Earlier this semester we discussed Vannevar Bush’s article “As We May Think,” which states that the human brain organizes information through associative memory. This idea treats the mind as a web of nodes with connections all over the place. One thing can be connected to a related (or different) topic. For example, the sight of an apple tree could cause someone to think of pies. The manipulation of this web is a goal of advertising. For example, when Tide runs a detergent ad, it hopes that you’ll think of Tide when you see detergent. Who companies target and how they establish connections are marketing challenges. Often, children are targeted through cross promotion.

The goal of cross promotion is to establish links between two brands. This is different from traditional advertising, where the marketer attempts to create a link between a product type and a brand. The benefit of cross promotion can be seen in an example. Let’s say three things cause a person to think of product A and 2 things bring up the thought of B. If a connection can be established between the two brands, then five things can lead to each product. It’s like a merger in the mind.

How children are targeted is described in Eric Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation. He describes Walt Disney as the pioneer in cross promotion because he issued licensing agreements that allowed other companies to use his characters in the 1930s. Walt’s idea continued for the rest of the century, both with his firm and others. For example, McDonalds has teamed up with multiple firms to help sell its Happy Meals. Some of the partnerships have been wildly successful. Schlosser notes that the Teenie Beanie Baby toys increased the sale of Happy Meals by a factor of 10 . Some other cross promotions include Burger King’s partnership with Teletubbies, and Taco Bell’s deal with the NCAA.

Advertisers view children as good targets for cross promotion because “brand loyalty” can be formed early. Schlosser states that “market research has found that children often recognize a brand logo before they can recognize their own name.” If you think bombarding children early to increase the success of a business seems cold, you are not alone. Over the years attempts to limit advertisements have been made. In 1978, the Federal Trade Commission tried to ban child advertising on television. This attempt failed. Others, however, have been more successful. In 2000, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act became effective. This legislation limits the amount of information companies can obtain from children under the age of 13.

Link to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act:
http://www.coppa.org/#
Link to a review of Fast Food Nation
http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/books/schlosser.html

Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the American Meal. Houghton Mifflin: Boston, 2001. Page 40.
Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation. Page 47.
Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation. Page 48.
Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation. Page 43.
Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation. Page 45-6.