Spon-Con Watch: Jimmy Kimmel Live! for Instacart

In-show advertising is as old as late-night itself, but as shows face declining ratings and shrinking budgets, sponsored content (or “brand activations,” as they’re called in marketing circles) has become increasingly common and, at times, more elaborate than ever before. In this recurring feature, we keep tabs on how late-night shows are working to wed commerce with comedy.

Jimmy Kimmel Live!‘s latest piece of sponsored content may be for one company, but it brings a whole bunch of other brands along for the ride.

The brand integration—for retail delivery service Instacart—came during Thursday night’s episode. In keeping with the usual format for spon-con clips on JKL, this one came in a standalone segment, slotted between Kimmel’s first and second guests. “Planning a watch party for the big game can be very stressful, but lucky for us, Instacart has deals on the brands we love,” Jimmy Kimmel said from his desk to introduce the video. “And lucky for Guillermo, they deliver it all.”

The spot begins with JKL sidekick and de facto spon-con star Guillermo Rodriguez welcoming a friend to his Super Bowl watch party. (Well, his unspecified big game watch party.) Disappointment abounds when Rodriguez’ poor party host capabilities are revealed: The “snack train” he promises consists of nothing more than several crackers and tap water, and his remote is out of batteries.

“That’s okay, G,” his friend assures. “We can get all the brands we love right now on Instacart.”

Cue an immediate Instacart delivery full of brand-name groceries to save the day. 

But this latest piece of JKL spon-con doesn’t just serve to promote Instacart’s delivery capabilities and brand-name selection. It’s also an ad for another ad: Instacart’s first Super Bowl commercial. AdWeek reports the commercial will bring together mascots from nine brands, including the Kool-Aid Man, Heinz Weiner Dogs, and Pillsbury Doughboy.

The same trio shows up in the Kimmel video, with the Kool-Aid Man crashing through Rodriguez’ wall and the Pillsbury Doughboy poking his belly.

“See iconic mascots come together during Instacart’s Big Game campaign, and get all of your gameday essentials on Instacart,” announcer Lou Wilson intones to end the brand-fest.

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  1. Mike says:

    Jimmy the hater is the 1st to worst show on late night. Ties with Steve, both shows should be removed from their respective networks first the false lies and hatred towards Trump and the American people. The network producers spew hatred toward America to open borders, progressive agendas, elitism, better than you attitudes. Yes we can not watch, but also we can stop buying services & products.