It's Child's Play: Advergaming and the Online Marketing of Food to ...

The author would like to thank James Wilkie, Kyle Chamberlin, Victoria Blainey, Barbara McDonald, and Nicole Horne for their time,dedication and many contributions to this project.

At the Foundation, the project was directed by Victoria Rideout, vice president and director of the Foundation’s Program for the Study of Entertainment Media and Health.

A kAiser fAmily foundAtion report

elizAbeth s. mooreAssociAte professor of mArketing

universit y of notre dAme

july 2006

table of contents

IntRoDUctIon 1 ResearchPurpose 2

MetHoD 2 ResearchApproach 2

Sample 2

ResearchInstrument 3

DataAnalysis 4

oVeRVIeW of fInDInGs 4aDVeRGaMes 5 DistributionofGamesacrossWebsites 5

CategoriesofGames 5

BrandExposures 6

ChoicesinGamePlay 6

FeaturestoExtendGamePlay 7

bRanD eXPosURes beYonD tHe GaMes 8 NumberofBrandVariants 8

PrevalenceofBrandIdentifiers 8

TelevisionCommercials 9

TwoKeyCategoriesofAdvertisingClaims 10

1.BrandBenefitClaims 10

2.NutritionalClaimsandInformation 11

cUstoMIZInG tHe VIsItoR’s eXPeRIence 12 WebsiteMembership 13

WebsiteCommunities 14

ViralMarketing 15

OtherAttemptstoPersonalize 16

MaRketInG PaRtneRsHIPs 17 MediaTie-Ins 17

PromotionsandSponsorships 19

eDUcatIonal content 20eXtenDInG tHe onlIne eXPeRIence 21 Provisionof“Extra”Brand-RelatedItems 22

ForgingLinkstoProductConsumption 23

ExpandingUsageOccasionswithNewRecipes 25

LinkstoOtherWebsites 27

WebsIte PRotectIons foR cHIlDRen 26 PrivacyProtectionsandAgeBlocks 26

InformationforParents 26

“AdBreak”Reminders 27

sUMMaRY anD conclUsIons 27RefeRences 30enDnotes 32tables 35fIGURes 41aPPenDIces 49

KA ISER FAMILY FOUNDAT ION 3 �

IntRoDUctIon

Advertising is a pervasive presence in the lives of mostAmerican children. Estimates suggest that young peoplewatchover threehoursof televisionperday (Roberts,FoehrandRideout2005)andareexposedtoanywherefrom23,000to40,000televisioncommercials inasingleyear(FTC/DHHS2006; Kunkel 2001). Emerging media such as the Internethavefurtherexpandedadvertising’sreachandoffernovelop-portunitiestotargetthisyoungaudience. Estimatessuggestthat98%ofchildren’ssitespermitadvertising,andthatmorethantwo-thirdsofwebsitesdesignedforchildrenrelyonadver-tisingfortheirprimaryrevenue(Neuborne2001).Commerciallysponsored websites containing games and promotions de-signedforchildrenarealsoanemergingforceontheInternet.

Concernaboutchildren’sabilitytocomprehendandcriti-callyevaluate thesesalesmessageshasstimulated researchanddebate formore thanthreedecades. Thescopeof thisdebatehasbroadenedinrecentyearsasnewadvertisingven-ueshavebecomeavailable.Withthesignificantriseinlevelsofchildhoodobesity,particularquestionsarebeingraisedaboutthe impacts of food marketing. Two comprehensive studieshaverecentlybeenpublished,onebytheInstituteofMedicineintheU.S.,andanotherbytheFoodStandardsAgencyintheU.K.whichattempttoassessmarketing’scontributiontotheobesityproblemthroughareviewoftheexistingempiricalevi-dence(Hastings2003;InstituteofMedicine2005).Byneces-sity,thesereviewsareheavilyfocusedontheimpactsoftelevi-sionadvertisingbecause this hasbeen theprimary researchemphasisovertime.Relativelylittleisknownaboutthenatureandeffectsofemergingmediasuchas the Internet,productplacementsorbuzzmarketing.Yet,commentatorsonallsidesoftheissuerecognizethatthepictureisincomplete,andthatthemanynewformsofmarketingactivitytargetedatchildrenneedtobeinvestigatedaswell.

OneoftheperceivedstrengthsoftheInternetisitscapac-itytoengenderhighlevelsofinterestandengagement.Con-sumershavetoseekoutdesiredcontent,andinteractwithitinsomeway.Thisisaninherentlyactiveprocess:surfingthroughawebsitedemandsacontinuingseriesofdecisionsandac-tions. It is this feature thatdistinguishes the Internet fromamore passive medium like television. Rather than capturingchildren’s attention for 30 seconds, the advertiser may nowengagechildren forseveralminutes in thispotentiallypower-ful,interactivemedium.Someestimatessuggest,forexample,thatvisitorsspendanaverageof25minutesonagamingsite(e.g,Bertrim2005;FattahandPaul2002;Pereira2004).1Sitesfor children are designed to be playful and highly involving,with“brandimmersion”asanessentialobjective(FerrazziandBenezra2001;Goetzl2006).

Articlesappearinginthebusinesspressgenerallysuggestthat“advergames”areacommonfeatureonwebsitesdesignedfor,andvisitedbychildren.Theseadvertiser-sponsoredvideogamesembedbrandmessagesincolorful,fun,andfast-pacedadventures.Theyarecreatedbyafirmfortheexplicitpurposeofpromotingoneormoreofitsbrands.Thisisevidentinthetermitself,whichisderivedfromcombiningthewords“adver-tisement”and “videogame” (Grossman2005). Advergamesareaparticular formof“brandedentertainment”which is theinsertion of a brand within an entertainment property (e.g.,productplacementinfilm,televisionshoworvideogame).Insodoing,thelinesbetweenentertainmentandadvertisingbe-comeblurred.

Childrenappeartobewillingconsumersofthesemarket-ing communications. Approximately 64% of children (ages5–14)whoaccesstheInternetdosotoplaygames(U.S.Dept.of Education 2003). More than 13.1 million children ages 2to11usetheInternet,andtheirnumbersare increasingrap-idly (Larson2004). Nielsen/NetRatings reported that usageamong2–11year-olds increased34% inOctober2005overthesametimeperiodtheyearbefore(Goetzl2006).Evenveryyoungchildrenareactiveparticipants.Sixty-sixpercentof4–6yearoldsliveinhomeswithInternetaccess,56%canusethecomputerbythemselves,and30%havevisitedawebsiteforchildren(Rideout,VandewaterandWartella2003).

Branded entertainment is a fast-growing and potentiallyhighlyeffectiveway to reachconsumers inuniqueandcom-pellingways.Growthinthisareaisbeingdrivenbyadesireinthemarketingcommunitytoparticipateinthedevelopmentofallformsofentertainment(O’Guinn,AllenandSemenik2006).Advergaming itself is expanding very rapidly. A recent PriceWaterhouseCoopersestimateprojectsafive-foldincreaseby2009 over current spending levels (quoted in Bertrim 2005).Major advertising agencies such as Young & Rubicam andStarcomMediahave recently launchednewvideogamedivi-sionstoservethisemergingclientneed.

Beyonditspowertocreatebrandengagement,theInternethasseveraladditionaladvantagesfromamarketer’sperspective.First,itisacost-effectivewaytodeliverabrandmessage(Bertrim2005). While thecost toaira televisioncommercial in2004rangedfromapproximately$7toover$30perthousandviewers(depending on the daypart), there are no media distributioncostsonceawebsitehasbeencreated.Estimatessuggestthatwhendevelopmentcostsarespreadacrossgameplayers,anadvergamecancostlessthan$2perthousandusers(Pereira2004).So,therearerealeconomicefficienciestobegained.ThetechnologyoftheInternetalsoprovidesaudiencetracking

� 4 IT’S ChILD’S PLAY: ADvERgAMINg AND ThE ONLINE MARKETINg OF FOOD TO ChILDREN

capabilities.Whileitcanbedifficultforamarketertogaugetheimpactofatelevisioncommercial,theInternetallowsamuchmorepreciseassessment viameasuressuchas thenumberofvisitors,timespentonasite,repeatvisits,etc.Atamorefundamentallevel,theInternetcanserveasacentralorganizingplatform for an entire integrated marketing communicationsprogram (Aaker 2002). It can be used to create synergiesamongvariousbrandbuildingprogramssothatthetotalimpactisgreaterthanitwouldotherwisebe.

Forchildren,an“advergaming”websitecanbeaplacetoplay,andtoexplore.Asaformofmediatedcommunication,it departs in significant ways from television, the mediumadvertisers have traditionally used to reach children. As aresult,questionshavebeenraisedaboutchildren’scapacitytointerpretandassesscommercialmessagesinthisenvironment(e.g., Montgomery 2001). With more and more childrengravitating to the Internet,greater insight into thenatureandimpactsofthesewebsitesisneeded.

Research Purpose Although questions have been raised about the natureand impact of “advergaming” websites, there have been nosystematicempiricalanalysesofthisnewmodeofcommunicatingwith children. Within the last year, a numberof efforts havebeen initiated by business, government, self-regulatory andconsumeradvocacygroups to review thispractice (seee.g.,Harkin2005;Mayer2006;NationalAdvertisingReviewCouncil2005). However, to thispoint thesegroupshavehadto relyprimarilyonanecdotalevidenceintheirtreatmentoftheissue.

Thus, the purpose of this research is to obtain anaccurate depiction of the state of one key aspect of foodmarketingcommunicationsthataretargetingchildrenonline:child-orientedcontentoncorporatewebsites.Todoso,anin-depthanalysisof contenton such siteswasconducted(e.g.,MasterFoods’skittles.com;Wrigley’sjuicyfruit.com).

Althoughfoodadsarealsoplacedonothertypesofwebsitesforchildren(e.g.,nick.com,neopets.com)thesesitesarebeyondthescopeofthisstudy.GiventhepaucityofevidenceonthetopicofInternet-basedadvertisingtochildren,thecurrentstudyshouldsignificantlyadvanceunderstandingofthisnon-traditionalmarketingapproach.Conceptually,itwilllikelystimulateanalysisof the apparent blurring of boundaries between advertisingandentertainment,and its implications forpersuadingyoungconsumers.

MetHoD

Research approach Toaccomplishtheseobjectives,acontentanalysisofmajorfoodadvertisers’websiteswasconductedduringthesummerand fall of 2005. This is an observational research methodused to scientifically analyze communications. A contentanalysisisastudyofthemessage,ratherthantheintentofthecommunicatorortheperceptionsoftheaudience(Kassarjian1977). Thus, the focus is on the essential properties of thestimuli itself. Given theevolvingnatureof the Internetasanadvertisingmedium, it isparticularly important togain insightintowhatchildrenencounterwhen they visit thesewebsites.As a research method, content analysis has been appliedto a wide range of topics in the social sciences, as well asadvertisingissues(e.g.,Alexanderetal.1998;BelkandPollay1985;MaherandChilds2003).Itproducesananalysisthatisobjective,systematicandquantifiable(Kassarjian1977;KolbeandBurnett1991).

sample Atotalof96brandswereidentifiedascandidatesforthestudy.Anumberofsystematicstepsweretakentoidentifythesebrands,andtolocaterelevantwebsites.Thesestepsaredetailedbelow.

Selection of Product Categories and Brands. A keyobjectiveintheselectionprocesswastoidentifyfoodbrandsthathavebeenheavilyadvertisedtochildren.Becausetelevisionhas been the primary medium used to reach children, TVadvertisingexpendituresduring“children’sprogramming”wereusedtonamerelevantcandidates.Designationasa“children’sprogram” isbasedon informationsuppliedbyTribuneMediaServices(TMS).TheFeaturesDepartmentofTMSdetermineson a weekly basis which television shows are intended forchildrenbasedon information suppliedby thenetworksandcablechannels.Severalweeksoftheirlistingswereexamined,andthefollowingmedia:(1)Saturday/SundaymorningnetworkTV, (2) Daytime (M–F) network TV (including early morning,daytime,andearlyfringe/news),and(3)CableTV(alldayparts)together account for all children’s programming listings (withtheexceptionof theDisneyChannel,whichdoesnotpermitfoodadvertising).

To identify foods advertised in these media, CompetitiveMedia Reports (CMR) data from 1999–2003 was reviewed.2AppendixAlistsallcategoriesoffoodsadvertisedinthosemediaduringthatfive-yeartimeperiod.Todeterminewhichoftheseproduct categories were potentially relevant to the study, twojudges independentlycodedeverybrandadvertisedaseither


achildren’sbrand(uptoage12)oranadultbrand.Allbrandsthateitherexplicitlytargetchildren,orwhosecommunicationswerelikelytobeofinteresttothem,werecodedaschildren’sbrands. To be as inclusive as possible, brands that werepromotedtoamoregeneralaudience(i.e.,childrenandteens,childrenandadults)werecodedaschildren’sbrands.Brandswhose marketing communications appeared to be targetedsolely at parents were coded as adult brands even thoughchildren may be consumers of these products (e.g., infantfoods). Inter-coder reliability for this classification was 94%,anddisagreementswereresolvedthroughdiscussion.

Analysis then proceeded for all product categories inwhich any children’s brands appeared (see Appendix A forlisting).Tosimplifytheanalysis,someproductcategoriesweresubsequentlycombined(e.g.,candyandgum).3Thisresultedin a set of 12 product categories including: (1) breads andpastries,(2)candyandgum,(3)breakfastcereals,(4)cookiesandcrackers,(5)fruitjuicesandothernon-carbonateddrinks,(6) icecreamandfrozennovelties, (7)peanutbutterandjelly,(8)preparedfoodsandmeals,(9)restaurants,(10)saltysnacks,(11)carbonatedsoftdrinks,and(12)othersnacks(e.g.,yogurt,fruitsnacks,granolabars).

Significant variation in market structure (i.e. number ofbrandentrants,andmarketshare)existsacrosstheseproductcategories.Asaresult,specificbrandswereselectedineachcategory on the basis that they fell within the top 80–85%of television advertising expenditures for that product class(based on the Competitive Media Reports data from 1999–2003). Thus, the emphasis is on the food brands in eachproductcategorythathavetraditionallybeenheavyadvertiserstochildren.Ninety-sixbrandswereidentified:thesearelistedinAppendixB.4

Selection of Websites. Websites for these brands wereincludedinthestudyiftheprimaryaudiencewasjudgedtobechildren (up toage12),or ifasite incorporatedcontent thatwouldlikelyappealtoayoungaudience(evenifteen-oradult-focusedcontentwasemphasized).5Forexample,thewonka.comsiteclearlyemphasizesactivitiesforchildren.Asapointofcomparison,thehersheys.comsitehassubstantialcontentforanadultaudiencesuchasrecipes,promotionsandcorporateinformation, yet also includes games, downloadable items,crafts, and e-cards likely to be of interest to children. Bothof these typesofwebsitesare included in thestudysample.Websites not officially affiliated with a study brand were notincludedinthestudy(e.g.,consumer-createdsites).Norwereinternationallybasedsites included intheanalysis. Asnotedearlier,child-orientedsitesthatacceptfoodadvertisementsbut

thataresponsoredbyanothertypeoffirm(e.g.,Nickelodeon’snick.com)werealsoexcluded.6Tobeincludedinthesample,awebsitehadtobesponsoredbyafoodmanufacturer. Sevendecisionrulesweredevelopedtolocatecorporate-sponsoredwebsites foreachof theoriginal96brands in thestudy.For14ofthesebrands,nositesmeetingthedecisioncriteriawerefoundandtheyweredroppedfromallsubsequentanalyses. Specific decision rules for selecting the sites aredetailed in Table 1. The most common way to locate siteswasbylookingatthebrand’spackagingforthewebaddress:53% of sites were identified by this method. Examples ofothersuccessfulapproachesincluded:(1)insertingthebrandname (e.g.,www.frootloops.com) into theaddress lineof thewebbrowser (47%hit rate), (2)searching from thecompanywebsitefor linkstoachildren’ssiteorgamingsection(45%),and(3)searchingthefirst10resultsproducedbyinsertingthebrandname into theGooglesearchengine (49%). Seventy-onepercentof thesamplewas locatedthroughtwoormoreapproaches,withsomeidentifiedbyasmanyasfiveorsixofthedecisionrules.Thus,thesiteswerenotdifficulttofind.Thissearchprocessproduceda totalof77websites. Given thatsomesitescontainmultiplebrandsinthestudy(n=21)aswellasthefactthatsomebrandsappearonmultiplesites(n=22),thefinalsampleincludedatotalof107brand/sitepairs.

