Prime Time 8. Coursebook plus Semester Self-checks, Schulbuch

7 Marketing to children The world belongs in the hands of children Parents are increasingly influenced by their children when it comes to shopping decisions. Therefore, advertisers have started to design campaigns targeted at children to attract the young customers’ attention and make them convince their parents to buy their products. a) With a partner, look at the graphs on the right and below and discuss what they have to do with the topic of this section. Be prepared to share your thoughts with the class. b) Why do you think children play such a decisive role when it comes to shopping decisions? c) Study one of the graphs in detail. Describe it carefully and point out trends and developments. Listening: A taboo topic You are going to listen to a radio programme on marketing strategies for children. First you will have 45 seconds to study the task below, then you will hear the recording twice. While listening, choose the correct answer (A, B, C or D) for each question (1–5). Put a cross ( ✘ ) in the correct box. The first one (0) has been done for you. 0 How do the adverts from the fifties and seventies differ from today’s adverts? a) They were much more effective than today’s clips. b) It was not allowed to show children in adverts. c) There were no adverts for sweets or chocolate. d) Children openly asked their parents to buy a certain product. ✘ 1 What was the conference NOT about? a) How to find out more about children’s needs and interests. b) How to make children ask their parents to buy a certain product. c) How to use new media to successfully promote products. d) How to place products in schools and educational facilities. 2 Why is it interesting for many companies to target their marketing at children? a) Because children usually know a lot more about trendy products than their parents. b) Because children get much more pocket money nowadays than they used to. c) Because parents often buy products their children favour. d) Because parents often ask their children for their opinion about important decisions. 1 Child’s level of in uence with purchasing decisions 49% 14% 2% 35% Source: Octagon First Call Very influential Influential Not very influential Zero impact 6–11-year-olds’ weekday media use TV Games PC DVD MP3/CD Radio Less than 1 hour 1–3 hours 3–5 hours 5+ hours Source: Fly Research 9% 41% 21% 30% 32% 37% 14% 18% 41% 34% 12% 12% 51% 29% 12% 8% 56% 25% 8% 10% 72% 19% 6% 3 % Base: Young Australians 6–13; Category “I mainly decide” 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% CDs bought Clothes for me Videos/DVDs hired Magazines bought Brand of chips Shoes for me Computer/Console games bought Type of breakfast cereals Games bought Toys bought 53% 53% 46% 42% 41% 41% 3 % 37% 35% 33% 2 3.1 84 Big money Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv