Marketing has a profound affect on the foods we eat and the beverages we drink, yet most of that marketing is for products we should avoid. BMSG monitors the media to help keep advocates informed of the tactics food and beverage companies use to target children, communities of color, and other groups that are particularly susceptible to the health harms these products cause. Below are archives of our monitoring.
Source: AdWeek on November 13, 2012
A marketing consultant has written a book on target marketing. She argues that marketing to communities of color has typically been an "afterthought" and that, instead, "marketing has to evolve into a cultural competency."Source: Advertising Age on November 12, 2012
As consumers embrace snacking and get more of their nutrition this way, companies are leveraging the trend through product promotional tactics. The snack bar market, for example, has more than doubled in the last ten years.Source: Chicago Tribune on November 12, 2012
After helping to defeating soda taxes that would lower consumption of diabetes-linked products, Coke uses a "corporate social responsibility" (CSR) campaign to distract from its role in harming health and tell consumers that diabetes is a matter of personal responsibility.Source: Warc on November 12, 2012
Sophisticated data collection on consumers allows marketers to use automated systems to determine digital advertising. An industry group predicts that this type of ad strategy will account for half of digital advertising by 2017.Source: Food Politics on November 12, 2012
Marion Nestle explains the use of product-based marketing to convince parents to buy specialty products for children, and concludes: "Families can all eat the same foods."Source: Advertising Age on November 12, 2012
Marketers are finding they can no longer take a one-size-fits-all approach to advertising their products. They're pouring resources into figuring out how to market what to whom. The article contains an excellent visual infographic on the changing product mix demanded by consumers at the grocery store.Source: Advertising Age on November 12, 2012
Campbell and Frito-Lay are leading the effort to get inside the minds of 18-to-34-year-olds in order to figure out how best to sell them things. "We eat with them. We cook with them. We bar hop with them," said a Campbell exec. Frito-Lay gave Millennials glasses outfitted with cameras to track their behavior.Source: QSR Magazine on November 12, 2012
The national outreach director for St. Jude praised Domino's for what he called its "commitment to the lifesaving mission of [the children's hospital]." It might be better for children's health if Domino's didn't sell the items contained in the fundraising combo: 2 pizzas, cheese bread, and 2 liters of Coke.Source: ABC News Australia on November 12, 2012
The Obesity Policy Coalition sent a report to federal health ministers, calling on them to enforce the restriction of junk food marketing to children. The Coalition's leader said advertising to kids is a key driver in the obesity epidemic and there is a clear conflict of interest when industry self-regulates.Source: PR Newswire on November 09, 2012
The 13-week national challenge involves 24 DJs, each of which represents a region of the country and a McDonald's burger. The campaign is part of McDonalds 365Black initiative, which "celebrate[s] the pride, heritage and achievements of African-Americans year round."