Research Instrument Althoughtheoriginalaimof thestudywasto investigate“advergaming” it quicklybecameapparent that thewebsitescontainedmanyadditionalactivitiesandattributesofpotentialinterest.Asaresult,anumberofwebsitefeaturesinadditiontospecificsaboutthegameswereincorporatedintothestudy(e.g.,viralmarketingattempts,childprotectionpolicies,mediatie-ins, promotions). A three-part coding instrument wasdeveloped to address this broader set of issues. The firstsectionfocusedongeneralaspectsofthewebsite;thesecondcentered on specific details about a study brand’s presenceonthesite,andthethirdsectionwasspecifictoeachwebsitegame. This instrumentwasdesigned tobecompletedasacoderstudiedthewebsite.

All pages of the study websites were coded.7 In theend, more than 4,000 unique web pages were coded. Theinstrumentwasthoroughlypre-tested,andnecessaryrevisionsweremadeinthespringof2005.Tosupplementthecodingofcontent,trafficdatawaspurchasedforeachofthewebsitesfromNielsen/NetRatings for thesecondquarterof2005 (for2–11year-olds).


Data analysis The study websites were independently coded by twojudges.8 At theoutset,each judgereceivedseveralhoursoftraining (approximately20hours)usingthesurvey instrumenttocodewebsites thatweresimilar to,butoutsideof, the re-searchsample.Aspartofthetrainingprocess,codersweregivendetailedwritten instructionsexplaininghoweachofthesurveyquestionswastobeinterpreted.Aftereachpreliminarysitewascoded,thejudgeswerebroughttogethertocomparetheir responses, review question definitions, and resolve anydisagreements.Therewereatotaloffivejudges.Teammeet-ings were also held in this early stage to address perceivedambiguitiesinspecificquestions.Throughthisprocess,asat-isfactory levelofpreliminaryagreementwasachievedamongeachpairofcoders(andwritteninstructionsweremodifiedasnecessary).Oncethetrainingprocesswascomplete,twocod-erswererandomlyassignedtoeachsite.Eachwebsitewasthen independentlycoded,anddisagreementswereresolvedthroughdiscussionaftercodingwascompletedbybothjudges.Screenshots(i.e.,pictures)werealsocapturedforallpagesoneachwebsite,whichwereusedtohelpresolvedisagreementsthatarose.Theaverageinter-judgeagreementlevelacrossthesetofquestionswas96%:therewerenosignificantdifferencesbetweenpairsofcoders.

oVeRVIeW of fInDInGs

Eighty-five percent of the brands originally identified forstudy have a website that either directly targets children, orcontainscontentthatwouldlikelybeofinteresttothem.Oneofthestrikingfeaturesthatemergedintheearlystagesofthisresearchistherangeofactivitiesavailableonthesewebsitesaswellasthelevelofdifferentiationacrossthem.

Although the research was initially focused on “adver-games” there were many additional dimensions on the sitesthatarelikelytobeofinteresttoaresearchaudience.Someofthesitesareverysimple,containingfewactivitiesorgames,andothersarequiteelaborate, incorporatingnotonlygamesbutfeaturessuchaspromotions,viralmarketingefforts,mem-bershipopportunities,aswellasmovieandtelevisiontie-ins.ItisalsothecasethatindividualmarketersareusingtheirInternetspaceindifferentways,someinafashionthatisovertlyinfor-mational,andothersinwaysthataremuchmorefocusedonfunandentertainment.Eachoftheseattributesofthesitesisexaminedinthesectionsthatfollow.Beforeturningtospecificfeatures,itmaybeusefultoidentifysomeofthemajorstruc-turalwaysinwhichthewebsitesvary.

For example, one of the key distinguishing characteris-ticsisthenumberoffoodbrandspresentonawebsite.Sev-enty-threepercentofthesitescontainedonlyasinglebrand.Amongtheremaining27%,asmanyas41foodbrandswerepresent (somemoreprominentlydisplayed thanothers). Onthesemulti-brandsites,therewasanaverageofninebrandspersite.Notallofthebrandsthatappearonthewebsiteswereincludedinthestudy(becausethefocuswasonheavyspend-ers).However, it isusefultokeepinmindthatasitevisitor’sexposuretofoodproductsmayextendintoanumberofprod-uctcategories,andacrossseveralbrands.

Thereisalsovariationintheprimaryaudiencefortheweb-sites.Althoughtheobjectiveofthestudywastofocusonweb-sitestargetingchildren,somesitesincorporatefeaturesthatarelikelytobeofinteresttoamoregeneralaudienceaswell.Forexample,somesitesemphasizedinformationforadultsorpar-ents (12%of thebrand/sitepairs),butchild-orientedcontentwasalsoembeddedwithinthesite(ofteninaseparatesection).Othersappearedtotargetteensdirectly(9%),buttherewereactivities including games, music and sports sponsorshipsthatwerelikelytoappealtoayoungeraudienceaswell.Sitesthatweredirectlycenteredonactivities forchildrencomprise68% of the sample. The remaining 11% contained contentsomeportionofwhichwouldlikelybeofinteresttoeachofthethreedemographicgroups. Insomeoftheanalysesthatfol-low,sitesemphasizingchild-andteen-orientedcontent(77%ofthesample)arecomparedtothosethatalsocontaincontentforadultsorforamoregeneralaudience(23%ofthesample).Whenwebsitesdifferonthebasisofaudiencecharacteristics,thisisnotedinthediscussionofspecificfindings.

To address the question of audience size, Nielsen/NetRatingsdataforthesecondquarterof2005wereused.Therewereatotalof12.2millionvisitsbychildrenages2–11acrossthesetofstudywebsitesduringthatthree-monthperiod.9

There were significant variations among the sites in thestudyintermsofthenumberofyoungvisitorstheyattracted.Inordertoexplorewhetherthereweredifferencesinthecon-tentandfeaturesbetweenthemorepopularandthelesspopu-larsites,theNielsendatawereusedtodividethesampleintotwogroupsbasedonaudiencesize.Thefirst,the“lowvisitors”group,represents73%ofthestudybrands.Thesecond,the“highvisitors”group,includesallremainingsites.Thesebrandsconstitute27%of thesample.10 The“highvisitor”and“lowvisitor”websitesinthestudysharemanyofthesamecharac-teristics, yet there are some discernable differences. Wheredifferencesareapparentbetweenthesetwogroups,theyarenotedinthepresentationofresults.


Thediscussionofspecificfindingsisorganizedintosevenmajortopics.Thefirst focusesonthegames, includingtheirfrequencyofoccurrence,varioustypes,andprominenceofthebrandlogoandproductpackagewithinthem.Then,theanaly-sisshiftstowebsiteactivitiesthatextendbeyondthe“adver-games”themselves.Inthesecondsection,theoveralllevelofbrandexposureschildrenexperienceonthesitesisreported,whether in the formofspecificbrandmarks,appearances intelevisioncommercialsorviabenefitclaims.Thesefindingsarediscussedinrelationtonutritional informationandclaimsthatalsoappearonthewebsites.Inthethirdsection,theanalysisturnstomarketers’effortstocustomizeavisitor’sexperience,whetherthroughmembershipopportunities,orviralmarketing(i.e.,involvingachild’sfriend).Sectionfourexaminestheuseofmarketingpartnershipsorbrandalliancesonthesites(e.g.,consumerpromotion,movieor television tie-in). Educationalactivitiesareaddressedinsectionfive.Insectionsix,specificmethodsusedtoextendtheonlineexperiencebeyondthesitevisitareoutlined,(e.g.,collectionofbrandrewards,download-able“brandextras’”)andtheirprevalencereported.And,inthefinalsection,evidencerelevanttoexistingwebsiteprotectionsforchildrenispresented.

aDVeRGaMes

Onlinegamescanprovideamorehighlyinvolvinganden-tertainingbrandexperiencethanispossiblewithconventionalmedia. At leastonecommentatorhascharacterizedgamingsitesas“virtualamusementparks”(Goetzl2006).Imagine,forexample,that“NestlePush-upFrozenTreatsarepoppingupallovertheplace,andit’syourjobtobop‘embackdown.”11Foreverypopthatyoubop,youearnpoints,andasyoubecomemoreskilledatthegame,youcanprogressfromthe“easy”toa“medium”or“hard”levelofplay.Thebrandpackageisthevisualcenterpieceof thegame (itpopsup repeatedly),mak-ing thebrandeasier to recall later. This is “Bop-a-Pop”oneofthegamesonthekids.icecream.comwebsite.Itisbutoneillustrationofan imaginativearrayofgamesthatareavailableforchildrentoplay.Intotal,546uniquegamescontainingoneormorefoodbrandswerecountedonthestudywebsites.Ofthese,431gamescontainstudybrands(andarethebasisfortheanalysishere).12 Thesegamesarenotevenlydistributedacrosssites.

Distribution of Games across Websites Notallofthewebsitesemphasize,orevenincludegames.Overall,73%ofthesitesinthestudypostedoneormoregamescontainingfoodbrands.Thismeansthat27%donotincludeany games, but instead incorporate other kinds of contentthatwouldlikelyappealtochildren.Amongthegamingsites,

therewasasubstantialrangeinthenumberofgames(fromaminimumofonegametoamaximumof67onsite).Figure1(allFigures&Tablesarelocatedatthebackofthereport)depictsthedistributionof food-relatedgamesacrosswebsites.13 Asshown,thereissubstantialvariationaroundthemeanofseven.Oneofthefactorsthatdifferentiateasitewithmoregamesthanothersiswhetheritcontainstwoormorefoodbrands.Onthesinglebrandsitestherewereanaverageof3.6games,andonthemulti-brandsitestheaverageroseto16.4gamespersite,asignificantdifference(F=19.13,p<.0001).14

Gaming is a major emphasis on some websites (e.g.,candystand.com, nabiscoworld.com, postopia.com). Onthesekindsofsites,30ormoregamesmaybeposted,whichare organized into categories (e.g., sports, arcade, word) tohelpvisitorsfindthekindofgametheywouldmostliketoplay.Whenonegameends,visitorsmaybegivensuggestions forothergamestheymightalsoenjoy.Highscorersmaybeabletopost their scores toa leaderboard,so thatothergamerscanseehowwelltheyhavedone.Byplayingthegamesbrandawarenessisreinforced,andrepeatvisitsareencouraged.

Sites with a large number of games attract more youngchildren.Toillustrate,onthe“high”visitorsitesinthestudytherewereanaverageof22.4games,andonthe“low”visitorsitesthemeandropsto4.5gamespersite(F=25.44,p<.0001).

categories of Games Although each game has its unique elements, there arediscernablegametypes.Arcade,sportsandadventuregamesarethemostcommon.Thesearenotverycomplicatedtolearnand the rulesofplayaregenerallysimple. Thevastmajorityofgamesareanimated,andmost incorporate livelymusicorsoundeffects(90%).

Althoughtheprimarychallengeinmostofthegamesistoachild’seye-handcoordinationorreflexes,afewgamesalsotestachild’smemory(e.g.,matchingpairsofcardsastheyareflippedover)orsimplespatialskills (e.g.,puzzles). Theclearemphasis throughout the games is entertainment and brandreinforcement. Table 2 shows the types of games recordedonthesitesandhowfrequentlyeachoccurred.Asshown,11essentialtypesdescribe95%ofthegames.

brand exposures From a marketer’s perspective, one of the potentialadvantagesofan“advergame”istheabilitytodrawattentiontoyourbrandinaplayfulway,andforanextendedperiodoftime(atleastrelativetoa30-secondtelevisionad).Todeterminehowmuchbrandexposurevisitorsactuallyreceivewhentheyplayagame,thepresenceorabsenceoffourbasicbrandidentifiers


(or marks) was recorded for each game containing a studybrand. These include: (1) the food item (e.g., Capn’Crunchcerealinabowl),(2)aproductpackage,(3)abrandcharacter(ifany)and(4)thebrandlogo.Identifierssuchasthesecanbeusedtodrawconsumers’attention,andhelpthemtorecognizeandrememberthebrandonsubsequentoccasions.Insomecases, particularly for sports-related games, the presence ofbrands can make them seem more realistic than they mightotherwisebe(The Economist 2005).AsshowninBox1below,97% (or 420 games) incorporate at least one type of brandidentifier.15Eightypercentcontaintwoormore.

Exposure levels to each of the four brand identifiers arereported inTable3,at thebackof the report. As indicated,brand logos were the most visible, appearing in 86% of thegames.Theotherthree indicatorswerealsoevidentbutnottothesamedegree(rangingfromappearancesin43%to57%ofthegames).However,inadditiontopresenceorabsence,wealsoaskedhowprominentthesethreebrandelementsarewithinthegames.Specifically,forthepackageandfooditem,towhatextentdotheseappearasaprimarygamepiece(e.g.,objectofgameistocatchasmanyFrootLoopsaspossibleinabowl)?Ofthosewithapackageincorporatedintogameplay,in39%ofthecasesthepackagewasjudgedtobetheprimaryorfocalobjectinthegame.Whenfooditemsareincorporatedintogameplay,theyaretheprimarygamepiecein58%ofthecases.And,whenthebrandcharacterisincluded,prominencewasjudgedonthebasisthatthereissomeinteractionwiththecharacterduringthegame(e.g.,charactertalksorisclickedonformovement). Brandcharacterswereprominent in63%ofthegamesinwhichtheyappear.

Overall, one or more of the brand marks (i.e., package,fooditem,character)isprominentin64%ofthegamesinwhichtheyappear.Thus,thereisaveryhighprobabilitythatachildwillencounterabrand insome form in thegamesheorshechoosestoplay.Brandsrepresentan integralcomponentofthegameswhetherasgamepieces,prizesorsecrettreasure.Inalargemajorityofcases,morethanasinglebrandidentifierwillbepresent,andinmanygamesthebrandcharacter,fooditemorpackagetakescenterstage.choices in Game Play Onemechanismtoincreaseaplayer’slevelofengagementin a game is to personalize the experience in some way.Givingachildthe freedomtochoosehisgameplayer,selectanopponent,ordesignthegamespace is likely tostimulategreaterinterest.Overall,39%ofthegamesincorporatedoneormoresuchelements.Figure2organizesdifferentapproachesusedtopersonalizethegamesintothreebroadcategories:(1)choiceofplayers,(2)designofgamespaceand(3)selectingthemodeofplay.Specificlistingsinthethreecategoriesarerepresentative of the types of approaches used, but are notexhaustive.

Asshown,childrenaremostfrequentlygiventhechoiceoftheirgameplayeroropponent(52%ofchoiceoptionsinvolveplayers). Sometimes the player is a brand character or avehiclethathasabrandlogoonit.Inothercases,theplayerisananimatedchildthatcanbenamed,orgivenaparticularhairstyle or clothing. In addition, children may be given thechoiceofhowtoplaythegame(optionstochoosethelevelofdifficulty,orstyleofplaywouldbeincludedhere—e.g.,typeofbaseballswing).And,finallychildrenmaybeallowedtodesignaspectsofthegamespace(e.g.,colors,music).Byprovidingsuchchoiceoptions,marketersmaybedrawingmorefocusedattention to, and higher levels of involvement in the gameitself.

