“Mommy, I want it!” How many times have you been at the grocery store and you a kid nagging his mother to buy him a piece of candy? This happens so often that marketers have a term for it. They call it “pester power.”
Marketers understand that children have no disposable income but if they bombard them with advertisements, they can get children to annoy their parents until they buy them what they want.
There was a study in the UK that come out recently that found that half of the food and drinks that use cartoon characters to appeal to children are unnecessarily high in fat, saturated fat, sugar and salt.
The study goes on to say that manufacturers and retailers are using pester power to manipulate children and parents into purchasing food that is dangerously healthy for them.
One in five of the over 500 products they examined used licensed characters such as famous Disney princesses and Peppa Pig that are easily recognizable by young children. It is easy to blame the parents but these marketers rely on the fact the overworked parents are willing to bribe their children for some peace and quiet.
Perhaps these children will benefit from the changes in snacking trends and as more healthy snack options become available, unhealthy snacks will eventually be boxed out.
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