Food Marketing Towards Children Essay

The author is set out to target companies such as the fast food industry and its affiliation with child targeted advertisement. The article begins by

Eric Schlosser’s essay, “Kid Kustomers,” concludes and makes several strong points about the marketing on children. He starts his essay with a brief comparison that “twenty-five years ago, only a handful of American companies directed their marketing at children,” whereas today, “children are being targeted by phone companies, oil companies, and automobile companies…” He emphasizes and stresses the importance of having “Kid Kustomers,” because one important marketing strategy is to aim to “increase not just current, but also future, consumption.” Schlosser learns that ad agencies target children because they make up a majority of their sales. Throughout the essay, Schlosser not only gives marketing tips but also discusses the 7 different types

Advertisements are everywhere. They are a major part of modern day society. Whether it be a television commercial, an internet banner, or a billboard, advertisements influence people of all ages, but they affect a certain age group much more than others. Children ranging from toddlers to teenagers are exposed to thousands upon thousands of advertisements each year. Some of these advertisements are damaging to children, while others are a positive influence. Advertisements can either be used as a tool or a weapon. Food advertisements and manipulation strategies are both positive and negative, and how companies use them decides whether or not marketing to children is ethical.

Kudler Fine Foods is an upscale specialty food store that is located in the San Diego vicinity. Kudler Fine Foods has three locations in La Jolla, Del Mar, and Encinitas. Each location boasts 8,000 square feet of retail space filled with a fine selection of bakery and pastry products; fresh produce; fresh meat and seafood; condiments and seafood; and cheese and specialty dairy products. Kudler Fine Food is owned by Kathy Kudler who first opened a store on June, 18, 1998, with the aspiration of delivering fine products with excellent customer service.

Marketing to children is not a new phenomenon; however, there have been many ethical debates on its rightness; is advertising to children a gentle persuasion of the innocent or a sinister threat to our society? There’s too much as stake if we remain silent and simply assume that marketing companies have our children’s best interests at heart; the truth is they don’t. This paper will explore to implications of marketing to children and the overall effects it has on our society. I will argue that advertising to children is a social problem. In the first part of my paper I will discuss why advertising to children is ethically wrong, I will then discuss what has changed; this will be followed by a discussion as to why it is a social problem and finally, I will conclude my paper by discussing what should be done to change it. Please note this paper is written in the first person as I have children and I have a vested interest in this topic.

Marketing Ethics: The Marketers standards of conduct and moral values. The 5 areas of ethical concerns for Marketers are: Marketing Research – ex: Gathering marketing information in exchange for money or free offers. Product Strategy – ex: Product quality, planned obsolescence, packaging. Distribution – ex: Determining the appropriate degree of control over a channel. Promotion – ex: Gifts and Bribes Pricing – Most unethical pricing behaviours are also illegal. Social Responsibility: involves marketing philosophies, policies, procedures, and actions whose primary objective is the enhancement of society. The 4 levels of Social Responsibility are: Economic – Be Profitable; the foundation upon which all others rest Legal – Obey The Law; Play by the rules of the game Ethical – Be Ethical; Obligation to do what is right, just, and fair. Philanthropic – Be a Good Corporate Citizen; Contribute resources to the community, improve quality of life.

Children are easily influenced, and this can be taken advantage of in the commercial industry. Thy have the desire to fit in and do what is considered “cool”. Many people believe that people use this desire to their own benefit in order to create profit. While it’s true children are easily manipulated by commercials, these commercials and be beneficial to the child's development. Commercials can be used to bring good ideas and good life skills to children that will lead them to being a successful adults. Commercials aimed at children are ethical because they can reinforce positive behaviors and good ideals. This is shown through articles, press and reports.