Box 1: Brand IdentIfIers In Games

types of Brand IdentIfIers

percentaGe ofGames

0 3%

1 17

2 40

3 29

4 11


features to extend Game Play Therearesomefeaturesthatmayhelptosustainachild’sinterestinagame,bothduringasinglesitevisitandperhapson return visits. One mechanism that might have such aneffect is to structure a game so that multiple levels can beachievedasagameplayer’sskills improve.Thelevelofplaycan serve as a benchmark against which personal progresscanbemeasured.Itsetsupachallengethatagamercantrytoachieve.Structuringagamesothatpointscanbeearnedmayhaveasimilareffect.Playerscanmonitorhowwelltheyaredoingandhowmuch theirscores improve. Setting timelimitsforplaymayalsoencouragegamerstotrytobeattheirpriorperformanceinthetimeallotted.Eachofthesestructuralaspectsofagamecanhelptomotivateaplayertochallengethemselves,andsototryagain.Forty-fivepercentofthegamesoffermultiplelevelsofplay,69%awardgamepoints,and40%incorporatetimelimitsofsomesort.

Beyond the potential for challenging oneself, there aremoreovertmechanismsthatagamedesignermightusetotrytoencourageextendedplay.Explicitlyaskingaplayer iftheywouldliketo“playagain”attheendofagameisoneexample(71%of thestudygames includedsuchanoption). Specific

recommendationsofothergamesthevisitormightenjoymayalsoextend timespenton thesite,andperhapsexpand thenumber of activities that are worth returning for (22% of thegamesincludedarecommendationofsometype).And,39%ofthegamesinvitegamerstoposttheirhighscorestoaleaderboard,asonthepopsicle.comsite.

The public display of scores invites competition, andencouragesgameplayerstoreturntothesitetoseehowwelltheyarefaringagainstit.Itmayalsomotivatesomeplayerstotrytoimprovetheirplaceintheoverallstandings.Rewardinghighscorerswithextragame featuresorprizes (e.g.,specialdownloads) might also be ways to overtly encourage repeatplay,butneither is incorporatedinmanygames.Only5%ofgames reward good game performance with extra features,andjust5%giveprizes.

Overall, there are a variety of game features that mayhelptostimulateextendedplay.Someoftheseinvolveovertencouragementwhileothers aremore subtle, relying insteadon a game player’s desire to challenge himself or herself toimproveascoreorreachahigherlevelofplay.


bRanD eXPosURes beYonD tHe GaMes

Oneofthequestionsposedearlyinthestudyfocusedonhowmuchbrandandcompanyinformationchildrenwouldac-tuallybeexposedtowhenvisiting thesesites. Forexample,would children have many exposures to product packages,brandcharacters,orlogosastheyclickedthroughthesite,orjustafew?Wouldtheybeexposedtoexplicitbrandbenefitornutritionalclaims?Ifso,whatisthenatureofthoseclaimsandhowprevalentarethey?Anumberofapproacheswereusedto try toaddress thesequestions. The results that follow inthissectionpertainonlytothenon-gameareasofthesites.Inotherwords,theyexcludebrandexposureswithinthegamesandgamemenus(thoseexposuresareinadditiontothosere-portedhere).

number of brand Variants Theprominenceofthebrandidentifiersisdriveninpartbythenumberofbrandvariantsor“stockkeepingunits”(SKUs)depicted(e.g.,cherryversusgrapeflavor). Asshownbelow,therewasawiderangeinthenumberofvariantsorSKUspre-sentedforthestudybrands.

Arelativelylargerangemightbeexpectedgiventhetypesofproductcategoriesadvertisedhere.Forexample,breakfastcerealshadfewervariantsoverall(range:1to4,mean=2)thanacategorylikecandy(range:2to41,mean=10)wheremoreextensiveproductlinesarecommon.Fromthemarketer’sper-spective,theInternetcanbeanadvertisingvenuethatispar-ticularlywell-suitedforinformingconsumersaboutthearrayofproductformsandflavorsavailable.Whileitmightbedifficulttocommunicatemuchaboutanentireproductlineinthespaceofa30-secondtelevisionad,itismoreeasilyaccomplishedontheInternet.InformationandsellingpointscanbeconveyedatalowvariablecostforallSKUsoffered.So,generallyspeaking,itisinthemarketer’sinteresttopresentthefullrangeofalterna-tivestheyoffer.Itisthenleftuptotheconsumertosearchforasmuchoraslittleinformationasheorshechooses.Insomecases,thismaymeansiftingthroughalargenumberofbrandvariants:heretheoverallrangewasfrom1to95.

Prevalence of brand Identifiers Thereareanumberofwaysthatavisitormightbeexposedtoabrandonawebsite.Forexample,explicitbrandbenefitclaimsmightbemade(thesearediscussedinalatersection).Inaddition,therearethebasicbrandidentifiersormarksthatmaybeusedtohelpconsumersrememberabrand later. Inthisstudy,anumberofbrandidentifierswererecordedinclud-ingthefourexaminedinthegames:(1)brandlogo,(2)brandcharacter,(3)productpackage,(4)brandinproductform(e.g.,pictureofFruityPebbles inabowl),aswellastwoadditionalindicators,(5)textofthebrandname,and(6)corporatelogo.Giventhecommercialnatureofthesampleitwasanticipatedattheoutsetthattheseidentifierswouldbepresentonthesites,itjustwasn’tcleartowhatextent.

Themostcommonidentifierthatappeared isabrandorcorporatelogo.Althoughveryfewbrandsusebothlogosex-tensively,many(approximately75%)useoneofthetwologosonalmostallpageswithinasite.So,forthemajorityofsites,achildislikelytoseeabrandorcorporatelogooneachpageheorshevisits.Otheridentifiersvarymoreintheextenttowhichtheyareused.Forsomebrandstheproductoritspackagingisemphasizedwhileforothersacharacterorthebrandnameitselfaremoreprominent. Togainanoverallpictureofexposurelevels,thepresenceorabsenceofeachofthesixbrandindicatorswastalliedforeverypageonthewebsites,andthenaddedtogethertocreateasummary“brandpresence”measure.16Thismeasurecanbeusedtodeterminehowmanydifferenttypesofbrandidentifiersormarksappearonthepagesofawebsite.Here,theoverallmeanistwobrandmarksperpage.Thismeansthat,onaver-age,foreverypagethatachildclickson,heorsheisseeingtwodifferenttypesofbrandreminders(typicallyalogoandoneother).However,asshownbelow,thereisevidenceofsomevarianceintheextenttowhichdifferentformsofbrandidenti-fiersareused.

Box 2: Brand VarIants on sItes

numBer of Brand VarIants (sKus)

percentaGe ofBrand/sIte paIrs

1 26%

2-10 43

11-20 16

21+ 15

Box 3: Brand IdentIfIers on sItes

types of Brand IdentIfIers17

percentaGe of Brand/sIte paIrs

0 0%

1 36

2 41

3 16

4 7


Theobservedrangeisfrom1to4typesofbrandidentifiersperpage(withatheoreticalrangefrom0to6).Onsomesites,therearefewertypesofbrandexposures(e.g.,for36%ofthebrandsonlyasingletypeofindicatorispresentoneachpage),while on others there are more (e.g., for 23% of the brandsthreeormoretypesofidentifiersappearperpage).Inspectionofthedistributionofscoresthussuggeststhatthereisarange,butthatitisrelativelyraretoencountersitecontentthatdoesnotcontainsomebrandreinforcement.

television commercials The increasing popularity of the Internet and other newmediaarepromptingchildren’sadvertiserstorethinkhowtheyareallocatingtheirmarketingdollars(SteinbergandFlint2006).To reachchildreneffectivelyamorediversearrayofmedia isrequiredthaneverbefore. So,withregardtopolicyoptions,considerationofthisnewmediaenvironmentiscrucial.Tech-nological developments are also blurring the lines betweenoneadvertisingmediumandanother.Forexample,televisioncommercialsarenowfrequentlyappearingonwebsites(Larson2004). This isenabledby fasterconnectionspeeds,and in-creasedbroadbandaccessthatallowsmarketerstoputvideoontheirsitesthatmanyvisitorscanreadilyaccess.

Amongthewebsitesinthisstudy,justoverhalf(53%)hadtelevisioncommercials available for viewing.18 Theseappearmoreoftenonchild-orientedsites(60%)thanonsitestargetedat a more general audience (32%) (χ= 4.76, p<.03). Televi-sioncommercialsappearwithequalfrequencyonthesitesthatattractmanyyoungvisitors relative to thosewhoseaudienceissmaller. Thus,therearemanyopportunitiesforchildrentowatchtelevisioncommercialsforfoodbrandsontheInternet(iftheychoosetoclickonthem).Fromamarketer’sperspective,thisisanotherwaytotellyoungconsumersabouttheirbrand’spositive featureswhilealsoentertaining them. Bycombiningthesightsandsoundsoftelevision,thecreativepotentialofcy-berspaceisenhanced.Marketersmayevenusethisasanop-portunitytogetfeedbackfromsitevisitorsabouttheirtelevisionadvertisements. For example, on Campbell’s mysoup.com,childrenareaskedtoratethesoupcommercialstheysee.

Television commercials can be embedded among othergames and activities that children encounter on a website.Kellogg’sFunKtownsite,forexample,isorganizedasacom-munitywithmanyactivitiesavailable. Oneof the things thatchildren can do is to visit the town theater to see commer-cialsfortheirfavoritebrands,watchmovietrailersormeetthe

�0 4 IT’S ChILD’S PLAY: ADvERgAMINg AND ThE ONLINE MARKETINg OF FOOD TO ChILDREN

Kellogg’sbrandcharacters.Achildcanearnstampsbyview-ingthecommercials ifheorshe isaregisteredmember(siteregistration possible only with parental permission). Stampscanthenberedeemedtoplayspecialgamesonthesite.

So,theactivitiesonthewebsitereinforcethemessageinthetelevisionad,andviceversa. In termsof totalexposure,theInternetcapturesallofthequalitiesoftelevisionadvertising,andthenoffersmore.

two key categories of advertising claims Marketersmayalsoinformsitevisitorsabouttheirbrandsby making specific claims about them. Here, one or moreclaimsweremade for83%of thestudybrands. Advertisingclaims can be broadly defined as explicit statements aboutthe characteristics of a brand, its use or suggested users.19Twobroadclassesofclaimswerecodedinthisstudy:nutritionclaims,andwhatarereferredtohereasbrandbenefitclaims(e.g., taste,convenience,variety). Specificsub-categoriesofclaims within each of these two categories were derived, inpart,fromaFederalTradeCommission(FTC)studyofadvertis-ing,nutrition,andhealth(IppolitoandPappalardo(2002).20

Findingsrelatedtotheprevalenceofbrandbenefitclaimsare reported in thenext section (detailedevidence regardingnutritionalclaimsfollow).Overall,brandbenefitclaimsaccountfor80%ofallclaimsmadeonthewebsitesinthisstudy,andnutritionclaimsrepresent20%ofthetotal.

1. brand benefit claims Brand benefit claims range from sensory-based charac-teristicsofthebrand(e.g.,taste,texture,appearance,aroma)tonewbranddevelopments(e.g.,newflavorsorpackaging)tosuggestedusersorusagesituation(e.g.,“greatforkids”)toex-perientialelementsemphasizingfunandfeelings.Thesekindsofclaimswerereadilyapparentonthesites.

Acrossthesample,over1,500benefitclaimswererecord-ed:theseareorganizedinto13sub-categories.InTable4,thefrequencyofeachtypeofbenefitclaimislisted,andexamplesareprovided.Asshown,tasteclaimsarethemostcommontypeofclaim,representingover27%ofthetotal. Claimsfo-cusedonsuggestedusesorusagesituationsarealsowide-spread(13%),asareappealstofunandfeelings(10%).Com-parativeappeals(1%),andprice-orientedclaims(1%)areusedmuchlessfrequently.Thisisquiteconsistentwithearlystud-iesoftelevisionadvertising(e.g.,Barcus1980).Price-orientedandothertypesofinformationalappealshavetraditionallybeenrelatively rare during children’s television programming. Thispatternseemstoholdforchild-orientedwebsitesaswell.

Benefitclaimsarenotequallydistributedacrossbrands,intendedaudiencesorproductcategories.Asshownbelow,for79%ofthesampleoneormoreexplicitclaimsweremade.

KA ISER FAMILY FOUNDAT ION 3 ��

However, there is significant variation in the number ofclaims reported (fromaminimumof0 toamaximumof160claimsperbrand).Todetermineiftherearepatternsthatdistin-guishbetweenbrandswithahighversuslownumberofclaims,aseriesofcomparisonsweremadebyaudiencecharacteris-tics,singleversusmulti-brandsitesandbyproductcategories.Thisprovedtobequiteinteresting. First,nodifferencesareapparentasafunctionofthenum-berofsitevisitors.However,therearedifferencesasafunctionof audience type. When children and teens are the primaryaudienceforasite,fewerclaimsaremade(mean=10.8),ascompared to those with a more general audience (mean =24.7)(F=7.15,p<.009).Further,theseresultsmayactuallyun-derstatethedifference,becauseonthesubsetofgeneralaudi-encesitesthatcontainedaseparate“children’ssection”onlytheclaimsmadeinthatportionofthewebsitewerecounted.Thus,marketerswhoare reachingout toadultsaswellaschildrenappear toemphasizesellingclaims toagreaterdegree thanthosecateringonlytoayoungaudience.However,itisthecasethatfewerbenefitclaimsaremadeforthebrandsappearingonthemulti-brandsites(mean=7.5)relativetothosepromotingasinglebrand(mean=19.8)(F=7.84,p<.006).Althoughthismayseemcuriousatfirstglance,itisthemulti-brandsitesthattendtohaveawiderarrayofgamesandotheractivitiesthatarelikelytobeofinteresttochildren.Takentogether,theseresultssuggest,atleastonarelativebasis,thatchildren’ssitesarelessfocusedonmakingspecificclaimsabouttheirbrandsthanonprovidingothersortsofentertainmentandpromotion.

Thevolumeofbrand-specificclaimsseemstovaryacrossproductcategoriesaswell.Thisislikelyafunctionofthegoalsthatindividualmarketershavefortheirwebsites,aswellasthecompetitionthattheyface.Table5reportsthenumberofben-efitclaimsineachmajorfoodcategory.Themostusefulcom-parativeindicatorisshowninthefourthcolumn“benefitclaimsperbrand”(giventhatthereareadifferentnumberofbrandsineachcategory).Thereareapparentdifferencesacrossproduct

categories(e.g.,benefitclaimsperbreadandpastrybrand=58ascomparedtobenefitclaimsperbreakfastcerealbrand=4).However,withoutknowingwhatamarketer’sspecificobjec-tivesare,itisdifficulttodeterminewhattheproductclassdiffer-encesmightreflectinabroadersense.Theredoesappeartobeahighdegreeofconsistencyinthecategoriesofclaimsthatareemphasized.For10ofthe12productcategories,“taste”surfacesasoneof thetwomost frequentclaimsused(notasurprising resultgiven thenatureof thebrands in thestudy).Atthesametime,experientialaspectsofthebrandsarealsobeingemphasizedviasuggestedusagesituationsandappealsthatconnectthebrandwithfunandexcitement.

Overall, it appears that children are being exposed to adiverse and extensive array of brand-related information asthey surf through these sites, particularly when the resultsfor thebrand identifiers, televisionadsandbenefitclaimsarecombined.Theseareallinadditiontothebrandappearancesthatoccurwithinthegames.Researchsuggeststhatwithoutevidence to thecontrary, familiarity alonecan influencewhateven an adult consumer comes tobelieve is true: this is re-ferredtoasthe“trutheffect” (HawkinsandHoch1992).Fortheyoungchildrenwhovisitthesesites,thebrandisrepeatedlyreinforcedand familiaritygrows, all in thecontextof funandentertainment.

2. nutritional claims and Information Oneof theoptions that foodmarketershave increatingawebsiteistousethisspace,atleastinpart,toeducatesitevisitorsaboutthenutritionalqualitiesoftheirbrandsaswellashow they may fit into a healthy lifestyle. In fact, it could bearguedthattheInternethasuniquecapabilitiesasacommu-nicationsmediumwhichmakeitparticularlywell-suitedforthispurpose.Thecapacityforsight,sound,andanimationenablescreativeandexcitingcontent(muchliketelevision),andatthesame time, detailed information can be presented to informandpersuade (much likeprintmedia). Aspartof thisstudy,siteswereanalyzedtoseetheextenttowhichfoodmarketersare using this medium for the purpose of providing nutritionand health-related brand information. All occurrences of (1)basicnutritionalinformation,(2)specificnutritionclaims,and(3)healthyeatingstrategiesoradvicewerecoded.Seventy-twopercentofthebrand/sitepairsincludedone or moreofthesethreetypesofdata.

BasicNutritionalInformation.Theresultsshowthatmanymarketers in this study (51%) are using their web space toincorporate at least some basic nutritional information (e.g.,nutrition facts, allergens, ingredient lists) about their brands.It is more likely to appear on a site with a general audience

Box 4: Brand BenefIt claIms

numBer ofBrand BenefIt claIms

percentaGe ofBrand/sIte paIrs

0 21%

1-5 27

6-10 14

11-15 15

16-20 4

21+ 19

�� 4 IT’S ChILD’S PLAY: ADvERgAMINg AND ThE ONLINE MARKETINg OF FOOD TO ChILDREN

(88%) than one that targets children and teens (38%), (F =19.31p<.0001).Table6showsthetypesofbasicnutritionalinformationprovidedonthesesites.Nutritionfacts(asfoundonapackagelabel)arethemostfrequentlycommunicated(76%),althoughothercategoriessuchasingredientlistsandallergensarewell-representedaswell.Inadditiontothosespecificallylisted, there were some additional items (listed as “other”in the Table) that surfaced on individual sites. For example,brand-specificstatementsaboutanoffering’sfitwithina low-carbohydratedietorspecificfoodgroup,alternativesavailablefordiabeticsandabrand’scertificationaskosherareasampleof thekindsof informationmadeavailable. A fewmarketers(e.g.,hersheys.com,quakeraday.com)alsolistednutritionfactsforrecipesprovidedontheirsites.Overall,itisreasonabletoconcludethatmanymarketersareprovidingsometypeofbasicnutritional information for consumers. Nutritional informationdoes take a number of different shapes or forms however,dependingonthestrengthsofanindividualbrand.

NutritionClaims.Specificcategoriesofclaimswerecodedinadditiontothenutritioninformation.InTable7,thefrequencyofeachtypeofnutritionclaimislisted,andexamplesofeachtypeareprovided.Some380nutritionclaimsweremadeintotal,acrossthe11categories.21 Nutritionclaimswerethusmuchlesscommonoverallthanthebrandbenefitclaimsdiscussedearlier(with justunderfourbenefitclaimsappearingforeverynutrition claim). As shown in the Table, vitamin and mineralclaimswere themost frequently occurring category followedbygeneralnutrientclaims.22Somecategoriesofclaimsalmostneverappeared(e.g.,cholesterol,sodium).Nutritionclaimsarenot equally distributed across brands. As shown below, for44% of the sample one or more explicit claims were made.However,thereissignificantvariationinthenumberofnutritionclaimsrecorded.

There are features that differentiate brands with moreclaimsthanothers.Forexample,whenchildrenandteensaretheprimaryaudienceforasitefewernutritionclaimsaremade(mean=2.4),ascomparedtothosewithamoregeneralaudi-ence(mean=7.3), (F=3.68,p<.058). It isalsothecasethatfewernutritionclaimsaremade for thebrandsappearingonthemulti-brandsites(mean=1.0)relativetothosepromotingasinglebrand(mean=5.8) (F=5.18,p<.03). Bothof theseresultsarequiteconsistentwiththefindingsforbrandbenefitclaimsdiscussedearlier.Onarelativebasis,theyindicatethatchild-orientedsitesarelesscenteredonmakingexplicitbrandclaims(eitherbenefit-ornutrition-related)thanonotherformsofinformationandentertainment.

Thevolumeandtypeofnutritionclaimsdifferacrossprod-uctcategoriesaswellas intendedaudience (tobeexpectedgiventhenatureoftheproductsadvertised).Forexample,overhalfofallnutritionclaimsaremadeinthenon-carbonateddrinkcategory.Thisisdue,inpart,tothelargenumberofnutritionclaimsmadeformilk.Table8reportsthenumberofnutritionclaimsineachmajorfoodcategory.Notonlydoesthenumberofclaimsperbrandvary,butthetypeofnutritionclaimempha-sizedinindividualproductcategoriesdiffersaswell(e.g.,totalfatincookiesandcrackersvs.caloriesinsoftdrinks).AlthoughnotdepictedintheTable,acomparisonofTables5and8alsorevealsthattheratioofbrandbenefittonutritionclaimsvariesbyproductcategory(e.g.,forcandyandgumthereareapprox-imately25benefitclaimsforeverynutritionclaimmade,whileforsoftdrinksitisclosertoa1to1relationship).Careshouldbe taken in interpreting the product results however, due tothesmallsamplesizesinsomecategories.Evenso,itisclearthattheextenttowhichparticulartypesofadvertisingclaimsarebeingemphasizedvariesacross thesebrands. Finally, itappearsthatfirmsarelesslikelytogiveconsumersadviceortips about healthy eating strategies relative to brand-specificnutritionalclaimsorinformation.Moregeneraladviceabouteat-ingahealthydietwaspresentononly27%ofthewebsites.

cUstoMIZInG tHe VIsItoR’s eXPeRIence

Oneofthewaystoenhanceconsumerinvolvementistocustomizethewebsiteexperienceinsomeway.Customizationmayinvolvesomethingassimpleasallowingchildrentoposttheirgamescoresonthesiteorsendingane-cardtoafriend.Itmayalsoincludeamembershiponthesiteorparticipationinawebsitecommunity.Whatevertheform,itcanbeapositivevehicleforamarketerhopingtoconnectwithyoungconsum-ers. By engaging visitors in a personal way, the experienceislikelytobericherandmorememorable,andperhapsmorelikelytofosteranongoingbrandrelationship.

Box 5: nutrItIon claIms

numBer of nutrItIon claIms


0 56%

1-5 31

6-10 5

11-15 5

16+ 3


Website Membership Onceawebsiteiscreated,gettingvisitorstospendtimeonthesiteandtoreturnlaterisoneofthekeydifficultiesthatmarketershaveencounteredinpromotingtheirbrandsontheInternet. A site that is able to attract visitors over and overagainisconsidereda“stickysite”(O’Guinnetal.2006).Suc-cess indrawingrepeatvisitorsdependsonanumberof fac-tors including thecontent, itseaseofuseandentertainmentvalue.Newandexcitingcontentiscertainlyoneapproachfordrawinganaudience.Membershipsthatofferadditionalincen-tivesoraccesstospecialactivities,promotionsorgamesareanotherwaytoencourageparticipation.Forexample,Wonka’sClubDuboffersaccesstogames,a“personallyflavoredhomepage,”specialscreensaversande-cards.

Forty-twopercentofthestudywebsitesofferedanoptiontoregister,joinacluborbecomeamember.Severalofthesemembershipopportunitieswerenotmadeavailabletochildrenbutwereopenonlytothosevisitorswhowereatleast13yearsofage.Asshown,childrenweregiventheoptiontobecomeamemberon25%ofthewebsitesinthestudy.

On a subset of these, children can become memberswithout providing much identifying information (12% of totalsample).Forexample,achildmaysimplybeaskedtocreateascreennameandpasswordwhentheybecomeamember.Onthesesites,parentalpermissionisnotrequired.However,thereareotherwebsites(13%oftotalsample)wherepersonalinformationisrequestedatregistration.IncompliancewiththeChildren’sOnlinePrivacyProtectionAct(COPPA),23thecorpo-ratesponsorsofthesewebsitesobtainverifiableparentalper-missionbeforecollectinganyidentifyinginformationfromchil-dren.Oneofthreemechanismswasusedtoobtainparentalconsentonthesesites:(1)emailsenttoparentwithresponse

Box 6: memBershIps

optIon proVIded for chIldren aGe 12 and underto Become a memBer?

yes no

25% 75%

Is parental permIssIon requIred to reGIster?

13% 12%


required,(2)emailsenttoparentwhothenneedstogotothesite and provide credit card information (to verify their adultstatus),or (3)writtenparentalpermissionrequired. Withoneexception,allofthemoreteen-orientedsitesofferedmember-shipopportunities.However,youngerchildrenwereeithernotpermittedtoregisteratall(openonlytoages13+)orverifiableparentalpermissionwasrequiredinallofthesecases.

Membershipmayallowaccesstoavarietyofspecialsitefeatures and benefits. Illustrative examples are presented inFigure3.Cautionininterpretationshouldbeusedheregiventhe small sample of sites that offer membership to children(under12).Somesitesemphasizegamingenhancementstotheirmemberssuchasregularupdatesonnewgames,accesstospecialor“secret”’games,“bonuspower”or“secretlives”withinagameortheopportunitytoretainapersonalrecordofhighscoresand/orpostthemtoaleaderboard(e.g.,nabisco-world.com). For example, ongushers.comvisitors have theopportunitytocreateandfurnishtheir“ownroom.”Onsub-sequentvisits,thechildcanvisittheroomthatheorshehasdesignedandupdateitasdesired.

Members may also be specially informed about newdevelopmentsonthesite,suchasnewbrands,exclusiveof-fersornewtelevisioncommercials.Promotionalentriessuchassweepstakessometimesrequiremembershiporsiteregis-tration.Onthemoreteen-orientedsites,membersmayevenhavetheopportunitytoposttheirideasoropinionsonthesite(e.g.,mycoke.com).Thereareamultitudeofcreativeoptions:notwositesarealike. Although membership does provide additional benefitsandaccess,somevisitorsmaychoosenottoparticipate.Thisraisesthequestionofwhatkindofwebexperienceisthenpos-sible.Withveryfewexceptions,consumerswerestillpermittedaccesstomostsiteactivitieseven if theychosenottoregis-ter. Thereweretwokeyexceptions: bothmycoke.comandmillsberry.comseverelyrestrictaccesstonon-members.InthecaseofCoke,unlessparentsprovidetheirpermissionthereisverylittlethatchildrencandoonthesite.

Website communities Somesitesareorganizedasaplaceorcommunity thatachildcanvisit.Itmaybeanisland(e.g.,AppleJack’sCinnaIsland),acharacter’shome(e.g.,Kool-AidMan’sHouse),atree


house (e.g., Keebler’s Hollowtree) or a town (e.g., Kellogg’sFunKtown).Approximately25%ofthestudysitesareofthistype.Onsomeofthese,visitorstravelthroughthesitealmostas if theyarewelcometourists. Theyareencouragedtoex-ploredifferent locations,andcanstop toparticipate inmanyactivitiessuchasplayingagame,goingtothetheater(toseemoviepreviewsor televisioncommercials), sendingmail toafriend,or learningabout abrandcharacter. Not all of thesesitesarecustomized.Thechildcanvisitandexplorethecom-munitybuttheydosoprimarilyasanobserver.However,thereareothersinwhichthechildparticipatesnotasavisitorbutasacitizenofthefancifulcommunity.Bydefinition,theserequireregistrationormembership (andare included in thestatisticsprovidedabove).Perhapsthemostelaborateoftheseonlinecommunitiesismillsberry.com.

Onthissite,achildcreatesacharacter(includinggender,clothing,hairstyle),aneighborhoodinwhichtolive,aspecifichouse,anditsdécor.Thecharactercanshopatdifferentstores(e.g.,grocerystore,bookstore,toystore,hairsalon),checkoutbooksatthelibrary,visitthepostoffice,checktheiraccountatthebank,visitthecommunitycenter,contributetoafooddrive,andvisitamuseum.Gamesandatheaterarealsoavailablein thearcade. Millbucksare thecurrency: theseare earnedbyplayinggamesandcanbespentinthevariousstores.Byparticipatinginactivitieslikereadingalibrarybookormakinga

donation,thechildcharactercanincreasehisorherstrength,fitness,intelligenceormerit.Thechildcharacterdoesgethun-gryandmusteat inordertomaintainhisorherstrength(thegrocerystorestocksawiderangeof foods, fromproducetobrandeditems).GeneralMillscerealsareembeddedinpartsofthesite,buttherearemanysectorswherethereisnovisiblebrandpresence.Overall,thewebsiteexperienceiscustomizedtotheinterestsofthechildwhovisits.Othercommunitybasedsites(e.g.,nesquik.com,lunchables.com)havesomeofthesefeaturesbuttendnottobeaselaborate.

Viral Marketing Thereisextensiveresearchevidencesuggestingthatpeerscanbeanimportantsourceofinfluenceinpurchasedecisions(e.g.,Moschis1987).Themorefavorabletheinformationanin-dividualreceivesfromfriendsoracquaintances,themorelikelyheorshewilladoptaproductaswell.Thereisalonghistoryofresearch inmarketingontheroleof“opinion leaders”whohelptostimulatedemandbyofferingadviceandinformationtoothers in theirsocialnetwork (Wilkie1994). Recognizing thepowerofpersonalinformationsources,marketingpractitionershave developed new approaches such as “buzz marketing,”“viralmarketing,”and“diffusionmarketing”toencouragecon-sumerstotalktooneanotherabouttheirproducts(e.g.,Dye2000;KhermouchandGreen2001).Thesearetoolsusedtotrytoproactivelyinfluencewhatissaidaboutafirm’sbrands,


rather thansimplyhoping thatpositiveword-of-mouthdevel-ops.“Viralmarketing”usestheInternettoencourageconsum-erstomarkettooneanothereitherviablogsornewsgroups,orthroughpersonalcontact(email)stimulatedbyafirm’smarket-ingefforts(Dobele,TolemanandBeverland2005).

Onetypeofviralmarketingencouragessitevisitorstosendemailtofriendscontainingabrand-relatedgreeting(e-card)oran invitation to visit the website. This occurred on approxi-mately64%ofthewebsitesinthestudysample.Marketingef-fortslikethisoneturnemailintoatypeofadvocacyorword-of-mouthendorsementthatispassedalongfromoneconsumertothenext.Embeddedintheseemailsarenews,activitiesandentertainmentthatarefavorabletothebrand.Likethewebsitememberships,thisisawaytoincreaseavisitor’sinvolvementwithabrand,andtocustomizethesiteexperienceforthem.These kindsof effortsweremoreprevalent on sites focusedon child- and teen-oriented activities (74%) as compared tothosethatalsoincludedadultcontentaswell(32%)(=11.20,p<.0008). Onallof themoreheavilyvisitedsites, therewasanattempttoenlistfriends.24AsshowninTable9,themostfrequentactivitiestargetedat friendsweree-greetings, invita-tions to the site and challenges or links to a specific game.These messages were highly brand-focused, containing thebrandname,logoandoftenabrandcharacteraswell.Insomecases,thesenderisgiventheopportunitytoshapethedesignof themessage insomewaysuchaschoosingthe layoutor

background,thecolors,orthespecifictextinamessage.OnKeebler’sHollowTreewebsite,childrenare invited tosendafriendsome“ElfinMagic”orabirthdayorseasonalgreeting.

