Michael Cohen Hearing Gave Nestle More Than $600K in Free Advertising

By Brendan Menapace

They say there's no such thing as bad press, or that any coverage is good coverage. Well, if you're in a position where you're forced to testify in front of a congressional committee before spending the next few years in prison, that press is probably bad press for you. But, as was the case for yesterday's televised hearing between Michael Cohen and the House Oversight Committee, one party did come out with some good results: Deer Park.

You know who benefits the most from today’s testimony from Michael Cohen? Not Trump. Not Mueller. That’s right, @DeerParkWtr #CohenTestimony #TrumpRussia #productplacement pic.twitter.com/vWLrbzl525

— James N. Robinson (@jaynrobinson) February 27, 2019

Cohen had two Deer Park water bottles next to him throughout his testimony and subsequent discussions with committee members. Given the amount of screen time that Deer Park bottle got across multiple television channels, live streams and press photos, The Week estimated that the bottle provided Nestle Waters the equivalent of about $641,592 in on-air advertising.

$641,592: Equivalent advertising time garnered by @DeerParkWtr, the 8th largest bottled water brand in the US, from its label on Michael Cohen’s bottle shown on TV during today’s testimony, according to analysis by @ApexMGAnalytics. pic.twitter.com/ftXxKKP91L

— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) February 27, 2019

That's ... a lot of prime advertising for free. The fact that everyone is talking about a Deer Park water bottle even in such a high-profile case and highly reported event underscores just how much people really do pay attention to labels and logos. And while this wasn't a promotional water bottle, just your standard retail single-use variety, think about what the whole thing says about promotional products in general.

So, we're not saying that companies should look to give convicted criminals their products to hold during their televised hearings, but, you know….