Marketing Food to Children and Adolescents - Federal Trade ...

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Marketing Food to Children and Adolescents focused content; developing independent websites for particular child- or teen-directed food products or promotional campaigns; purchasing ads on third-party websites to promote a food item or promotion; and using a range of other digital marketing techniques, such as email newsletters, downloadable screensavers and wallpapers, podcasts, and “webisodes,” to reach children and adolescents. Many companies designated portions of their websites as dedicated child or teen zones. Other companies had independent websites for products that were child- or teen-focused, in which all of the content was directed to those audiences. In some cases, unique websites were created for specific promotions. One energy drink company closely tied its promotional activities to extreme sports popular with teens by hosting several websites dedicated to different sporting activities, such as paragliding, skydiving, motorbike racing, and kiteboarding. Child- and teen-directed website content often featured bright colors and graphics, and images of children and adolescents; teen websites occasionally used darker colors and graphics. Many websites allowed children and teens to view the companies’ television ads for the products, but at least one company had a policy that television ads would not be automatically streamed to child viewers online. Some carbonated beverage companies reported interactive website features that allowed consumers to create their own videos using clips the companies provided of food products and extreme sporting activities. Advergames were a frequent feature on child- and teen-directed food company websites, appearing on websites for products such as snack chips, fruit snacks, seeds, candy, cookies, cereals, dairy products, cocoa, children’s frozen meals, restaurant food, frozen waffles, canned soups, fruit, and non-carbonated beverages. Product packaging often directed consumers to online games, with a chance to win a prize; companies occasionally rewarded children who entered codes from product packaging with access to additional game levels. In some cases, the games were designed so that consumption of the food product by the game’s characters was an objective for players. 65 One candy website featured a teen-directed advergame in which players operated a virtual skill crane machine in an effort to retrieve candy bars with the crane; successful players had a chance to win iPod Nanos, as well as real candy. 66 Another candy maker, however, had a company policy not to promote games that encourage consumption of products, while a packaged food company’s policy prohibited online games that included any type of excessive product consumption. The packaged food company’s policy also required that games targeted to or frequented by children must include an “activity break” every 30 minutes, pausing website action and encouraging children to engage in a “more active” pursuit. 40
Food Marketing Activities Directed to Children and Adolescents Occasionally, food product websites had social networking components, where children could create personal avatars – computer representations of themselves – and interact with a virtual community. On one candy website, children could create avatars and accumulate virtual currency by playing advergames that they could use to purchase digital merchandise, such as screensavers, instant messenger (IM) icons, and clothing for their avatars. On a cereal website, children could buy clothes and furniture for their avatars with virtual currency earned by playing online games, pick a neighborhood to live in, and shop for the company’s cereal brands at a virtual grocery store. Some websites allowed children to take a quiz to determine what variety of food product best suits their personality. ca s e s t u d y : In 2006, one milk marketer initiated an online campaign targeted at teens. The campaign website aims to teach teens about the consequences of their beverage choices using interactive educational content and trivia quizzes. On the website, teens encounter bright colors and graphics, scrolling elements, and numerous overlapping, interactive, multi-media components. The website has dynamic content, with multiple rooms teens can enter to find out more information about celebrity milk mustache endorsers, download free content such as wallpapers, MP3s, and IM icons, and enter sweepstakes. Teens can create their own milk mustache advertisements and upload their photos to share with others. Throughout 2006, the marketer also ran an online auction in which teens collected milk carton bar codes in order to bid for prizes from popular brands. Prizes included subscriptions to teen magazines, sportswear and sporting equipment, video games, bicycles, DVD and MP3 players, guitars, jewelry, clothing, mobile phones, and televisions. Teens could also sign up to receive email newsletters from the marketer and send “tell-a-friend” emails to others. The campaign was promoted via banner ads on third-party websites, which showed celebrity milk mustache endorsers popular with teens, such as David Beckham and Sasha Cohen. Finally, the milk marketer sponsored a MySpace.com profile page for the campaign that allowed teens to download milk mustache ads as wallpapers for their computers, displayed a David Beckham video ad, and featured a “make your own milk mustache ad” interactive game. Food companies purchased banner ads, pop-up ads, and streaming video ads on third- party child- and teen-directed websites, such as Nick.com, CartoonNetwork.com, Disney.com, SIKIDS.com, and MTV.com, and social networking sites MySpace.com and Xanga.com. These 41
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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION Marketing
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Report Contributors Bureau of Consu
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Appendices 2. Athletic and Other Ev
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List of Figures Figure II.1: Report
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