Ultimately,thefriendreceivesabrand-relatedcommunica-tionthatispersonalizedtothem,andthesourceofthemes-sageissomeonetheyknowandlike.Toparticipate intheseactivities,asender istypicallyaskedtoprovideafriend’sfirstname(in84%ofcases)andemailaddress.Sothattherecipi-entknowswhothemessageisfrom,thesenderalsoprovideshisorherownfirstnameandemailaddress.(Note:Allofthesitesindicatedthatneitherthechild’snortheirfriend’sinforma-tionwouldberetainedonceamessageissent.)

other attempts to Personalize In a small number of cases (13%), polls or quizzesappearonthewebsites.Justbyvirtueofbeingasked,avisitorisimplicitlytoldthathisorheropinionsmatter.Responsesarereportedonlyintotal,andnopersonallyidentifyinginformationisrequested.Pollsmayormaynotbebrand-related.Forex-ample,oncuatmcdonalds.com,visitorsareaskedtovoteforthe“dollarmenuitemyoucravethemost”andforyourfavorite“McDonald’s IM iconcharacter.” Onskittles.comvisitorsareaskedfortheirfavoriteflavor,andthenshownthepollresultsforeachflavor.Inaddition,theyareencouragedtoaskfriendstovotefortheirfavoriteflavorandtocreatenewpollsonthesitethatcanbesenttofriendsaswell.


Onothersites,however,(e.g., lunchables.com,popsicle.com),visitorsareaskedabouttopicssuchastheirfavoritetypeof music, things they like to do in the summer or how theyspendtimeontheweb,alltopicsthatarenottieddirectlytoaspecificbrand. Inbothcases(brand-relatedornot),childrenareaskedtovoicetheiropinionorpreference. Althoughthismaybeamoresubtlemeansofpersonalizingamessage,itisawaytorepresentanindividual’spointofview.

Overall, when collapsed across these various modes ofinteractingwithchildren, it isevident thatamajority (73%)ofthewebsites incorporatesomemechanism tocustomize thesitevisitor’sexperience.Itmaybeassimpleaspostinggamescoresorchoosingabackgroundcolor forsitecontentsthathelpstomakethebrandinteractionsomehowunique.Thesekindsofsitefeatureshelptodrawthevisitorin,simplybecausethecommunicationcanbemoreclosely tailored to individualneedsandinterests.Thereisakindofproximitytothemes-sagethatwouldnotbethecasewithmassmedia.

MaRketInG PaRtneRsHIPs

Marketing partnerships, whether through sponsorships,promotionsormediatie-ins,areacommonpracticeintoday’smarketplace. When two brands collaborate, there are anumberofpotentialadvantagesfromamarketingperspective.Bothmaygaingreaterexposureorvisibilitywithintheirtargetaudience. Whenalignedwell,eachalsohas theopportunityto capitalize on the positive brand associations consumershaveabout theirpartner. And, themessage itselfmayhave

greater impactbecause there ismorecontentor informationto be conveyed. Thus, there may be greater potential forgainingattentionandgeneratingexcitement.Partnershipsarealso often cost-effective because advertising or promotionalexpensescanbesharedbytwobrands.

TheInternetisareadilyaccessiblemediumforcommuni-cating informationaboutpartnershiporco-brandedactivities.Thewebcanalsobeusedasanintegrativeplatformtobringtogether disparatemarketing communication tools effectively(Aaker2002).Evidenceofbrandpartnershipswasreadilyavail-ableonthewebsitesinthestudysample.Some90differentbrandpartnerswereincorporatedinsweepstakes,premiums,sponsorshipsandotherpromotions.Mostofthese(approxi-mately70)werenon-foodbrands(e.g.,SixFlagsAmusementParks, Play Doh, Blockbuster Video, Little League Baseball,HolidayInn).Theremainderwascomposedprimarilyoffoodbrandsthatarenotpartofthepresentstudy(e.g.,TacoBell,Dole,Quiznos). Inafewcases,websitepromotions involvedall of the brands within a product portfolio (e.g., all Nabiscobrands)ofwhichthestudybrandsareonlyasmallsubset.Anumberofbrandpartnershipsalsosurfacedthroughmovieandtelevisiontie-ins.

Media tie-Ins Inthecurrentdebateaboutthemarketingoffoodtochil-dren,somecommentatorshavequestionedwhether it isap-propriate to link television shows or movies directly to foodbrands (e.g.,Center forScience in thePublic Interest2003).Thisismostoftenaccomplishedviathedevelopmentofspe-cialproductvariants(e.g.,“SpongeBob”Macaroni&Cheese),


packaging changes (e.g., special “Star Wars” packaging forM&Ms), promotions (e.g., free “Robots theMovie” racers in-sidespeciallymarkedboxesofKelloggproducts)oradvertise-ments. Underpinning theseconcerns is theassumption thata foodbrandwill bemuchmoreappealing tochildrenwhenit isassociatedwithawell-likedTVormoviecharacter. Theresearch resultson this issueare somewhatmixedhowever.Although there is some evidence suggesting that children’sproductchoicesshiftwhen linkedtoapopularcartoonchar-acter(Kotler2005),thereisalsoempiricalevidenceintheaca-demicliteratureindicatingthatchildren’schoicesareunaffected(NeeleyandSchumann2004).Additionalresearchisneededto isolatethecircumstances inwhichcharacters impactfoodchoicesandwhentheydonot.However,theevidenceiscon-sistent in showing that children pay substantial attention totheseadvertisements. Theyexhibithigh levelsof recognitionofacartooncharacteranditsproductassociation,aswellasliking for both the character and the advertised brand (e.g.,Henke1995;Mizerski1995).

Forty-seven percent of the websites in this study incor-poratedsomeformoftelevisionormovietie-in.Thus,mediapartnershipswerearelativelycommonoccurrence.Thirty-onepercentofthesiteshadamovietie-in;25%hadalinktooneormoretelevisionshows,and9%hadbothmovieandtelevisionties. Brandsweregenerallypartneredwith largeblockbustermoviespopular in thesummerof2005. Figure4providesa

listofallof thefilms thatappearedon thesites in thestudy.It was not uncommon for the same film to be promoted bymultiplebrands.25Forexample,Star Wars: Revenge of the Sithwasinvolvedinmarketingactivitiesonsevendifferentwebsites.So, there is thepotential thatachildmayencountermultiplepromotionsinvolvingawell-likedmovieandheavilyadvertisedfoodbrandas theyvisitdifferentsiteson the Internet. Simi-larly,somewebsites(approximatelyone-thirdofthesiteswithamovietie-in)hadconnectionswithtwoormorefilms.

Obviously,eachmovietie-inwillhaveitsowncreativestyleandexecution. Typically, theyarepartof a larger integratedmarketingcommunicationseffort,whichextendsbeyond thewebpresence.Forexample,inthesummerof2005Marspart-neredwith theproducersofStar Wars tocreateamulti-fac-etedmarketingcampaign.Tohighlightthemovietie-in,Marscreatedthe“ChocolateMpire”within itsM&Mswebsite.The“mpire” isa fancifulworld that links themovieand theM&Mbrandinavarietyofways.ThereareStar Warsscreensavers,wall-papers and e-cards that embed the M&M characters.Television commercials and video that link to the movie arealsoavailableforviewingonthesite.Special,themedproductpackaging ishighlighted,andasweepstakes is incorporated(althoughnotopentochildrenunder12).Childrencanplaythe“LightSaberTraining”gameonthesiteanddownloadapaperlightsaberiftheychoose.Together,theseelementsreinforcetheassociationbetweenthebrandandthemovieinacreativeandmemorablefashion.


Televisiontie-inswithstudybrandswerealsoevident(asnotedabove,presenton25%ofsites).Figure5providesalistofthetelevisionprogramsthatappearedonthesites.SlightlymorethanhalfofthesitesthathadaTVtie-inincorporatedtwoormorespecificprograms:oneincludedasmanyasninedif-ferentshows.26Thesetie-insappearindifferentways.Some-timestheyareprimarilyanannouncementofspecialpackaging(e.g.,NestlePop-UpswithScoobyDoopackaging). Inothercases,theyaretiedinwithpromotions(e.g.,aprizefromNick-elodeonforthePepperidgeFarmGoldfishsweepstakes),orasarewardtomembers(e.g.,specialpreviewsfromMTVontheStarburstsite).Televisiontie-inscanalsobeusedtoeducateorinform.Intheexampleabove,SpongeBobandthePower-puffGirlshelptocommunicatethebenefitsofmilk.

Promotions and sponsorships Oneofthemostprominentmanifestationsofbrandpart-nershipson thesites issalespromotion. Consumerpromo-tionsareincentivesusedbyamanufacturertocreateapercep-tionofgreaterbrandvalue. Thegoal is tomotivateproducttrial, encourage the purchase of larger quantities, or fosterrepeat purchases (O’Guinn et al. 2006). Consumer promo-tionscantakemanyforms, includingsweepstakes,contests,premiums,sampleoffers,coupons,andrebates. Essentially,theyareattemptsbymarketerstocreateexcitementandtoen-courageconsumerstopurchasetheirbrandsratherthanthoseof a competitor. Oneormoreof these typesof promotions

appearedon65%ofthesitesinthestudy.Thisproportionmayactually underestimate the frequency of occurrence becausepromotions that appeared on the sites but that were exclu-sivelytargetedatadultswerenotcoded.Fortypercentofallwebsitesinthestudyhadasweepstakesorcontest,and31%incorporatedapremiumoffer.Samples,rebatesandcouponsweremuchlesscommon,appearingononly1%ofthesesites.Promotionalofferswereequallywell-representedonthesitesthatattractalargenumberofyoungvisitorsaswellasonthosethatreachfewerchildren. Sweepstakesareapopularpromotionaltoolamongmar-keters.Approximately75%ofpackagedgoodsmarketersusesweepstakesandalmostone-thirdofU.S.householdspartici-pateinoneeachyear(Shimp2007).Fromamarketer’sper-spective,theyofferanumberofadvantages.Theyarerelativelyinexpensive,simpletoexecuteandcanhelpincreasedistribu-tionatretail.Theyalsoattractconsumers’attentionandcanbuildenthusiasmaboutabrandwhilereinforcingitsimage.Thesweepstakes and contests on the websites offer prizes thatare likely togeneratesubstantial excitementamongchildren.For example, on thebubbletape.com site,winners receive aNintendo Game Cube System and on the pfgoldfish.comsite,childrencanwinatriptotheNickelodeonStudiosinLosAngeles,amongotherprizes.Campbell’smysoup.comhasanongoingseriesof“Souperstar”sweepstakes—e.g.,“Souper-starIsland”(winatriptoaCaribbeanisland),“SouperstarCas-tle”(winaweekatanEnglishcastle),“SouperstarFantasy”(winatriptoamoviepremiere).Visitorsareencouragedtoreturntothesitetoseewhatthenextbigpromotionaleventwillbe.Onsubway.com,childrenbetweentheagesof8–12havetheopportunity tobecomea “SubwayChampion” (withparentalpermission).Winnersreceivea$10,000collegescholarship.


Sweepstakesandcontests involvingchildrenhavesomeuniquedimensionsasamarketingapproach.Thereisthepo-tential thatyoungchildrenmightdevelopunrealisticexpecta-tionsabout theirchancesofwinning. Because thispotentialisknowntoexist, theCARU(2003)self-regulatoryguidelinesspecifyhowpromotionaloffersmightbestbecommunicatedtochildren.Byvirtueofthenatureofpromotionsthatappearonstudywebsites,parentsarenecessarily involvedeither toenterand/ortoclaimaprize.So,childrenarenotparticipatingindependently. Asnotedabove,premiumoffersalsoappearonmanyweb-sites(31%ofallsites).Thesearemerchandiseitemsofferedbyamanufacturerasagifttoconsumers,andlikesweepstakesareusedtotrytostimulateproducttrialorencouragerepeatusage.Insomecases,thesepromotionsrequirethepurchaseof a product in order to take advantage of the premium of-fer.Forexample,onHershey’skidztown.comsite,visitorswereabletoobtainfreemovieticketsforthere-releaseofE.T.,butmultiplepurchasesofReese’scandywererequiredtodoso.

Otherrequirementsmayalsobemade,thatdonotinvolveabrandpurchase.OnChefBoyardee’schefboy.comsite,forexample,anofferofafreeChefBoyardeeSuperballismadetochildren.However,togettheballtheyneedtoberegisteredinthe“ChefClub”(whichrequiresaparent’spermission),andplayagameonthesitethattheymustthenemailtoafriend.Thisexampleillustrateshowpremiumofferscanbeusedtoencour-ageparticularconsumerbehaviors, inthiscase,viralmarket-ing.Sometimesthepremiumsinvolvemerchandisewhichmayserveasabrandreminder(e.g.,a“HersheyHappinessT-shirt”withthebrandlogoonthefront),andinotherstheydonot.So,

both theconsumerand themarketercanbenefit from theseoffers. Theconsumer receivesadesired item,and themar-keterbenefitsthroughpositiveimpactsonthebrandimage,itsinfluenceasabrandreminder,andperhapsasamotivatorofpurchasebehavior.

eDUcatIonal content

Inadditiontothemanyotheractivitiesalreadynoted,somemarketers also use a portion of their site to provide contentwithaneducationalemphasis. Anumberofdifferentsubjectareaswereemphasizedhere, ranging fromhistorical facts toscience,math,health,generalnutritionandsports-related is-sues.Forcodingpurposes,educationalmaterialwasdefinedas“activitiesthatdeveloptheknowledge,skillorcharacterofsite users on topics other than a food brand, its ingredientsormanufacturer.”Figure6listsexamplesofsomekeytopics.Thirty-fivepercentofthesitescontainedoneormoretypesofeducationalinformation.Toillustrate,ononeoftheMcDonald’ssites(ronald.com),informationaboutdinosaursisincorporatedas shown in the picture above. Sites with a broad audiencewere marginally more likely to incorporate educational mate-rial(53%)thanthosefocusedmoreexclusivelyonchildrenandteens(29%)(χ=3.42,p<.06).

Inaddition,thereiscontentonsomesitesthatappearstoblurthelinebetweenadvertisingandeducation.Topicssuchasthehistoryofabrandingredient,itsmanufacturingprocesses,orusingabrandcharactertopresenteducationaltopicsmightbeincludedhere(e.g.,TwinkiesdescribeshowmuchvultureslikeTwinkies, thenmentions facts about vultures). This kind


of borderline educational material or “advercation” was alsocodedandillustrativeexamplesareprovidedinFigure7.Forexample,onKellogg’sFunKtownsite, information isprovidedabout the “Tonymobile,” its basic engineering and construc-tion.Similarly,Hershey’sprovidesinformationaboutthemak-ing of chocolate, including a video tour on its hersheys.comwebsite,whichwasalsodirectlylinkedtokidztown.com.One-thirdofthesitesinthestudyincorporatedthistypeofcontent,inwhicheducationalinformationisembeddedinanadvertisingmessage.

Foryoungchildrenwhoareinthemidstoflearningtodis-tinguishbetweenadvertisingandothermodesofcommunica-tion,thishassomepotentialtocauseconfusion.Thereisclearevidence in the academic research literature indicating thatchildrenneedtoacquireatleasttwokeyinformationprocess-ingskillstoevaluateadvertisingeffectively.First,theymustbeable todistinguishbetweencommercialandnon-commercialcontent.Second,theymustbeabletorecognizeadvertising’spersuasive intent and use this knowledge to interpret sellingmessages.

Oncechildrendeveloptheseskillstheyarethoughttobe-comemoreskeptical,andthusmorecapableofresistingad-vertising’sappeal(e.g.,Boush,FriestadandRose1994).How-ever,academicresearchershaveshownthatchildrenwhohavethecognitiveskillstodiscountcommercialmessagesmaynot

dosowhentheyseeanadunlesstheyareexplicitlyreminded(Brucks,ArmstrongandGoldberg1988).Ifthelinesbetweenadvertisingandeducationalcontentbecomeblurred,thismaytaxayoungchild’sabilitytodisentangleandthenevaluatethesellingmessage(Moore2004).

eXtenDInG tHe onlIne eXPeRIence

Therearemultipleapproachesthatamarketermightusetoextendavisitor’sonlineexperience.Perhapsthemostbasicistolinkthewebsitetootherbrand-relatedadvertising.Inter-netadvertisingisreadily integratedwithotherformsofmediaadvertisingandpromotion.Atthemostbasiclevel,eachformof traditional media advertising can list a website URL. Forexample,incorporatingawebsiteaddressinatelevisioncom-mercialorlistingitonaproductpackagearesimpleandeasilyexecutedapproaches(asnotedearlier,websiteURLswerelist-edonover50%ofthebrandpackagesinthestudysample).