The company chosen to be the focus for the marketing management is the Edible Arrangements. According to Popkova., Abramov, Ermolina, and Gandin (2015), The headquarters of this company are located at Soweto in South Africa. Its mission statement is: “To supply chemical-free vegetables for the benefit of both the customers and the shareholders” (p.6). The act of the former marketing manager developing an advertising campaign before the marketing strategy can potentially affect the company product regarding sales and also increase expenses. This is because when advertising comes before the marketing strategy, it means that the target audience and their needs are not yet known. This will be marketing blindly and which can be expensive because it will cover the whole market or even it will be done in areas where there are no potential customers. Marketing strategy planning should begin so as to come up with a good plan with specific audience to be reached, their location and also the specific goals to measure the process.

Companies are continuously in search of innovative marketing techniques by encouragingly establishing individuals to purchase their advertised products. As intelligent as marketing companies are, they are indeed aware of the fact that adults are more likely to watch an advertisement and detect why they should or should not purchase such product. In such instances where the company cannot reach the focus of an adult, parent, or parental figure, marketers will target young children and teens in their advertising campaigns. Advertising campaigns targeting the youth have significantly impacted the ethical consideration in the children’s market through media, ethics, as well as food advertising to children.

In today’s society, the food and beverage industry is faced with an ongoing ethical dilemma because they are far more concerned with making money than providing a good, safe, and healthy product for consumers. The biggest victims in this unethical marketing scheme are children. Children are the least informed and most influenced of all potential consumers (5). Although children usually don’t directly purchase these products themselves, their desires strongly influence their parent’s decision on what to buy and what the child will eat. Most products geared towards children are unhealthy, processed foods that are high in sugars and low in nutritional content (6). This has led to a rise in childhood

Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large (American Marketing Association, 2013).Marketing ethics is a set of moral values and standards which pertain to marketing. Responsible companies will operate and regulate their marketing activities into compliance with the marketing ethics while those irresponsible one may not.

When my family moved away from the place I grew up I began to have a major problem with my weight; I turned to food to comfort me. I somehow felt secure while eating and because of that psychological reassurance I got from the food, I was soon over weight. I knew I had to do something but that urgency would die when I would be introduced to a new flavor of Brewster’s ice cream or a limited time only supreme large fries that I saw advertised on the television or in a magazine. My self esteem and body-image suffered a great amount during those years of constant struggle. As I looked at pictures of celebrities, athletes, average people, friends, my sister and then myself, I noticed something, all of them were thin except me. After this and

The second primary source will be used is “Set of Recommendations on the Marketing of Food and Non-alcoholic beverage to Children” published by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2010. This is a PDF file about the current condition of child-oriented food marketing in the view of health activists. The document is very up-to-date, valid and reliable as it is built up by WHO, one of the most

Consumer protection is arguably important and needed in today’s modern world. With technology advancing every day, social issues are becoming more and more relevant. When primitive forms of advertising were being developed at the turn of the century, many did not think in terms of social responsibilities and preventing deceptive business practices, but in today’s changing world, the concern of ethics in advertising is becoming increasingly imperative. Advertising ethics encompasses a variety of areas, including product safety, protecting vulnerable parts of the population, corporate social responsibility and exercising truth in advertising practices. In addition, The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) were established to administer pursuing violations and implement consumer protection laws to ensure that businesses have a code of ethics to safeguard consumers. We have witnessed many scenarios when companies have chosen not to employ ethical advertising practices and the aftermath that surrounds that decision, whether it is questionable marketing to children or exaggerating the effects of a product. Advertising ethics, or the lack of it, arguably walks a thin line between being ethical and being questionable. Establishing a set of self-regulating moral principles has demonstrated the need for corporate social responsibility in advertising. Without ethical codes in place, many parts of the population are vulnerable. With the

Have you ever sat down at a fast food restaurant enjoying a delicious triple grand slam cheeseburger and think about all the strategies of how all of this was created? I know I have. The fast food industry is one of the most complex industries out there. With all the marketing strategies, healthier options, and completive markets this could easily but one of the most difficult industries to be a part of. To evaluate, this industry I will dive into the fields of management, the completive landscape, organization of the industry, changes in the industry, and the organizational culture around it.