The impact of ads on Kids
Regarding preteens, marketers spend many billions of dollars annually to ensure that their goods are seen by them, and they have more opportunities to do so thanks to media outlets like television, the Internet, games, movies, applications, and so on. Additionally, marketers are aware that children have a $500 billion annual impact on the purchasing choices of their parents. However, the fact that preteens can now respond to advertisements is the most important factor in marketing to them. Although businesses are restricted in the data they may gather from children under the age of 13, they can still learn about their interests and behaviour.
Teenagers are one of the most crucial audiences for marketers, to sum up. They have money to spend, their brand tastes are still developing, and they have a tremendous impact on their parents’ purchasing decisions (even on big-ticket items such as cars). Companies are focusing on youth where they hang out: through applications, games, and websites that stream music and video and provide other downloadable material since 25% of teenagers access the Internet via mobile devices. Teen-targeted companies try to influence customers’ purchasing decisions by combining conventional marketing strategies with cutting-edge communication channels.
Methods marketers use to reach young kids:
Hooking them young. Getting the product in front of a target audience as much as possible strengthens a company’s ability to capture consumers “from the cradle to the grave.” Think cartoon characters on diapers.
Dividing and targeting genders. Brands try to establish a preference for gendered toys as early as possible. The sooner your child has a desire for “boy” toys or “girl” toys, the sooner he or she becomes a customer. That opens the door for even more gendered products.
Developing taste preferences. Junk-food marketing to kids is a $2 billion-per-year industry. Cartoon characters appear on cereal boxes, toys appear inside boxes, and characters shill for brands on TV — for example, Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head advertise potato chips. And it works.
Methods marketers use to reach preteens:
The need for stimulation. If you’re wondering why commercials for tweens look like they were filmed by a caffeine-addled jackrabbit, it’s because tween brains crave and respond strongly to stimulation. If something is exciting, they take notice.
The craving for emotional connection. If you have a tween, you know that kids at this age are not entirely rational. They LOVE a specific dress, they MUST HAVE a particular song, they’re OBSESSED with a certain game. Marketers use strategies that stir up emotions so kids identify with a product.
Methods marketers use to reach teens:
Exploiting insecurities. Brands appealing to teens take advantage of their particular vulnerabilities: the desire to fit in, to be perceived as attractive, and to not be a huge dork. Teens are extremely attuned to their place in the peer hierarchy, and advertising acts as a kind of “super peer” in guiding them toward what’s cool and what’s acceptable. Both teen boys and girls are highly susceptible to messages around body image, and marketers use this to their advantage.
Tracking data. Once kids turn 13, companies have little restrictions over marketing to them and collecting their data. The information they collect isn’t personally identifiable it’s far more valuable. Tracking teens’ digital trails helps companies precisely determine their tastes, interests, purchase histories, preferences, and even their locations so they can market products to them or sell that data to other companies. Talk to teens about using privacy settings and understanding what information they’re unwittingly giving to companies.