Making televisioncommercialsavailable forviewingonawebsiteisanotherwaytolinkmultipleadvertisingmedia.Aspart of an integrated marketing communications plan, thesebrandmessagesarelikelytobebetterrecalledandmoreper-suasivewhentheyappearinmultipleadvertisingvenues(e.g.,NaikandRaman2003;ShultzandSchultz2004).


Provision of “extra” brand-Related Items There are other methods that marketers may use to tryto extend the child’s online experience. One way is to pro-videbrand-related content that children can keeponce theyleave thesite. Theseare items thatcanbedownloaded,orprintedandsaved.Insomecases,such“extras”mayprovidetheopportunityforabrandmessagetobereinforcedoveranextendedperiodoftime.ItcanbeaveryeffectivewaytoretainabrandpresencebeyondtheInternet,andappearstobequitecommon.Amongthebrands investigatedhere,76%offeredatleastone“extra”item.Asshownbelow,52%offeredtwoormore.

These“extras”cantakeavarietyofforms(approximately70inthisstudy),manymorethanwereanticipatedattheout-set of this research. To better convey the range of optionsavailable, they have been organized into 10 categories, andaresummarized inFigure8.Althoughmostofthe itemsap-peartobefocusedonplayorentertainment,afewincorporateaneducationaldimension.AsshownintheFigure,themostcommontypeof“extra”wasadesktopfeaturesuchasabrandwallpaper,screensaver,ordesktopicon(representing39%ofallitems).Brandreminderssuchaspicturesofbrandcharac-tersorlogoswerealsocommonplace,aswerebrand-relatedartactivities,gamesandtoys.

Lessfrequent(althoughpresentformultiplebrands)werehealthandwellnessactivities,whichcenteredonexercisetipsorinformation.Avarietyofotheractivitiessuchaspartyplan-ningandshoppinginducementswerealsoobserved,butonlyinasmallnumberofcases.

Onthebasisof thestudysample, it thusappearsthat itisaverycommonpracticeamongmarketerstocreatebrand-relatedactivitiesdesignedtoextendbeyondthesitevisit.Theseactivitiesarewide-ranging,andtypicallyverybrand-centered.

Box 7: Brand-related extras

numBer of “extras” offered


0 24%

1 24

2-4 37

5+ 15


Asaresult, theyhavethecapacity toreinforceandaugmentthebrandmessagechildrenseeonline.Inessence,thebrandexposurecannowflowintothechild’severydaylife.

forging links to Product consumption Anotherwaythattheonlineexperiencecanbeextendedisbycreatingalinkbetweentheweb-basedcontent,andtheactualconsumptionofthebrand.RatherthansimplyprovidingmoreadvertisinginformationorentertainmentviatheInternet,themarketermayattempttousetheonlinepresencetodirectlyencourageproductusage.

Oneapproach thatamarketermightuse toconnectanonlineexperiencetoabrandisthroughtheofferofspecialin-centivesorrewardsthatareobtainedinthe“realworld.”Forexample,onbubbletape.comsitevisitorscangetfreeNintendogametipsbyenteringcodesfromspeciallymarkedpackagesof Bubble Tape gum. Similarly, on sillyrabbit.millsberry.comchildrenareencouragedtousethecodefromspeciallymarkedboxesof Trix cereal to save their game score in the “Hall ofFame”onthewebsite.Incentivessuchasthesecanbeusedto strengthen the consumer’s relationshipwith abrand,pro-motebrandloyalty,aswellasenlivenawebsiteexperience.

Inthisstudy39%ofthesitesofferedprogramsthatencour-ageconsumerstoaccumulatebrandpoints,codes,stampsoruniversalproductcodelabels(UPCs)offline.Table10showshowthesepointscanbeusedoncetheyarecollected.Amongthe brands that offer these rewards, the vast majority (97%)offerpointsthatconsumersobtainfromtheproductpackage(38%ofallstudysites).

Thus, in almost all caseswhere apoints program is of-fered,itisnecessaryforaconsumertopurchasethebrandinordertotakeadvantageofareward’sspecialbenefits.Byre-quiringmultiplepointsortokens,themarketerhopestoestab-lishapatternofrepeatpurchase,andultimatelycommitmenttothebrand.Althoughparentstypicallyactasgatekeepersinapurchasedecision,thereisextensiveevidencetosuggestthateven young children can exert substantial influence over theproductchoicesthataremadewithinahousehold(e.g.,GalstandWhite1976;Isler,PopperandWard1987).

In thestudysample, thewebpresencewasused to fa-cilitate consumption in two essential ways. One approachwas touse thewebsite simply asa vehicle to communicateinformation about promotions, merchandise discounts, orpremiums that are obtained off-line. So, premiums such asbrandedclothingortoysthatcouldbeearnedbysavingUPCs


mightbeadvertisedonawebsite.Detailsareprovidedastowhatrewardsorprizescanbeearned(orwon),buttheactualredemptiontakesplaceoffline(typicallyviathemail).27Inthiscase, the web is used primarily to inform consumers of thepromotionalofferandpersuadethemtoparticipate.Thisap-proachwasapparentonhalfof thesites that incorporatedapointcollectionprogram(19%ofallsites).TheleftcolumnofFigure9illustratesthekindsofitemsconsumersareaskedtocollectandtherewardsavailable.

Asecondapproachusedtoencourageproductconsump-tiontiesmoredirectlytothewebsitesthemselves.Onapproxi-matelyonehalfof thesiteswithapointsoffer (or20%ofallstudy websites), rewards are redeemed or entries are inputonline.Consumersareencouragedtocollectcodesorgamepiecesfromaproductpackagewhichtheycanthenenteronthe website to gain access to a reward. Here, the websitebecomes the actual purveyor of the reward. So, the link isforgeddirectlybetweenproductuseandrewardsreceivedonthewebsite.AsshownintherightcolumnofFigure9,visitorsmaygainaccesstodownloadableitems(e.g.,specialscreen-savers),earnadditionalcustomizablefeaturesonthewebsite(e.g., items for “your room” on the site), acquire the chancetoplaynewgamesoradvancedlevelswithingames,orenterpromotionstowinprizes.Eachoftheseislikelytobeattractivetochildren.

Oneofthewebsitesthatincorporateapointsprogramispostopia.com,whichpromotesPostchildren’scereals.Thisisacreative,fancifulandanimatedworldinwhichtherearemanyactivitiesandgamestoplay (at thetimethesitewascoded,thereweremorethan40uniquegamescontainingtwostudybrands).28 Given thisemphasis,mostof the rewards involvegamingenhancements.Childrenobtain“postokens”fromtheinsideflapofacerealbox.Ontheoutsideofthepackage,thereisapicture lettingpotentialpurchasersknow thatpostokensarecontainedinside.Tokensarethenenteredonthewebsite.Childrenusetheonlinecoinstounlock“secretlevels”or“extralives”aswellas togainaccess tospecialactivities. Forex-ample,accesstospecialtelevisionbloopersforNickelodeon’sFairly Odd Parentsisavailableonlytothosewhohavetokenstoredeem.29

Through these kinds of activities, the marketer has theopportunity to establish a direct connection between theentertainmenton thewebsiteandactualconsumptionof thebrand.Whenmultiplecodesorpointsarerequired,thereisanattempttopromoterepeatbrandusage,andithelpstocreaterepeatvisitstothewebsiteaswell.Fromachild’sperspectivethereisnowatangiblelinkbetweenwhatbrandtheychoose,andthefunheorshehasonawebsite.Thereissomeresearchevidenceindicatingthatthismaybeapowerfulreinforcement.


Olderchildren(11–12yearolds)mayactuallybemoreattentivetotheentertainmentprovidedbyanadvertisementthanyoungerchildren (7–8 year olds), andmore likely to allow it to shapetheir perceptions of product usage (Moore and Lutz 2000).So,whenthesiteisentertaining,thebrandmayseemtotastebetter.

expanding Usage occasions with new Recipes Because of its capacity to provide detailed content, theInternetcanbeanefficientandcost-effectivemediumforcon-veyingnewinformationaboutabrandanditspotentialuses.Inadditiontoenlargingmarketdemandbyattractingnewusers,firmsmayalso try to increase revenuesbyencouragingnewusesormorefrequentconsumptionamongexistingusers.

Onewaythatfoodmarketerscanencourageadditionalin-terestintheirbrandsisbyprovidingconsumerswithnewandappealing recipes. Notonlydoconsumersappreciate theseefforts,butmarketershavetheopportunitytoexpandpotentialusageoccasionsfortheirbrand.Alikelybyproductisincreasedconsumerinvolvementwiththebrand.Approximately23%ofthesampleprovidedrecipesfeaturingthatbrandasaningredi-ent.30 Forsomeof thesebrands,ahugenumberof recipesappear:therewaswidevariability,rangingfromalowoftwouptoamaximumof218recipesperbrand,withanaverageof34.Theavailabilityofnutritionalinformationandtherecipe’seaseofpreparation(oraccessibilitytochildren)werealsostudied.

Theseresultssuggestthatwhenrecipesareoffered,thereisgenerallyanefforttomakethisactivityoneinwhichachildmightparticipate.Giventhetypesofbrandsunderinvestiga-tioninthisstudy,recipeswerenaturallylimitedtoasubsetofproductcategories(e.g.,breadsandpastries,candy,cereal,cookies/crackers,non-carbonateddrinks,othersnacks,pea-nutbutterandjelly,andsoftdrinks).Thismayaccountinpartforthelowerrateofnutritionalinformationprovided.Notsur-prisingly, recipesweremorecommononsiteswithageneralaudience(64%)relativetothosethatfocusmoreexclusivelyonchildrenandteens(11%)(χ=30.09,p<.0001).

links to other Websites Marketersmayalsoextendthebrandexperiencebycreat-inglinkstootherwebsites.Thisoccurredon92%ofthestudywebsites. Whenavisitorbeginstofollowoneofthese links,it is often the case that a brief message pops up remindingthevisitorthat“youareleavingourwebsite”(coupledwithanoptiontochangehisorhermind).Itwouldappearthattheseremindersareintendedtohelpchildrenusecareinnavigatingacrosswebsites. Thereareanumberof reasonswhy theselinksareprovided. For example, visitorsmaybe re-directedtoamaincompanywebsiteforadditionalinformationaboutabrand, thecompany,aprivacypolicy,additional recipes,cur-rentpromotionsortoaskquestions.Linkstootherfoodbrandsitesarealsousedtocreateawarenessofadditionalofferingsandtostimulatetraffic.

Overall,84%ofthesitesinthestudyprovidedlinkstooneormoreadditional food-relatedsites. Linksmayalsobe fur-nishedtononfood-relatedsiteswherevisitorscanlearnaboutorpurchasepromotionalmerchandise (e.g.,productsofferedbyanexternalpartner),thatmayormaynotbebrand-related.Thisoccurredon70%ofthewebsites.

Alternatively,linksmaybegiventoindependentwebsiteswithaneducationalpurpose. Forexample,onKool-aid.comalinkismadetotheAmericanDiabeticsAssociationwebsite.Links toeducationalsiteswere foundon30%of thesites inthestudy.Intotal,manydifferentkindsoflinksareprovidedtohelpconsumersfindfurtherinformationoractivitiesofparticu-larinteresttothem.Bypursuingtheselinks,visitorshavetheopportunitytoenrichtheirsiteexperience,andmarketersmayhavethechancetoextendtheirbrandpresence.

Box 8: onlIne recIpes

amonG the Brands that haVe recIpes, are any recIpes “chIld frIendly?” (I.e., can Be prepared wIthout adult assIstance)

yes no

80% 20%

do recIpes Include nutrItIonal InformatIon?

40% 60%


WebsIte PRotectIons foR cHIlDRen

Given children’s status as a vulnerable audience, keystakeholdersagreethatadvertisingtargetingthisgroupmustbeconducted ina fair and responsiblemanner. Youngchil-drenarereadilypersuadedbecausetheydonotyetpossessthecognitiveskillsthatenablethemtofullyevaluateadvertisingmessages(seee.g.,John1999forareview).Anyadvertisingtargeted at this group thus needs to take into account theirlevel of maturity, sophistication and knowledge. This basicpremise isacknowledgedbymarketers,and is in factoneofthefoundationalprinciplesintheChildren’sAdvertisingReviewUnit’sself-regulatoryguidelines(CARU2003).

Becausetelevisionhasbeentheprimaryadvertisingmedi-umusedtoreachchildrenovertheyears,protections(whethergovernmental regulations or self-regulatory efforts) have fo-cusedprimarilyon thatmedium. However, the technologicalcapacityoftheInternetallowsfornewmodesofcommunica-tion,andasaconsequencetheneedforuniqueformsofpro-tectionsmayarise. Todate, theprimaryemphasishasbeenplacedonprotectingchildren’sonlineprivacyviatheChildren’sOnlinePrivacyProtectionAct(COPPA).

At the same time,CARUhas instituted a set of generalguidelines (inadditiontoprivacy issues) toadviseadvertisersonhow to communicatewith children in an ageappropriatewayontheInternet(seeCARU2003).CARUcontinuestore-vise andupdate theseguidelines as newuses andpotentialconcernsaboutthismediumemerge.Thus,thedevelopmentof existingprotections in this area reflects anongoing effort,andonethatislikelytocontinueintheforeseeablefuture.

Oneofthegoalsofthisstudywastoexaminethekindsofprotectivemechanismsthatarealready inplaceontheweb-sites. Threeprimary typesofapproacheswere identified: (1)privacyprotectionsandageblocks,(2)provisionofinformationforparents,and(3)“adbreaks”orreminderstochildrenaboutthepresenceofadvertisingonthesite.Privacy Protections and age blocks Asnotedearlierinthediscussionofmembershipopportu-nities,marketersarecarefultoscreenchildrenundertheageof13whennecessary.Somesitesdonotrequestanyinforma-tionatallfromthosewhowanttoperusethesite(fromeitheradultsorchildren) (e.g.,Hershey’skidztown.com),sothere isnoage-screeningmechanism.Otherscollectonlyverybasicidentifying information, such as a screen name to recognizesitevisitors,orafirstname,andemailaddressthatisusedonly

oncetosendane-cardorgreeting.Stillotherssimplyexcludechildrenunder13 fromparticipating inasiteactivitysuchasregisteringonthesite,enteringasweepstakesorpurchasingaproductonline.Onallsitesinthisstudywherepersonaldatais requested and children arepermitted toparticipate, somemechanismisinplacetomakesurethatyoungchildrendonotsubmitanypersonal informationwithoutparentalpermission.Forexample,toobtainapassport(register)onKellogg’sFunK-townsiteaparentorguardianmustinputacreditcardnumber,thusmakingitquitedifficultforachildtosubverttheprocess.Some websites do an age check (by asking for the visitor’sbirthday)andthenrequestaparent’semailaddressifthechildisunderthirteenyearsold.

Information for Parents Virtuallyallofthesitesinthestudy(97%)providedsomeinformationexplicitlylabeledforparents.Typically,therewasaseparatetabonthesite’shomepagethatdirectedvisitorstoaspecialsection inwhichparental informationwas included.Inmanycases,this informationwasdirectly linkedtothesiterather thanon thesite itself. Thus, itwas readilyaccessible(andhenceincludedinthecountshere).

