Marketing to Kids:Bad and Good

Posted by Susan Carney Feb 16, 2007

Today I found out that R.J. Reynolds is launching a new cigarette aimed at female smokers called Camel No. 9. The premise is that the regular Camel brands weren't attracted enough female smokers, so they did some prettying up and this is the result. As someone who works with kids, I was angry. I feel that the packaging and promotion of this product is clearly designed for teenage girls. Period. It’s hard enough to mount effective anti tobacco campaigns for youth. Sites like The Truth and Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids do a wonderful job at getting the word out about big tobacco, marketing, and the health risks. But tobacco companies, with their millions, at times seem an undefeatable enemy. Please check out my article New Cigarettes Target Girls for more info on this new campaign. For info on tobacco related youth activism ideas, please see Kick Butts Day is Coming.

On the more positive side of marketing to kids: This week I had occasion to check out a video entitled “Evolution” on Dove’s “Campaign For Real Beauty” website. I think it’s been around awhile, and I wish I’d found it sooner. The short film shows, through time-lapse photography, an average looking woman getting a complete makeover in less than a minute. The second part of the film shows how even this seemingly perfect “after” version is further manipulated and adjusted through computer technology, resulting in a billboard worthy goddess. The tag line reads, “How Did Our Idea of Beauty Become So Distorted?” How indeed! These are the images we see every day, resulting in many girls feeling that they don’t measure up. Who can blame them? With these kinds of images in our faces 24/7, we often wind up with a skewed idea about what is “normal”. Check out the video for yourself, or better yet, with a young person you care about, and start a dialogue about the fantasy projected in advertising. This week, we are looking a bit deeper into the issue of how you can help girls develop positive body image, a topic we will cover from numerous angles in the coming months.