible when the same stimulus is used as a cue in a
stimulus-based decision. When youngsters engage with the placements in video
games, however, they may be impacted by their conceptual fluency. As a result, even
when no stimulus is presented as a cue, placements are still successful in a
memory-based decision.
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Stephen J. Gould, Pola B. Gupta (2013) Advertisers and consumers
share a media landscape that includes game shows and the items that are given away
as prizes. However, due to a lack of study in this area, this paper focuses on two
interpretative investigations of game show viewers to learn how people understand
the objects used as contest-puzzle topics and/or rewards in these shows. Three
interacting areas of manufactured meaning emerged: (1) customers, (2) game shows,
and (3) items placed, each with its own evolving themes. There are implications that
apply not only to game shows and the items shown on them, but also to promotional
mediascape meanings in general.
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Huan Chen, Eric Haley (2016) The consumer meanings of product placements
incorporated in social games in various cultural contexts were investigated in this
chapter. The study's theoretical standpoint is phenomenology, and data was collected
through an essay assignment and in-depth interviews.
Huan Chen, Audrey Deterding (2013) The study's goal is to learn more
about how college students perceive and interpret commercial placement in social
games. The study's theoretical standpoint is phenomenology, and data was collected
through an essay assignment and in-depth interviews.
Yan Xu, Zhong Chen, Michael Yao-pi (2020) The use of gamification
aspects in online buying is piqueing the interest of scholars and practitioners.
However, it is currently unknown how gamification influences and enhances customer
purchase intent on online shopping platforms, leaving a knowledge gap. This paper
has developed a theoretical model to close this theoretical gap. The impact of
gamification components on customer purchase intention is explained using cognitive
evaluation theory in this model.
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Nathalie Peña-García, Irene Gil-Saur (2020) This article aims to
investigate the key factors influencing e-commerce adoption using social psychology
elements such as attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, ease of
use, and perceived usefulness, as well as non-traditional elements such as buying
impulse, compatibility, and self-efficacy in online stores, while contrasting
relationships in a cross-cultural environment. Quantitative study with a sample of 584
internet users in Colombia and Spain is used to test the suggested paradigm. With
EQS 6.3 software, the following statistical analyses were performed: CFA, structural
equations, measuring instrument invariance, and multi-group analysis. Self-efficacy in
online stores is a major component in the adoption of electronic commerce throughout
the cultures analysed, according to the study.
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Dandan Dong, Haider Ali Malik (2021) This study focuses on Pakistani
students' online purchase intentions for various products available for sale on a variety
of e-commerce websites. The major goal of this research is to figure out which
methodology is best for increasing client online buy intent. It also tries to figure out
ways to boost the perceived benefits of any available internet product while lowering
the perceived dangers of entrepreneurship. With bootstrap methodology, AMOS 24
was utilised to cope with mediation in research design. Using a basic random sample
technique, the study was done on 250 students from various educational institutes in
Pakistan.
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CHAPTER - 3
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Methodology Used -
The method used for data collection is a convenient sample method as it is more appropriate
for this study. A sample of 55 respondents were collected using a convenient sample method.
These individuals were made to play the game FIFA and then were asked questions based on
the game. They were interviewed using a schedule prepared for the study. They were asked
questions on why they recalled the particular brand and what they felt about the quality of the
brand compared to the other brands. They were also asked what they felt about the price of
the chosen brand and if it was worth the price paid for. Also asked about the price in terms of
the quality of products of that particular brand.
Problem Statement -
The research solves problems and queries relating to brand recall, product placement in
games and purchase intention of gamers.
Objectives of study –
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● The objectives include understanding Conspicuous brand preference and brand Recall
over inconspicuous brand preference and brand Recall. The main aim is to find out
how many people choose conspicuous brands over inconspicuous brands or vice
versa.
The scope of the study is to understand whether the people are able to recall the
advertisements or product placement used in the video games and in which they can be
recalled.
