The issue of using child psychologists to help marketers target kids gained widespread public attention in 1999, when a group of U.S. For example, in the late 1990s the advertising firm Saatchi and Saatchi hired cultural anthropologists to study children engaging with digital technology at home in order to figure out how best to engage them with brands and products. Using research that analyzes children’s behaviour, fantasy lives, artwork, even their dreams, companies are able to craft sophisticated marketing strategies to reach young people. With the help of well-paid researchers and psychologists, advertisers now have access to in-depth knowledge about children’s developmental, emotional and social needs at different ages. To effectively market to children, advertisers need to know what makes kids tick. Marketing to children is all about creating pester power, because advertisers know what a powerful force it can be.Īccording to the marketing industry book Kidfluence, pestering or nagging can be divided into two categories-”persistence” and “importance.” Persistence nagging (a plea, that is repeated over and over again) is not as effective as the more sophisticated “importance nagging.” This latter method appeals to parents’ desire to provide the best for their children, and plays on any guilt they may have about not having enough time for their kids. “Pester power” refers to children’s ability to nag their parents into purchasing items they may not otherwise buy. Today’s kids have more autonomy and decision-making power within the family than in previous generations, so it follows that kids are vocal about what they want their parents to buy. “We’re relying on the kid to pester the mom to buy the product, rather than going straight to the mom.”īarbara A. Here are some of the strategies marketers employ to target children and teens: Pester power As well, guilt can play a role in spending decisions as time-stressed parents substitute material goods for time spent with their kids. Parents today are willing to buy more for their kids because trends such as smaller family size, dual incomes and postponing having children until later in life mean that families have more disposable income. In the United States alone, companies spent over $17 billion doing this in 2009 – more than double what was spent in 1992. Īs a result, industry spending on advertising to children has exploded over the past two decades. Family entertainment choices (98% of the time) and family trips and excursions (94% of the time).Software purchases (76% of the time) and computer purchases (60% of the time).Where to go for casual family meals (98% of the time) (with 34% of kids always having a say on the choice of casual restaurant). Breakfast choices (97% of the time) and lunch choices (95% of the time).According to the 2008 YTV Kids and Tweens Report, kids influence:
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