IMPACT OF ADVERTISING ON YOUNGSTERS

Project by: Mohsin Basha Batch: FW 09-11(UGP 08-11) Sec: F2 5th Trimester Submitted to:

Definition of Advertising

Advertising is a form of communication used to encourage or persuade an audience (viewers, readers or listeners) to continue or take some new action. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common. The purpose of advertising may also be to reassure employees or shareholders that a company is viable or successful. Advertising messages are usually paid for by sponsors and viewed via various traditional media; including mass media such as newspaper, magazines, television commercial, radio advertisement, outdoor advertising or direct mail; or new media such as websites and text messages.

History of Advertising

Egyptians used papyrus to make sales messages and wall posters. As education became an apparent need and reading, as well as printing, developed advertising expanded to include handbills. In the 18th century advertisements started to appear in weekly newspapers in England. As the economy expanded during the 19th century, advertising grew alongside. In the United States, the success of this advertising format eventually led to the growth of mail-order advertising. In June 1836, French newspaper La Presse was the first to include paid advertising in its pages, In 1842 Palmer bought large amounts of space in various newspapers at a discounted rate then resold the space at higher rates to advertisers

By 1900 the advertising agency had become the focal point of creative planning, and advertising was firmly established as a profession. In the early 1920s, the first radio stations were established by radio equipment manufacturers and retailers who offered programs in order to sell more radios to consumers. This practice was carried over to commercial television in the late 1940s and early 1950s. A fierce battle was fought between those seeking to commercialise the radio and people who argued that the radio spectrum should be considered a part of the commons to be used only non-commercially and for the public good. In the early 1950s, the DuMont Television Network began the modern practice of selling advertisement time to multiple sponsors. Previously, DuMont had trouble finding sponsors for many of their programs and compensated by selling smaller blocks of advertising time to several businesses. In the 1960s, campaigns featuring heavy spending in different mass media channels became more prominent. The late 1980s and early 1990s saw the introduction of cable television and particularly MTV. Pioneering the concept of the music video, MTV ushered in a new type of advertising: the consumer tunes in for the advertising message, rather than it being a byproduct or afterthought.

Impact of Advertising on Youngsters

The advertisement industry has a tremendous impact on our youth. What some people see on television, they take for truth. They tell us what to wear (because everyone is wearing it), what to eat (because everyone is eating it), what to do (because everyone is doing it). The advertisers know how to appeal to our senses. They use peer pressure very heavily. "You need to wear these tennis shoes because (add a big name sports star) is wearing them and everyone else is going to wear them. You want to be cool don't you?" They have told our youth that sex is a recreation to be shared by all because, "Everyone is doing it". You have to have a fast car that can go 120 mph even though the speed limit is set at about half that. They have confused our youth with the difference between "need" and "want.

Rationale
Have

It Your Way, Just Do It, Ipod, Therefore I Am, Reach Out and Touch Someone, Its Everywhere You Want To Be, Finger Lickin Good, Got Milk?, Be All You Can Be--We have heard these slogans many times during the course of a day in some fashion or other. What they all have in common is that they are directed toward teenagers. Teenagers are probably more influenced by advertising than any other

age group, and they are really not aware of it The advertising industry itself has funded dozens of studies on children designed to enhance marketing effectiveness. According to the industry newsletter, Selling to Kids, Saatchi & Saatchi hired clinical psychologists and cultural anthropologists to record more than 500 hours of interviews and observations of children between the ages of six and 20.

It has been documented that the average teenager spends about 6 hours a day (38+ hours/week) using mediatelevision, movies, magazines, newspapers, playing video games and using the computer. The average child sees approximately 20,000 commercials a year. About 57% of viewers surveyed in 1996 enjoy commercials as much as television programs. Advertisers spend over $40 billion each year on television commercials. By the time a child is 18, he or she will have seen about 20,000 food commercials advertising food low in nutrition. It is estimated that teenagers between the ages of 13 and 19 spend $100 a week or $144 billion per year on clothing, entertainment, and fast food. Advertisers now realize that children not only influence the purchases of the goods and services that appeal to them, but they also influence many of the purchases in the entire household. For example, it is estimated that 78% of children influence what their parents buy (McDougal Littell, 2001). These purchases can be small to large ticket items. It is no longer up to the parents alone to decide what the

family needs. With our fast-paced society, teenagers are being left more on their own to make decisions that have a direct impact on families, and these decisions are often influenced by what advertising they seethrough print, television, radio, and the internet. Advertisers have found their niche with teenagers. They have become very creative when it comes to marketing to this group. We often notice that advertising geared toward this demographic is often very visual, interactive, incorporates catchy slogans, employs celebrities to pitch the products, and is simple yet effective in its language. Advertising is a multibillion dollar industry that continues to grow. Many youngster are consistently bombarded withadvertising images, whether by TV, radio, billboards, posters, internet, etc. They need to be better informed about how and why they are being targeted and why it is essential for them to choose rather than be chosen. Through the use of realworld experiences and hands-on activities in this unit, students will gain a better understanding of the role that advertising plays in our everyday decisions to purchase goods and services.

