In sociology this week we learned how the media creates a consumer culture. Ads are in influx everywhere: movies, billboards, video games, and TV, just to name a few. Thus it is not surprising that people grow up in a world where product placement is rampant. Just take for example the fact that we say Kleenex and Q-tip. Neither of those are the names of the product; they are the names of the brand. However, our society has become so accustomed and influenced by these products, that the brands have surpassed the actual product in terms of usage!
The scariest trend of consumer culture has to be in our children. From the day they are born, kids are bombarded with toys, clothes, and food advertising companies. They are too young to understand that they are being advertised to, so they suck them right up. By the time they begin to realize what advertising is, it is too late. They are already hooked on the brand. Odds are, they wont move away from the brand for a long time, if ever. For me, that got-to-have product as a child was Beanie Babies. I was obsessed with them. I collected soo many of them, I still have them all in a box in my closet! I remember waiting in line to buy the new ones, and eating repeatedly at McDonalds when Beanie Baby Minis were the Happy Meal Toys. I was too young to understand I was being advertised too, but I was hooked. And through smart product integration, McDonalds walked away with a hefty sum of my parents money as a result!
I agree with you Pual that kids just follow what they see in advertising. Also, I like the way you said,"They are too young to understand that they are being advertised to, so they suck them right up. By the time they begin to realize what advertising is, it is too late.". That is true but you did nice job of explaining how it effect on child.
ReplyDeleteI really liked all you said. I feel like i was robbed of having a choice when i was a child. It is so true that when we are so young we don't even understand that we are immediatly targeting and we are already lost in a world of advertising before we even know what any of it actually means.
ReplyDeleteGood post! It's horrible how kids are tricked to think by marketers that special brand names taste better and are "cooler" than regular ones when this is not the case. Your right kids are being sucked right up by marketers!
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