The population type chosen are a group of individuals ranging from the age group of 19-22.
The group of individuals include gamers and non-gamers although they’re all made to play
the game before being asked the questions.
This particular research has a lot of scope even for the future researchers when it comes to
brand Recall and product placement. These on their own are very vast topics to research on
and have a lot of scope.
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Hypothesis -
H1 - There is a significant difference in the brand Recall of the product placed conspicuously
in the video game and inconspicuously in video games.
H1 - Product placement in video games increases the intention to purchase the product.
H0 - Product Placement in video games does not have any impact on purchase intention.
Methods of collection used are phone call Interviews and face to face interviews.
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Primary Data Collection –
Random sampling methods couldn't be used as people only of specific interest could be
interviewed for this research. The respondents weren't able to recall more than one brand
spontaneously.
The improved sales of the company are not spoken about in the research study. It stops at
how the product placement affects the purchase intention and that positive purchase intention
leads to resale of the brand in the future.
The percentage of improved sales of the companies can be studied more in advance and can
be understood on the basis of product placement and how it affects consumer decision
making. The future researchers can use larger sample data to get more specific results and
they can use a different method of data collection which is more efficient and effective.
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CHAPTER - 4
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Data Analysis -
This is the expert analysis received from the teachers on what brand is prominent and which
brands are prominent and which brands are inconspicuous. Prominent brands are the brands
which are visible right in front when someone plays the game and which is obvious.
Inconspicuous brands are the brands which are in the background and not that obviously
visible although they are present. The product placement of the prominent brands are done
better than the placement of the inconspicuous brands. The chosen prominent brands are
Nike, Adidas, Puma and the brands which are inconspicuous are Reebok and Redbull. These
analyses do not affect the responses and are a separate element in which brands are prominent
or not.
Nike 5
Adidas 5
Puma 5
Reebok 5
Redbull 5
Even inconspicuous brands have a chance of getting chosen if the brand is already known to
the respondents and if the respondents have bought products from the particular company in
the past. The more the brands have been bought the more chances of them being recalled,
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Brands Recalled by Respondents –
Table 2. Percentage –
Adidas 15 27.3
Puma 13 23.6
Redbull 5 9.1
Reebok 5 9.1
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From this data we can conclude that the prominent brands are chosen over the
inconspicuous brands. The prominent brands i.e. Nike, Adidas and Puma have been chosen
among a total of 81.8% of the respondents. The inconspicuous brands i.e Redbull and
Reebok are chosen among the remaining 18.2% of the respondents. This shows that the
prominent brands have a higher chance of being recalled compared to inconspicuous
brands.
The initial analysis brings out the fact that there are more male respondents than female
respondents. This is because the topic of the research is focused on a particular game namely
FIFA which is a game exposed and played by more boys between the age 16-23 compared to
girls of the same age. This game is a football game and is played on consoles like PS3, PS4,
XBOX, XBOX-1 etc.
The initial question began with asking the individuals’ name and age which was asked before
starting the recording. These questions were followed by asking if the individual has played
FIFA before. All the individuals choose the “YES” option as they had been instructed to play
the game by me before.
YES NO
55 0
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Table 3. Recalled Brands -
Brands Respondents
Nike 17
Adidas 15
Puma 13
Reebok 5
Redbull 5
The next question is the brand they recollected when they thought about the game FIFA. The
brands’ chosen included Nike, Adidas, Puma, Reebok, Redbull. These brands were picked
without any options given to the respondents. These are the immediate brands recollected by
the respondents as they think of the game FIFA either because they’ve seen the players in the
game wear the Jersey with the brands in them or they’ve seen these brands in the banners in
the background. This recollected data was un- assisted and raw and the questions that
followed were also based on this question. The respondents got to choose the brand they
could recollect. A few respondents even chose two brands as their initial response. Majority
of the responses who have chosen prominent brands and inconspicuous brands are due to
various other reasons like word of mouth, past use of products, other advertisements etc.
