Advertising has been known to play a vital role in the increase in the sale of products due to the informational and persuasive roles of advertisements. Because of this, many marketers have put stress on the strategic developments in the advertisement that will aim at increasing sales. But it has always been a hot topic whether marketers implement ethical practices in advertisements when it comes to children and teenagers. Marketers have engaged in widespread children-targeted advertising to market products designed for children. Research has shown that advertising targeted at children and teenagers is effective in developing positive attitudes and behavior towards the products advertised. However, concerns have been surfacing regarding negative effects inflicted upon children due to increased advertising as they are highly impressionable.
This article will try to demonstrate that despite the negative effects that are inherent in advertising to children, it is possible for marketers to engage in ethical advertising to teenagers and children. My paper writer believes practicing ethical advertising will benefit both the advertisers and children and teenagers and mitigate any negative attributes of advertising.
Impact of Advertising
The children and teenager market are huge and therefore have become the most important demographics for marketers. Billions of dollars are therefore being spent by marketers each year on advertising to reach and attract this huge market segment. Advertising to children is a debatable issue as children are still developing, they are not able to discriminate what they see in commercials from facts and they can easily be influenced by advertisements.
Children and teenagers are vulnerable and due to the advancement of technologies, the transmission of a message is further enhanced instantly to them. It further promotes materialistic values among the very susceptible young ones. This strong value for wealth encouraged by advertisements is related to the lower levels of personal gratification and high levels of distress in the individual.
Advertising today
It is because of advertising today that children have gained the perception that they are inferior if they cannot have the several new products that are being advertised to them. The materialism promoted by advertisements is an extension to the adulthood years of the child. Hence contributing to the consumerism culture in the United States.
Exposure to a commercial promotes to the child’s desire for the particular product that has been advertised. The major intent of advertisements is to attempt to change the attitudes, behaviors and cognitions of children through targeted advertising. It is through advertisement that children’s recall or recognition of the advertised brand is raised. This often manipulates the mindset of the children and teenagers leading to behavioral effects such as children demand on buying the product.
Advertisements of food products influences the eating habits of children by influencing their choice in foods. They promote unhealthy eating due to the undue advertisement of fast foods, junk foods and sugary goods. Studies have indicated that exposure to commercial food advertising among 5 and 10-year-old children directly influenced breakfast food and snack preferences. There are several implications in the lifestyle and health of the children and teenagers because of unethical advertising.
Psychological Principles
Marketers of today’s date are taking the help of psychologists to improve their understanding of children and teens and their response to advertisements. It has been found that marketers are increasing their effectiveness in coming up with advertisements that influence children with the help of psychologists.
Marketers rely on the development frameworks entrenched by developmental psychologists to build their advertisements for maximum influence. The cognitive and information processing skills of children are different based on different phases of their age. By considering the psychological principles, advertisers effectively influence consumerism in children. They are also able to change their persuasive tactics to befit the development stage of the children. And teenagers being targeted by an advertisement.
Conflict of Interest & Misleading Approach in Advertisements
The success of trade comes from an interest of a purchaser. And research had shown that such interest is often developed by marketers and advertisers in an unethical approach. One such approach includes cultivating children desire by continuously enriching children purview to an extent of homogenizing them to be part of the market segment. And legitimately, teenagers and children turn out thobe a sustainable target. By constantly misleading children and teens from intricate advertisement content. In their young ages could lead to some undesirable social values such as materialism and materialistic. The result is so prominent. They are unable to resist the attraction of purchasing the products that are promoted by starring kids’ celebrities. Famous cartoon characters, movie characters. As they believe it could provide exaggerated qualities and quantities All this leads to unethical consumerism. And insatiable demand for products and nonetheless amount of wasteful money.
In long term, when consumers realize that such unethical conducts are made to lure them into purchasing unwanted items for their children. They would stop purchasing which will result in shrinking of sales and less profits for the companies. Therefore, it is this misleading and conflict of interest that leads to loss. Which affects advertisers’ marketing mix in terms of price, product, promotion and placement. Therefore, it is in the best interests for the marketers to lessen the unhealthy food. And lifestyle advertisement content and promote valuable and healthier lifestyle. That will promote towards the integrity of the advertisement’s message when targeting the youth.
Ethical Advertising
As per the essay writer help, marketers should focus on the valuable role of advertisements to attract consumers. The role of advertisements is to inform consumers about the products being offered. It is through advertising that children can learn about the products available to them. Ethical advertising enables the building of brand credibility and loyalty with its customers. It will further prevent negative impacts that unethical advertising might impose on the advertiser as well as consumers.
With that aspect, professional consultancy can play an important role in ethical advertising to children. This will help marketers to come up with the most efficient. And effective advertisements keeping in mind the integrity and effects it will have on children. It will also help marketers to adhere to government regulations.
The Federal Trade Commission is authorised body that regulates advertising in the US. It prescribes standards and requirements on the advertising industry. It also requires marketers to produce some evidence to validate the claims being made in the advertisement. The FTC also restricts advertisers from creating content that are meant to mislead the consumers. All these will assure ethical advertising by brands.
Conclusion
Thus, we prove that it is possible to engage in ethical advertising to children. It all starts with acknowledging that children constitute a major demographics of the market for commercial organizations. And thus following effective and ethical advertising will not impose harmful repercussions on children in the growing phase. E paper has highlighted that advertisements have a major impact on children. Who are in the developmental stage and teens who are vulnerable. Unethical advertising significantly exploits children. However, ethical advertising will mitigate the negative effects and will benefit both marketers and consumers. o know more you can get help from an essay writing service to get more details about the subject and draft a good report on this.
Read more article or details Click here