As you may recall, we had a look at Pepsi last week and how the company is considering new logos for its soft drink line. Today, we turn to Pepsi’s biggest competitor, the Coca-Cola Company.
Coca-Cola has been charged several times by the public for marketing its products directly at impressionable young people. I think that we’d all agree that drinking a can of Coke every day is probably not the best idea for your health and this issue is further intensified when it comes to children. It’s a result of this push toward healthy living that we are seeing more and more schools get rid of vending machines and pop machines, replacing them with healthy snacks and healthy drinks.
When asked about its marketing efforts, most Coke representatives will say that the company has never targeted children specifically. They say that they never buy advertising during television programs that are catering specifically to children, like early morning cartoons and other educational content. They focus on “family-oriented” time slots, because the assumption is that a responsible adult is there with the child.
At the same time, we’ve got to wonder about some of the marketing efforts used by Coca-Cola, because they take on an appearance that seems to cater to children, like the use of Santa Claus and the cute polar bear cubs during the Christmas holiday season. Are these ads aimed to get Coke converts out of children? Do you feel that Coke is marketing its products specifically to children?
Years ago, television commercials for cigarette companies were banned for a similar reason. You could say that Joe Camel was trying to make cigarettes “cool” for young children. Is Coke doing the same thing with its polar bears and Santa? Or is this all fair game?
Vadim
November 6, 2008 7:13 pm
Of course they market to children, because of their market potential. They are not alone in this. MacDonalds market to children too with their clowns and playgrounds.
Andrew. Estate Planning.
November 6, 2008 7:39 pm
I have mixed feelings about restricting how companies can advertise. There’s a point where we have to let people make their own decisions regardless of the outcome.
Webkinz
November 7, 2008 7:20 am
I wish they would market Diet Coke to kids more. Childhood obesity is getting out of hand.
blogadmin
November 7, 2008 8:52 am
or how about pumping flavoured water with 0 calories and calcium.?
Water 2.0?
Chris
November 9, 2008 11:32 am
I don’t see the problem. I look at it from two angles. 1) A guy who writes ads for a living. 2) The parent of a 5 year old.
You can market to kids all you want. Reality is, young children should be with a responsible adult when they’re at the store. Someone who can say, “NO.” Yes, it increases the odds that the kid will whine and pester for {insert product here} … but all THAT does is increase the odds that the adult in charge of the kid will a) say no. And b) stop buying that product.
The problem isn’t the advertising to the child … it’s the inability of parents to say NO to their precious spoiled kidlets.
Does my daughter get pop? On occasion. But we keep fruit juice and water for her to drink too. It OUR responsibility as parents to make sure she isn’t filled with a diet of junk food and crap. It’s OUR responsibility to say NO when it’s appropriate. Seems to be working alright for me. My kid likes to drink water and eat fruit and veggies. Sure, she likes candy and snacks, but only when we let her have ‘em.
It’s not an advertiser’s responsibility to make your choices for you. It’s YOUR responsibility. If you know pop is bad for your kid’s health – SAY NO! It’s a simple concept dating back centuries … long before swanky animated TV polar bears and penguins.