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Table 4. Gender of the Respondents -
Nike 15 2
Adidas 13 2
Puma 11 2
Reebok 5 0
Redbull 5 0
The next question was “why did you recall the brand” The usual response to this question
was either they recalled the brand due to the banners in the background or due to the players
wearing the jersey of the brand. All the players of the game wear the Jersey of their team and
wear football boots. The Jersey’s have the brand sponsors of each particular team on them
and the respondents were reminded of the brand either from seeing the brand on the Jersey or
seeing the brand in the banner in the background. The banners in the background are the
brands that sponsor the game FIFA on a whole.
The next question is what the respondent thinks about the quality of the brand he/she has
chosen and what the respondent thinks about the price of the brand. Usually the respondents
support the brand they have recalled by positive statements on the quality. The response talks
about the quality of the brand recalled, usually to be premium. The competitor brands are also
compared and the respondents provide feedback in terms of how the competitor brands are
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also of premium quality and how the brands are usually bought interchangeably and are very
strong competitors.
The next question is what the respondent thinks about the price of the brand
they recalled in comparison to the other brands. Usually the respondents feel that the price of
the brand they recalled is moderately priced and the products of the brand are usually worth
the price charged for it. The common consensus is that the price of the brand is usually
premium as the quality is also premium but it is worth every penny paid for. The price of the
products of the brand chosen are usually similar to the prices of the products of the other
brands as all the brands are close competitors and are mostly premium brands.
The last question asked is “will you be interested in purchasing products of the recalled brand
in the future” The response to this is always a “yes” followed by again talking about the
quality of the brand they recalled being premium quality and always worth the price they paid
for it. The response is always a positive response talking about how the respondents would
definitely purchase products of the brand recalled in the future especially when new products
come out and when there are usual discounts and newer versions of the current products.
The brands always have a positive feedback when it comes to whoever recalled the brand due
to reasons like positive word of mouth etc.
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Annexure -
On Quality
On pricing
Yes or No
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CHAPTER - 5
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Findings -
The findings of the research project are Product Placement in games and
basically what their entire effect is on purchase intention. From the above data,
it is clear that almost all the customers who recall a brand because they have
seen it in the game are supportive towards the brand and would purchase
products of the brand again in the future. This means that making the product
more visible is very necessary in the eyes of the companies planning on growth
and expansion. Working towards the needs of the customers and making their
products more evident is the key to improved marketing and improved sales
and turnover of a company. The findings also show that the price of the
products doesn’t really matter as long as the quality is premium and people are
willing to buy expensive brands and products of a brand as long as it has the
right quality.
brands and how much more conspicuous brands are chosen and recalled over
inconspicuous brands. The findings from the research show that the recalls from
the conspicuous brands i.e. Nike, Adidas and Puma have been chosen among a
total of 81.8% of the respondents. The inconspicuous brands i.e Redbull and
Reebok are chosen among the remaining 18.2% of the respondents. Individuals
make favourable purchase intentions because they believe the products of the
This question ties in with the preceding two, which inquired about the
respondents' perceptions of the pricing and quality of the brands they chose in
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We can deduce from this data that prominent brands are preferred over
Adidas, and Puma as their preferred brands. The remaining 18.2 percent of
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CHAPTER - 6
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Conclusion & Recommendations -
The entire result and findings of the research project can be used in practical
their product placement in games. Future scope of the study is that researchers
can go beyond the same city and use multiple methods of collecting data for the
analysis. The other methods of collecting data can be more advanced and can
lead to better findings leading to more positives in the entire study. There are
various other situations to put to use the information when it comes to Product
Placements and how to make the products more obvious when placed in video
games to improve the visibility which inturn increases the purchase among
expansion and growth of the entire industry as a whole. Statistical tools like
Mean, Median, Standard Deviation are used to find and differentiate the findings
although there is scope for further tools to be used and the entire study to
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