Avarietyoftypesofinformationwereincludedontheweb-sites. Table11 listseachofthetypesandtheir frequencyofoccurrence.AsshownintheTable,amongthesitesthatdoprovideinformationforparents,themostcommonformspeci-fiedwhatinformationis(orisnot)tobecollectedfromchildren(96%).Thus,sitesthatstatetheirpolicyeitherthroughanex-plicitstatementofthetypesofdatatheycollectfromchildren,orastatementindicatingthatnoinformationiscollectedfromchildrenon thesiteare included in this total. Ineithercase,parentsareexplicitlynotified.

Legal information and disclaimers are also present onmostsites (91%),aswerestatementsabout theuse (ornot)of “cookies”31 (84%). Explicit statements about compliancewithCOPPAregulationswere foundon76%of thewebsitesand 47% specified adherence to CARU’s guidelines.32 Lesscommonweretipsonchildren’sInternetsafety(35%).Gener-allyspeaking, it isreasonabletoconcludethatthere isusefulinformationavailable forparents if theychoose to reviewsitepolicies.Tosupplementtheseefforts,manyofthesites(87%)alsoprovideanadditionalmechanism forparents tocontactthefirmiftheyhavequestionsorconcerns(typicallya“contactus”linkand/oramailingaddressandphonenumber).


“ad break” Reminders Oneof the longstandingconcernsaboutchildren’spro-cessingoftelevisionadvertisinghascenteredontheircapacityto distinguish between editorial and advertising content. Tohelp children make this distinction, the Federal Communica-tions Commission (FCC) prohibits “program-length commer-cials”and“hostselling”(FederalCommunicationsCommission2006).Thesepoliciesareintendedtoavoidmisleadingyoungaudiencememberswhomaybeconfusedwhencommercialcharactersorproductsareembeddedintheprogramsthem-selves.TheFCChasalsotraditionallyrequiredthatadvertisersinsertcommercialseparatorsinprogrammingintendedforchil-dren(Kunkel2001).Theseareshortsegments(approximatelyfiveseconds)shownbeforeandaftercommercialbreaksde-signed to remindchildrenwhen theyarewatchingadvertise-ments,andtoencouragethemtobemorevigilantinhowtheyprocessthecommercialmessages.

OntheInternet,theboundariesbetweenadvertisingandothercontentmaybehardertodistinguish.Therearenotthenaturalbreaksbetweencommercialandnon-commercialcon-tentwhichtypifytelevision.Thus,thereisgreaterpotentialtoblurthelinesbetweenadvertisingandentertainment.And,theneed to remindchildrenwhen theyare lookingatadvertisingstillexists.Infact,CARU’sguidelines(2003)doseemtosug-gest that “advertising content should be clearly identified assuch”onproduct-drivenwebsites(p.8).Someadvertisersinour sample attempt to provide such reminders. However, itappearstheyareintheminority.

Onthesitesthatdoprovideareminder,mostbothdefinewhat itmeans,andpresent itonmultiple locationswithinthesite.Forexample,postopia.comrepeatsthereminderonev-erypageofitsextensivewebsite.Thesereminderscantakeavarietyofforms:examplesareprovidedinFigure10.Itshouldberecognizedhoweverthatnopublishedresearchyetexiststhat showshoweffective these “adbreak” remindersare forchildren.Asresearchonthistopicdevelops,naturalquestionsarise with regard to the format(s), size and placement of re-mindersthatareworthpursuing.

sUMMaRY anD conclUsIons

Thisstudyisthefirstsystematicanalysisofthecontentofonlinefoodmarketingtochildren.Thefocushereisononeas-pectoftheonlineenvironment,corporatewebsitesthateithertargetchildrendirectlyorcontaincontentthatwouldlikelytobeofinteresttoyoungchildren(uptoage12).Ouranalysisshowsthatthemajorityoffoodbrandsadvertisedtochildrenontelevi-sionarealsopromotedtothemontheInternetthroughthesewebsites. Among an initial set of 96 food brands (selectedbecausetheyareamongtheheaviestadvertisersoffoodsdur-ing children’s television programming), 85% had a corporateorbrandwebsitethatwould likelyappeal tothisyoungaudi-ence.33 There are other methods that may also be used toreachthisaudiencesuchasonlineadvertisingthatappearsonpopularchildren’swebsites(e.g.,nick.com,neopets.com)andadsplacedinexistingvideogamesthatarebeyondthescopeofthepresentstudy.

To investigatefoodmarketers’websites in-depth,acon-tentanalysisof82foodbrandsappearingon77differentweb-sitesandmorethan4,000uniquewebpageswasconducted(becausesomebrandsappearonmultiplesitesthefinalsampleincludesatotalof107brand/sitepairs). Thestudywebsiteswereeasytofind.Asanexample,over50%listedthewebsiteaddressontheproductpackage.Thesesitescontaingamesand other activities that significantly expand children’s expo-suretobrand-relatedcontentbeyondwhattheymightseeina30-secondtelevisionad.

Thetechnologyof the Internethasenabledcreativenewforms of marketing communication including “advergaming”(video games that embed brand messages within them).Among the websites in this study, 73% included at least onadvergame(rangingfromaminimumofonegamepersitetoamaximumof67).Intotal,morethan500gamescontainingoneormorefoodbrandswereavailableonthestudywebsites.34Atleastonetypeofbrandmarkoridentifier(e.g.,brandcharacter,productpackage,fooditem,brandlogo)wasincludedin97%ofthegamesanalyzed inthestudy,andwasprominent inatleast64%ofthem.Inadditiontothebrandexposuresduringgameplay,therewasanaverageoftwotypesofbrandidenti-fiersonallotherpageswithinawebsite.So,whetherchildrenareplayingagameorengaginginotherwebsiteactivities,thereisevidenceofcontinuingbrandexposure.

Box 9: ad BreaKs

‘ad BreaK’ or ‘ad alert’ proVIded for chIldren?

yes no

18% 82%

If yes, Is the ‘ad BreaK’ shown on multIple locatIons wIthIn the sIte?

79% 21%


Beyondthegames,therewasawidevarietyofbrand-re-latedcontentavailablesuchastelevisioncommercials,mediatie-ins, promotions, viral marketing and website membershipopportunities. Fifty-three percent of all study websites hadtelevisioncommercialsavailableforviewing.Almosthalf(47%),incorporatedamovie(e.g.,Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith)ortelevisionshowtie-in(e.g.,Nickelodeon’sFairly Odd Parents).Promotions (e.g., sweepstakes, premiums or free gifts) thatmay be of interest to children are also a common feature intheonlineenvironment,appearingfor65%ofthebrandsinthestudy. However,byvirtueof thenatureof thesepromotionschildrencannotparticipatewithouttheassistanceorpermis-sionofparents.

Viralmarketingisalsoincorporatedwithinmanywebsitestoencouragechildrentotalktooneanotheraboutabrand’swebsite.Onapproximately64%ofthesites,childrenaregiventheopportunity tosendemail to friends in the formofane-greetingorinvitationtovisitthesite.Thesemessagesaretypi-callyhighlybrand-focused,containingabrandname, logoorbrandcharacter.Emaileffortssuchastheseareawaytocus-tomizethesitevisitor’sexperience.Websitemembershipsareanother. On25%of thestudywebsites,childrenareofferedtheoptiontobecomeamember(note:whenpersonalinforma-tionisrequested,parentalpermissionisrequired).Membershipmayallowaccesstospecialsitebenefitssuchasgamingen-hancements(e.g.,newgames,bonuspoweringames),“sneakpeeks”atnewbrand-relatedcontent(e.g.,specialoffers,newflavors,celebrities)oropportunitiestocustomizesomeportionofthewebspace(e.g.,create“my”roomonthesite).

Theonlinespacemayalsobeusedtomakespecificad-vertisingclaimsaboutabrand,ortoprovidesometypeofedu-cationalmaterial.For83%ofthebrandsinthisstudy,oneormorespecificadvertisingclaimsweremade. Thesemaybeeitherbenefitclaimsrelatedtoattributessuchataste,popular-ityoruse(e.g.,“America’sfavoritefruitygum”fromJuicyFruit)ornutritionclaims (e.g., “30% lesssodium thanourcheddargoldfish,” from Pepperidge Farm). Benefit claims are muchmorecommon,accountingfor80%ofallclaimsmade.Apartfromspecificadvertisingclaims,27%ofthesitesoffergeneraladviceabouteatingahealthydiet,and51%provideinforma-tionsuchasnutritionfacts, ingredient lists,orallergens.Ad-ditionaleducationalinformationisprovidedon35%ofthesitesontopicsrangingfromhistorical facts,dinosaurs,astronomy,sportsorgeographytogeneralnutritionandhealth.Examplesof “adveraction,” defined here as the blending of advertisingandeducation(e.g.,funfactsaboutanimalsonapagewhereanimalcharactersaresaidto“loveHostesssnacks”)alsoap-pearon33%ofthestudywebsites.

Marketingofferscanbedevelopedtotrytoextendabrandexperiencebeyondaninitialwebsitevisit.Oneapproach,em-ployedon39%ofthestudywebsites,istoencourageconsum-erstocollectbrandpoints,universalproductcodelabels(UPCs)orstampsbypurchasingspecificbrands.Oncethepointsarecollected,theycanbeusedforavarietyofpurposessuchasparticipatinginpromotions,gainingaccesstonewgames,orinthepurchaseofbrand-relatedmerchandise.Throughthesekindsofincentivesadirectlinkiscreatedbetweenwebcontentandtheconsumptionofaparticularfoodbrand.

Asecondapproachthatamarketermightusetoextendthewebsiteexperience istoprovidebrand-related itemsthatcanbedownloadedorprintedandsaved.Amongthebrandsinthisstudy,76%offeredatleastone“extra”item(over50%offeredtwoormore).Theseitemscantakemanyformssuchasbrand-relatedscreensaversorwallpaperforachild’scom-puter,picturesofbrandcharactersorpackages,artsandcraftactivities (e.g.,PopsicleStickArt)or toys (e.g.printablesurf-board). Functioningasbrandreminders,these“extras”havethecapacitytoreinforceandamplifytheproductmessagechil-drenseeonline.

Marketers recognize that children are a vulnerable audi-ence and that advertising targeting this groupmust be con-ductedinafairandresponsiblemanner.ThisisafundamentalprincipleoftheCARU(2003)self-regulatoryguidelines.Somewebsiteprotectionsforchildrenarecurrentlyinplace.Becausethe Internetenablesnewandevolvingmethodsofcommuni-catingwithchildren,theneedforuniquetypesofprotectionsforchildrenmayarise.On97%ofthestudywebsitestherewasin-formationspecificallydesignedforparents.Amongthesesites,most (96%) specify what information is to be collected fromchildren(ifany),andalargemajorityprovidelegal information(91%),state theircompliancewithCOPPAregulations (76%),andtheirmanagementof“cookies”(84%)amongother infor-mation.Themarketersinthisstudywerealsocarefultoobtainparentalpermission ifpersonal informationwasrequestedforanyreason(e.g.,toparticipateinapromotion,tobecomeasitemember).Therewerenoexceptions.


OntheInternet,theboundariesbetweenadvertisingandother contentmaybeharder for a child todistinguish. Thismediumdoesnothavethenaturalbreaksbetweencommercialandnon-commercialcontentwhichtypify television. Yet, theneed to remindchildrenwhen theyare lookingatadvertisingstillexists. Someadvertisersprovidechildrenwithremindersontheirwebsites(e.g.,“HeyKids,ThisisAdvertising!”)toen-couragethemtorecognizethesellingintentembeddedinthesitecontent.However,itappearsthattheseadvertisersareintheminority. Only18%oftheadvertisers inoursamplepro-videsuch“adbreak”reminders.Itshouldbenoted,however,thatthereisnopublishedresearchcurrentlyavailableindicatinghoweffectivetheseremindersmay(ormaynot)be.

Collectively,theresultsofthisstudyindicatethattheworldin which children encounter advertising is changing rapidly.Althoughtelevisionremainsaprimarymarketingtooltoreachchildren,Internetuseamongyoungchildren(ages2–11)isex-pandingrapidly (Larson2004). Evenveryyoungchildrenaregaining computer experience. Sixty-six percent of children(ages4–6) live inhomeswithInternetaccess,and70%haveusedacomputer insomeway (Rideoutetal.2003). At thesametime,it isimportanttonotethateventhemostpopularwebsitesdonotcurrentlyattractthesamenumberofchildrenas themostpopular children’s televisionprograms (seee.g., The New York Times,April2006).Yet,inthisdynamictechno-logicalenvironment,consumers,includingyoungchildren,aremodifyingtheirmediause,asexcitingandentertainingcontentbecomesavailable.

Internetusage ratesarenot static, nor are they likely tobe for some time. Recent studies suggest that new mediasuchas the Internetarenotdisplacing televisionviewingbutrather supplementing it (Montgomery 2001; Roberts et al.2005).Childrenaredoingmore“mediamulti-tasking”orusingmultipletypesofmediasimultaneously.Thisnewmediaenvi-ronmenthasalsoblurredthelinesbetweenthetypesofmediaatamarketer’sdisposal,sothattelevisionadvertisementsandvideo cannow be viewedon the Internet. The result is notsimplymediaproliferation,butpermeableboundariesbetweentraditionalandemergingadvertisingvehicles.

Althoughyoungchildrenaremodifyingtheirbehaviortoin-corporatenewmediaofferings,researcheffortshavenotkeptpace.Littleisknownaboutwhatchildrenunderstand,believe,ordoasaconsequenceoftheirexposuretobrandmessagesinthisnewmarketingenvironment.Withthesignificantincreaseinlevelsofobesityamongchildren,questionsarebeingraisedabouttheimpactoffoodmarketing.Thisstudyisintendedtobe a first step towards understanding the nature and scopeoftheonlineenvironmentchildrenface.Nowthechallengeistolearnmoreabouthowthisyoungaudiencerespondswithinit.TheInternetisjustbeginningtohititsstrideasacommuni-cationsmedium.It isimportanttounderstandwhatthisnewmediumofferschildrenasitbecomesanincreasinglyimportantfeatureoftheirdailylives.


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enDnotes1 However,theseestimatesareoftenbasedprimarilyonadultvisi-

tors.

2 TheCompetitiveMediaReportsdata is aggregatedbydaypart

(e.g.,Saturday/SundaymorningnetworkTV,cable).Itisnotspe-cifictoparticularprograms.So,theanalysisisbasedonalladver-tisingthathasbeenidentifiedaswithinthedaypartsthatcontainchildren’sprogramming.

3 Breads&Pastries=breads+cakes;Non-carbonatedDrinks=

fruitjuices+non-carbonatedsoftdrinks+milkbeverages+co-coa;OtherSnacks=confectionary&snacks(fruitsnacks)+gela-tins+yogurt+otherfruits;PreparedFoods&Meals=soups+pasta+prepareddinners+preparedfoods.(Alsopeanutbutter&jelly;candy&gum.)

4 Milk is includedwithinthestudysample. Althoughthismaybe

considered a commodity, substantial advertising expenditureshavebeendirectedatbrandingmilk through thegotmilkcam-paigns.Itisforthisreasonthatitisincludedhere.Itisalsothenon-carbonateddrinkagainstwhichthelargestadvertisingdollarshavebeenspent(byawidemargin),henceitsinclusionhere.

5 Classificationdecisionsheremayormaynotreflectthemarketer’s

publiclystatedaudience.

6 Third-partysitessuchasthesemaybeusedtodrivetraffictoa

food marketer’s website. However, that phenomenon was notaddressedinthisstudy.

7 Therewasoneexceptiontothisrule.Onthesiteswhereadistinct

children’ssectionappears,onlythepagesdesignatedwithinthatsectionwerecodedindetail(e.g.,juicyjuice.com).So,informationsuchasdataforstockholdersandcareeropportunitieswiththecompanywasnotcoded.However,ifmaterialofspecificinterestinthisstudysuchasinformationforparents,privacypolicies,ornutritionalinformationappearedwithinthelargersite,thesewerecodedandareincludedinthereportedresults.