The Negative Effects of Advertising

Unfortunately, advertising is sending our country into a quick downward spiral, doing an immense amount of harm and little good. Companies pay millions of dollars each year, in hopes to successfully pull the wool over our eyes and get their product sold. The dishonesty is leaving the citizens of this country with nothing to gain. The biggest problem with advertising is that the majority of it is alarmingly misleading. Advertisements convey an unrealistic view of a particular product. Companies go to

extraordinary lengths to persuade consumers to indulge in unnecessary luxuries. Once again, the consumer falls victim to their tricks and gimmicks. The American people have grown incredibly nave over a short amount of time. The majority of society favors the superficial and materialistic. All they see is an image. In the article Sex Appeal in Advertising has Negative Effects, Shawna Robertson states that Not only have people become deceived by the images they are seeing, but their moral values are suffering as well (n.pag.). Children are affected the most. At a young age one allows his or her mind to be molded and constructed. A child will grow up to be everything they are surrounded by, being very susceptible to outside influences. That being said, for future generations growing up in a media infested country, there is little hope. Attempting to thrive in a consumerist country, with a consumerist attitude, will hinder the United States for years to come. Once an idea is planted in the minds of weak-willed people, there is rarely hope for reform. Advertising is unethical, above all else. It creates a false, unrealistic image and urges people to buy in, leaving most unsatisfied after the initial new feeling has worn off. America revolves around material possessions. Most are in debt due to this. Everyone wants the newest, most expensive, and end up taking it through help of credit and end up being in debt.

The Effect of Advertising on Tobacco and Alcohol Consumption

Many teenagers experiment with alcohol. By the time they reach their mid teens, around one in two

consume alcohol at least occasionally while increasing numbers drink to the point of drunkenness. Professor Barrie Gunter, Anders Hansen and Dr Maria Touri, of the University of Leicester Department of Media and Communication, have carried out a study of alcohol advertising and young people's drinking habits. Their findings suggest that, while there is mixed evidence as to whether there is a direct link between volume of advertising and volume of alcohol consumption, there are links that can be made between advertising and teenage drinking. Young people who start drinking alcohol are affected by a range of influences. These include whether their parents drink and pressures from their own peer group. Where social influences conflict, young people will tend to follow the influence most important to them. So, during the teenage years, if parents disapprove of drinking and friends encourage it, the likelihood is that young people will follow the example of their peer groups, not their parents. Alcohol advertising helps young people become familiar with brands of alcohol, but it is less clear whether it induces them to start drinking in the first place. On television, as with print journalism, where alcohol is associated with relaxation, fun, humour, friendship and being 'cool', it is likely to have some influence, while the use of celebrities, colour, popular music or sexual themes appeared to have a more limited effect. Retail outlets such as supermarkets and news agents present alcohol promotions in an environment and at a level which will be accessible to young people.

However, there was no proof that exposure to such alcohol advertising was as great an influence as the influence of parents and peer groups. Curiously, young people who go to the cinema most frequently, and are therefore most exposed to the advertising of alcohol on film, were less likely to get drunk, possibly indicating that the type of person who goes to the movies is less likely to drink to excess. Greater exposure to television advertising, however, did seem to relate directly to the increased chance of getting drunk, particularly in the case of cider and alcopops. There was no significant link between television advertising and most advertised brands of beer, wine or spirits. The most common violations linked the advertised alcohol brand with the success of a social event such as a wedding or - more ambiguously - with some activity that could be dangerous if carried out under the influence of alcohol, such as swimming, diving and the use of dangerous machinery. Researchers study the effects of tobacco and alcohol advertising because the consumption of these substances is known to have potentially adverse health consequences. Tobacco use results in illness in proportion to its consumption, with about one-third of tobacco consumers dying as a result of these illnesses. Alcohol is different in that about nine out of 10 adults use alcohol in limited amounts with no adverse outcomes. The other one in ten abuses alcohol, which results in a range of negative health and social outcomes including an estimated 100,000 premature deaths per year. There have been a number of empirical studies on the effects of tobacco and alcohol advertising. The bulk of these studies indicate that advertising does not

increase tobacco and alcohol consumption. However, many public health advocacy organizations do not accept these results. An examination of the methods and data commonly used in empirical studies provides an explanation for these divergent opinions. The key to understanding the empirical problems lies in the advertising response function and the type of data used to measure advertising. The advertising response function explains the relationship between consumption and advertising. A brand-level advertising response function shows that the consumption of a specific brand increases at a decreasing rate as advertising of that brand increases. That is, the response function illustrates a diminishing marginal product of advertising. (2)Ultimately, consumption is completely unresponsive to additional advertising. The assumptions of the brand-level advertising response function also can be applied to industry-level advertising. The industry level includes all brands and products in an industry; for example, the industry level for alcohol would include all brands and variations of beer, wine, and spirits.

