There are positive and negative implications to TV advertising on children, for both marketers and the children who view the advertisements. Marketers are affected by the broadcasting laws for advertising on TV to children. There are many stereotypical roles presented to boys and girls within adverting today. These advertisements show children how society views their gender stereotypes in different categories. Young boys can be seen to play in a more active role than girls with diggers and cars, where as girls are displayed in a more nurturing and caring role playing with dolls or in miniature kitchen play sets. Presenting these stereotypes to children at such a young age can have a greater effect on them in their later years. It can effect the way they think about themselves and impact their judgement on others if the standards of society are not met.
TV advertising content has become more restricted because parents are concerned about the inappropriate content that are exposed to children through advertisements on the TV, the messages that will influence a child's attitude, cognition and behavior, and encouragement of violence or harm. Some countries have broadcast codes that suggest that TV advertisements should not contain exaggerated claims that will mislead or deceive children, abuse their trust or lack the understanding of persuasive intent in an advertisement. Another implication for marketers would be that children do not possess the same attention towards advertising, as an adult would. When children are exposed to the first few seconds of an ad, these seconds are vital because it will determine the attentiveness of the child throughout the advertisement. It is important for marketers who are targeting children, to take into consideration, the actors, entertainment value, and quality of words and images used to keep children engaged throughout the advertisement. Although children have shorter attention spans from adults when viewing TV advertisements, they have better recognition of products and brands.[citation needed]
Studies say that it is common for parents to be pestered by their children for the product they have seen on TV. This is a result of children feeling the need to conform through pressure created by their friends. A study showed that Mothers are more likely to purchase a product for their children due to the emotional appeal of advertisements and marketers are taking advantage of a Mothers response to their children reacting to an advertisement shown on TV. This emotional manipulation is an implication of TV advertising to children because marketers are exploiting the bond between a mother and her child.
An implication inflicted on children through TV advertising outweighs the effects on marketers because the factor that affect a child's well-being and relationship with their parents. For instance, children have developed aggressive behaviour because parents have denied their request to purchase products advertised on TV, which has created weak relationships between children and parents. Some children may not be able to comprehend the persuasive intent of an advertisement and do not necessarily feel pressured but are at risk of deception. Some argue that companies should stop targeting children with advertisements because children have become brand savvy from being constantly exposed to them on a daily basis and pestering their parents to purchase a certain product. People argue that it is important for children to develop analytical skills of consumerism and children should know the distinction between advertising and other media content, so they are not vulnerable to manipulation.
Source:Wiki
