Marketing Cereal to Children
Most children would remember waking up on Saturday morning just to watch television. Usually, this weekly dose of excitement would not be complete with a bowl of cereal with milk. This is why food manufacturers have children in mind when selling cereal through advertising; of course, this has been the case for a long time. I had stated in the September 29 reading on advertising that children have been the target of ad executives since the 1930s, which is why products such as breakfast cereal are such an easy sell on Saturday mornings. However, concerns usually come up regarding the health value of children's cereal. Using the binary of healthy/unhealthy, I will explore how perspectives in selling cereal have changed over time.
Unhealthy Medium: [*]
Unhealthy Medium: [*]
The advertisement was produced for Kellogg's Rice Krispies in 1939, at a time when high sugar and cholesterol percentages were an afterthought. As long as the kids at the table were enjoying the taste, nothing else seemed to matter. The cartoon characters Snap, Crackle and Pop only serve as a further distraction.
Rating: 5
Healthy Medium: [*]
Rating: 5
Healthy Medium: [*]
Although this more recent spot does not explicitly target children, the "whole grain" label is being applied to all the children's cereals in General Mills' collection, including Trix, Lucky Charms, Cap'n Crunch and Cinnamon Toast Crunch. This is meant to guide parents when buying cereal for their own children to consume. The validity of the "whole grain" label as a healthy alternative is up for debate, but it is a step in the right direction.
Rating: 7
Rating: 7