Impact of Advertising and Obesity on Childrens Behavioral and Mental Health

Food industry advertising that targets children and youth has been linked to the increase of childhood obesity. Advertising by other industries often objectifies girls and women, contributing to body dissatisfaction, eating disorders, low self-esteem, and depression. Many adolescents, particularly teenage girls, have body image concerns and engage in unhealthy weight control behaviors. Unhealthy weight control behaviors (e.g., fasting; skipping meals; eating very little food; vomiting; and using diet pills, laxatives, or diuretics) have been found to co-occur with obesity. Weight bias may marginalize children and youth considered obese by their peers and teachers and place them at risk for teasing and bullying. Body dissatisfaction and weight-related concerns extend across all ethnic groups and weight-

related stigma has been found to co-occur with depression, low self esteem, and suicidal thought. Television Advertising and Childhood Obesity

Obesity in children increases the more hours they watch television. Childrens exposure to TV ads for unhealthy food products (i.e., high-calorie, low-nutrient snacks, fast foods, and sweetened drinks) are a significant risk factor for obesity. In very young children, research has found that for every one-hour increase in TV viewing per day, there are higher intakes of sugar-sweetened beverages, fast food, red and processed meat, and overall calories (48.7 kcal/day). E xcess weight can be gained by the addition of only 150 calories a day. Other research has found that children who watch more than three hours of television a day are 50 per cent more likely to be obese than children who watch fewer than two hours. Food and beverage advertising targeted at children influences their product preferences, requests, and diet. The food and beverage industry has resolved to self-regulate their marketing to children, but this has not resulted in significant improvement in the marketing of healthier food (i.e., fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat or non-fat milk or dairy products, lean meats, poultry, fish, and beans) to children. Almost three out of every four foods advertised to children falls into the unhealthy categories that contribute to the obesity epidemic. Food ads on television make up 50% of all the ad time on childrens shows. These ads are almost completely dominated by unhealthy food products (34% for candy and snacks, 28% for

cereal, 10% for fast food, 4% for dairy products, 1% for fruit juices, and 0% for fruits or vegetables). Children are rarely exposed to public service announcements or advertising for healthier foods. Childrens level of exposure to these ads by age can be found in the table below. No. of ads per day 12 21 17 Hrs of ads per year 29:31 50:48 40:50 No. of ads per year 4,427 7,609 6,098 Exposure to PSAs 1 every 2-3 days 1 every 2-3 days

Age s 2-7 812 1317

<1 every week (Source is Kaiser Family Foundation, 2007) Clearly, children between ages 8-12 are receiving the highest rates of ad exposure. They are entering a critical stage of development where they are establishing food habits, making more of their own food choices, and have their own money to spend on the types of food they enjoy.

The childhood obesity epidemic is a serious public health problem that increases morbidity, mortality, and has substantial long term economic and social costs. The rates of obesity in Americas children and youth have almost tripled in the last quarter century. Approximately 20% of our youth are now overweight with obesity rates in preschool age children increasing at alarming speed. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the prevalence of obesity has more than doubled among

children ages 2 to 5 (5.0% to 12.4%) and ages 6 to 11 (6.5% to 17.0%). In teens ages 12 to 19, prevalence rates have tripled (5.0% to 17.6%). Obesity in childhood places children and youth at risk for becoming obese as adults and associated poor health such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and some forms of cancer. Prevention efforts must focus on reducing excess weight gain as children grow up. Todays children, ages 8 to 18, consume multiple types of media (often simultaneously) and spend more time (44.5 hours per week) in front of computer, television, and game screens than any other activity in their lives except sleeping. Research has found strong associations between increases in advertising for non-nutritious foods and rates of childhood obesity. Most children under age 6 cannot distinguish between programming and advertising and children under age 8 do not understand the persuasive intent of advertising. Advertising directed at children this young is by its very nature exploitative. Children have a remarkable ability to recall content from the ads to which they have been exposed. Product preference has been shown to occur with as little as a single commercial exposure and to strengthen with repeated exposures. Product preferences affect children's product purchase requests and these requests influence parents' purchasing decisions.

Online Marketing of Foods to Children

Marketing of food to children on the internet is even more complex since the boundaries between content and pure advertising is often less clear than on television. Only a minority of

advertisers include reminders distinguishing content from pure advertising. One study has shown that children find it harder to recognize advertisements on websites than they do on television; 6 year olds only recognized a quarter of the ads, 8 year olds recognized half of the ads, and 10 and 12 year olds recognized about three quarters of the ads. The majority of food brands advertised to children on TV is also promoted on the internet and often includes online games which are heavily branded, i.e. advergames. Advergames can provide a more highly involving and entertaining brand experience than what is possible with conventional media. Websites also contain other brand-related content such as television commercials, media tie-ins, promotions, viral marketing and website membership opportunities. Viral marketing is used to encourage children to talk to one another about a brands website by emailing friends in the form of an e-greeting or invitation and inviting them to visit the site. Marketers also often provide brand-related items that can be downloaded or printed and saved (e.g., brand-related screensavers and wallpaper). The continual branding through these sites reinforces and amplifies the product message to children, who have a remarkable ability to recall content from ads to which they are exposed.