1. BY: BRUCE HOROVITZ 11/22/06 BA 499 CHELSEA SMITH KEVIN STONE “Six Strategies Marketers Use To Get Kids To Want Stuff Bad”

2. Declining Toy Sales Half of all kid-targeted toys bought in final quarter Kids 14 years & under will influence $160 billion spending in Nov & Dec Toy sales dipped 2% to $21.9 billion  Plush toys down by 14%  Board games down by 8% In 2005, marketers spent $1.4 billion per month marketing to children  15% more than the year before

3. 1. Techie Wish Lists Wal-Mart’s website with elves Helps create a culture of nagging 52% of consumers agreed Wal- Mart goes too far with its holiday website

4. 2. Repetitive TV Spots Usually 30-second TV commercials Typical kid watches 20 hours of TV weekly 8 weeks leading up to Christmas are known as the “hard eight”  Prices jump for slots on kid shows  Toy ads replace cereal ads

5. 3. Big-Screen Hype Using movies for toy licensing “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest”  50 toys from key chains to boats linked to the film  Toys for kids as young as 6

6. 4. Books As Toys Scholastic  Turning from books to toys and games  Toys and games are being packaged with books

7. 5. Faux Toy Shortages Elmo plush doll introduced in Sept. 2006  Sold 250,000 dolls in one day causing a shortage Planned shortages create a buzz and sense of urgency

8. 6. Bus Radio Bus Radio  Student-targeted programming of music, news, & commercials  Rolling out to about 800 school buses in 12 cities  8 minutes per hour devoted to commercials  Ad revenue shared with school districts

9. Discussion Questions Do you think it’s unethical to market towards children? Should commercials and advertisements be allowed in schools?

10. Works Cited Horovitz, Bruce. "Six Strategies Marketers Use to Get Kids to Want Stuff Bad - USATODAY.com." News, Travel, Weather, Entertainment, Sports, Technology, U.S. & World - USATODAY.com. USA Today, 22 Nov. 2006. Web. 17 Feb. 2012..