8 Ninety-twopercentofthesamplewasindependentlyanalyzedby

twocoders.Ontheremaining8%,webcontentchangedbeforethesecondcoderhadcompletedhisorherassignment.Overallreliabilitiesaresufficientlyhightobuildconfidenceintheaccuracyofthe8%ofsitesthathadtobecodedbyasingleindividual.

9 Even among very popular websites, the Internet does not cur-

rentlyattract thesamenumberofchildrenas themostpopulartelevision programs. For example, according to Nielsen MediaResearchSpongeBob SquarePantswasamongthetop15ratedprogramsoncablenetworks for theweekofApril17-232006.Thehighestratedepisode(Saturdaymorning)reached3.12mil-lionhomesandattracted4.08millionviewers.(NewYorkTimes2006).

10 Althoughthismayappeartobeasomewhatarbitrarysplit,itre-flectsthedistributionreasonablywell.Tobecertainofthis,otherpossiblegroupingmethodswere tried. Eachof these revealedthesamepatternintermsofstatisticalrelationshipstoothersitedescriptors,thislendingconfidenceinthevalidityofthesplit.

11 ThisisaquotefromthegamepreviewontheNestlesite.

12 Because several games (n= 93) include more than one studybrand (e.g., Oreos and Ritz), the total number of appearanceswas524 for thesetof studybrands. However, theanalysis isbasedonthesetofuniquegamescontainingstudybrands(n=431). Insomesense, thisactuallyunderstates thepotential forexposuregiventherepetitionofstudybrandswithingames.

13 Not all of the games include the specific brands in our study.Thesenumbersreflectthetotalnumberoffood-relatedgamesonthesite,irrespectiveofwhichbrand(s)werepresent.

14 Thecontrasthereisbetweenwebsitesthatcontainasinglebrands(n=56)andthosewheremultiplebrandsarepresent(n=21).Giventheunequalcellsizes,TypeIIIsumofsquaresareusedtoensurethevalidityofthestatisticaltests(Iacobucci1995).NotethatTypeIIIsumofsquaresareusedinallcomparisonsofvariableswherecell sizes are unequal (e.g., child v. general audience, high vs.lowvisitorgroups),notonlyinthespecificcomparisonreferencedhere.

15 Thesearetypesofbrandidentifiers,notthenumberofinstancesinwhichtheyoccurwithinagame.Forexample,ifabrandchar-acterappearswithinagamethisiscountedasonebrandidenti-fiereven if thecharacter ispresentedmultiple timeswithin thatgame.Thenumbersreportedherearethusanunderestimateoftheactualbrandexposure.

16 Foreachbrand,thisvariableisconstructedasaproportionbe-causethisisacommonmetricthatcanbeusedacrosssitesthatvaryconsiderablyintheirscopeandcomplexity.

17 Thesenumbersareroundedtothenearestinteger.(So,forex-ample,brandswithanaverageof1.51or2.49arebothroundedto2.)

18 If any television commercials for food brands appeared on thesite,thiswascodedasa‘yes.’Inafewcases,thecommercialswereforfoodbrandsotherthanthoseinthestudysample.

19 Implicitclaimsthatmightbemadesolelythroughpicturesorvi-sualelementsonthewebsitewerenotcoded.

20

For the nutrition-related categories, the categorization schemeusedintheFTCstudywasadoptedinitsentiretyhere.Thelist-ingofbrandbenefitclaimsismorelooselybasedonIppolitoandPappalardo’s(2002)framework.Fortheseclaims,initialcatego-rieswerederived from their study,and thenasmall numberofcategorieswereadded.Theseadditionswerejudgedtobepar-ticularlyrelevanttomarketingcommunicationstargetingchildren.

21 The total fat, saturated fat and ‘other’ fat claims in the Ippolitoand Papalardo (2002) study have been combined into a singlecategorylabeled“Fatclaims”fortheanalysishere.

22 Nutritionclaimsmayapplytoasinglebrandvariant(e.g.,lowsug-arcontentforDiet7-Up)andnotothers(e.g.,Regular7-Up).Allnutritionclaimsmadeforanybrandvariantwerecoded.


23 TheChildren’sOnlinePrivacyProtectionAct(COPPA)isintendedtoprohibitunfairordeceptivepractices inthecollection,useordisclosureofpersonallyidentifiableinformationfromchildren(un-der age 13) on the Internet. Among other provisions, COPPArequires that commercial websites post privacy policies, obtainverifiableconsent fromaparentorguardianbefore theycollectpersonal informationfromchildren,andprotecttheconfidential-ityandsecurityofanyinformationcollected(seehttp://www.ftc.gov/privacy/coppafaqs.htmforfurtherinformation).

24 Thelackofcasesinthe“norequesttofriend”conditionamongtheheavilyvisitedwebsitesmakesthechi-squaretestinvalidhere.However,thefactthatallheavilytraveledsitesincorporatesucharequestwouldseemtobeofinterest.

25 Intheinterestofclarity,theanalysisinthissectionisbywebsite.So, ifafilmorTVprogramappearedononeormorewebsitesinthestudyit is includedinthetotalsreportedhere(evenifnotspecificallylinkedtoastudybrand).

26

Intwocases,thetelevisiontie-inwastothe“Nickelodeon”net-workratherthanaspecificshoworshows.ThesewerecodedasassociationstomultipleTVshows.

27 Forpromotionaloffers,childrenaregenerallynotallowedtopar-ticipateindependentlyfromtheirparents.Insomecases,childrenmayparticipatebutparentsneedtobeinvolvedtoclaimaprizeorredeembrandpoints.Inothers,entrymaybelimitedtocon-sumers13yearsofageorolder.Intheexamplesprovidedhere,childrenareabletoparticipatebutgenerallywithparentalhelp.

28 Thistotaldoesnotincludeadditionalgamesonthesitethatcon-tainedothernon-studybrands.

29 Thesameofferismadeoncheesiest.com,alsoaKraftsite.Inthiscase,codesfrominsidetheKraftMacaroniandCheeseboxareusedtounlocktheFairly Odd Parents’bloopers.

30 Toobtainsomeof theserecipesvisitorsaresentoutsideof thesite in question through a direct link. (e.g., for Oreo recipes,nabiscoworld.com visitors are sent directly to kraftfoods.com).Theseareincludedinthereportedcounts.

31 A“cookie” isanelectronicfilethattrackswebusers’onlinebe-havior.Amessageissentfromawebservertoawebbrowserontheuser’scomputerwhereitisstored.Themessageisthensentbacktotheservereachtimethebrowserrequestsapagefromtheserver. Theprimarypurposeofcookies is to identifyusers,theirbrowsinghabitsandperhapspreparecustomizedwebcon-tentforthem.www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Glossary.htmlaccessedApril25,2006).

32 Thisdoesnotmeanthattheotherwebsiteswerenotincompli-ance.Rather,itsimplymeansthatsomewebsitesdidnotincludeanexplicitstatementdirectedtoparentsabouttheiradherencetoCOPPAregulations,orCARUguidelinesperse.

33 Asnotedearlier,children’sbrandsthatwereincludedinthestudyaccount for 80-85%of advertising expenditureswithin their re-spective product categories during time periods in which pro-grammingforchildrenisbroadcast(1999-2003).

34

Four hundred thirty-one of these games contain study brands,andwereanalyzedindetailhere.

tables


table 1

MetHoDs foR locatInG WebsItes

method percent of cases

search for website address on brand packageyes 53%

no 47

Insert brand name into address line of web browser (e.g., www.frootloops.com)yes 47

no 53

search company website for links to children’s site or gaming sectionyes 45

no 55

search for brand name using yahooligans (search engine for children)yes 35

no 65

search for brand name using Google search engine (1st 10 results)yes 49

no 51

search for product category, games using yahooligans (e.g., cereal, games)yes 22

no 78

search for product category, games using Google search engine (1st 10 results only)yes 11

no 89

table 2

cateGoRIes of aDVeRGaMes

Game category number of Games

percent of Games

arcade games 127 29%

sports games (simulation) 78 18

adventure games or mazes 43 10

puzzles (jigsaw, crossword) 29 7

memory games (matching, sequencing)

27 6

racing 24 6

trivia games 23 5

logic or strategy games 21 5

card or board games 15 3

creation games (e.g., coloring, room design)

12 3

music or movie maker 12 3

miscellaneous 20 5

total 431 100%

table 3

PResence of bRanD MaRks In GaMes

type of Brand mark number of Games

percent of Games

Brand logo Visible In Game?

yes 370 86%

no 61 14

food Item Visible In Game?

yes 245 57

no 186 43

product package Visible In Game?

yes 185 43

no 246 57

Brand character Visible In Game?

yes 188 44

no 83 19

does not apply 160 37


table 4

bRanD benefIt claIMs

Type of Claim Total Claims

% of Benefit Claims

Examples of Claims

taste 412 27% - It’s really really goooood, soup that tastes like your favorite foods. (campbell’s)- yummy (airheads)

suggested use 201 13 - Good party food. (pop tarts)- Great as a lunch box treat or party favor. (wonderball)

fun & feelings 155 10 - cookie that gives you dippin’, dunkin’, delicious fun. (chips ahoy)- fun goes on and on (Bubbletape)

texture or aroma 135 9 - cream filling fluffy white in a sponge cake. (twinkies)- Big crunch … of honeycomb

new/improved 114 8- pringles prints are an innovative snack with printed fun on every one.- you can find new yummy smelling rub ‘n sniff froot loops cereal boxes in stores with the new

cherry cherry loops, here for a limited time.

Variety 101 7 - 4 tasty flavors (cap ‘n crunch)- try m&m’s Brand Ice cream cones, cookie Ice cream sandwiches, Brownie Ice cream sandwiches.

popularity of brand 66 4- life is known as a wholesome cereal with a delicious taste that millions of adults and children

love.- america’s favorite fruity gum. (Juicy fruit)

suggested user 53 4 - for serious nacho fanatics. (pepperidge farm Goldfish)- It’s a classic flavor combination you and the whole family can enjoy. (Kool-aid)

appearance 45 3 - see the candy magically change color in your mouth. (wonka)- color changing cheetos twisted snacks.

puffery 44 3 - snacking on cheetos is one of the best things in life.- complement your lighthearted, positive approach to life. (Kit Kat)

convenient 40 3 - craving a flavorful snack you can snag on-the-go? (milk) - ready-to-eat pudding snacks are Jell-o made simple.

comparative 13 <1 - there’s more meat sauce in the lasagna kit. (chef Boyardee)

price 13 <1 - chuck e. cheese’s is not only great fun, we offer great deals, too.- little debbie products on average sell for half that of other leading brands.

other 116 8 - the one, the only. the original. (cap ‘n crunch)- hit the beach without leaving your house. (skittles)


table 6

nUtRItIonal InfoRMatIon

type of Information percent of Brands

does site provide any nutritional information about brand?

yes no

51%49

If yes, what type of nutritional information?

nutritional facts

yes no

7624

complete list of ingredients

yes no

4753

Information about allergens

yes no

3367

how brand fits within balanced diet

yes no

2575

“other” information

yes no

4456

table 5

bRanD benefIt claIMs bY PRoDUct cateGoRY

product category # of Brands*

total claims % of total Benefit claims

per Brand top two categories of claims

Bread & pastries 4 232 15% 58 - texture or aroma- suggested use

non-carbonated drinks 6 209 14 35 - taste- suggested use

Ice cream 2 58 4 29 - taste- fun & feelings

candy & gum 21 521 35 25 - taste- suggested use

salty snacks 3 70 5 23 - taste- Variety

cookies & crackers 8 120 8 15 - taste- fun & feelings

restaurants 6 91 6 15 - fun & feelings- taste

prepared foods & meals 5 45 3 9 - suggested use- taste

soft drinks 6 46 3 8 - taste- new/improved

Breakfast cereals 14 88 6 6 - taste- fun & feelings

other snacks 5 21 1 4 - suggested use- taste

peanut butter & jelly 2 0 - - - n/a

* claims are added together for brands that appear on multiple sites so that there is a single total for each brand.


table 7

nUtRItIon claIMs

type of claim # of claims

% of nutrition claims examples

Vitamins & minerals 53 14% - 100% daily value of Vitamin c- contains Vitamin B1 and c

General nutrition claims 53 14 - perfect kid food for growing bones- full of nutrition that the whole family can feel good about

other specific nutrient claims 47 12 - milk has 9 essential nutrients active bodies need- Good source of potassium

fat claims 41 11 - low fat frosted brown sugar cinnamon- 3 grams of fat per serving

calcium 40 11 - has 10% calcium- sunny delight with calcium contains as much calcium as milk

sugar & artificial sweeteners 40 11 - sugar free- with 50% less sugar than regular colas

calories, dieting or weight 36 10 - only 25 calories per pop- 100 calorie pack

caffeine or preservatives 29 8 - caffeine free- no caffeine

carbohydrate/protein content 23 6 - 0 carbs- loaded with protein

fiber/bran 12 3 - now with whole grain!- a good source of whole grain!

cholesterol 2 - - contains no cholesterol- Zero grams of cholesterol

sodium 1 - - 30% less sodium than our cheddar goldfish

table 8

nUtRItIon claIMs bY PRoDUct cateGoRY

product category # of Brands

total claims % of total nutrition claims

per Brand top category of claims

non-carbonated drinks 6 197 52% 33 - Vitamins & minerals

Ice cream 2 21 6 11 - calories, dieting or weight

soft drinks 6 47 12 8 - calories, dieting or weight

salty snacks 3 14 4 5 - calories, dieting or weight

Bread & pastries 4 14 4 4 - total fat

cookies & crackers 8 23 6 3 - total fat

Breakfast cereals 14 22 6 2 - fiber & bran

prepared foods & meals 5 3 1 1 - total fat

other snacks 5 3 1 1 - sugar & other artificial sweeteners

candy & gum 21 28 7 1 - carbohydrate/protein content

restaurants 6 5 1 1 - General nutrition claims

peanut butter & jelly 2 0 - - - n/a


table 9

Web-InItIateD contacts WItH fRIenDs

type of Information percent of cases*

send a friend an e-card or greeting

yes no

69%31

challenge or link to a game

yes no

5149

Invite a friend to the website

yes no

4159

send information about the site to a friend

yes no

4159

send information about promotions to a friend

yes no

1486

send music to a friend

yes no

298

send arts & crafts activity to a friend

yes no

496

send coloring pages to a friend

yes no

496

send a recipe to a friend

yes no

694

*among those sites for which the option to contact a friend is given (64% of total sample)

table 10

collectInG bRanD “PoInts” oR ReWaRDs

type of Information percent of Brands

Is site visitor given opportunity to collect brand “points” offline?

yes no

39%61

If yes, how can these points be used?

to participate in contests or promotions

yes no

6733

to gain access to new or special games features

yes no

3367

to purchase brand-related merchandise

yes no

1387

to download special items from the website or gain special access

yes no

1090

to gain access to a television show episode online

yes no

793

other

yes no

1387

table 11

InfoRMatIon foR PaRents

does site provide information specifically for parents?

yes no

97%3

percent of sites percent of sites

If yes, type of information provided

Information to be collected from child “frequently asked questions”

yes no

96%4

yes no

48%52

Internet safety tips adherence to “caru’”guidelines

yes no

3565

yes no

4753

management of “cookies” legal information

yes no

8416

yes no

919

compliance with “coppa” regulations other

yes no

7624

yes no

991

fIGURes


FIGURE 1DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD BRAND GAMES BY WEBSITE

(Mean = 7)

3 5

Number of Games

Num

ber o

f Web

site

s

00

5

10

15

20

25

30

1-5 6-10 11-15 16-20 20 +


fIGURe 2

MetHoDs UseD to PeRsonalIZe a GaMe

choices Involving Game players (52%)*

create a name for “my” game player

choose hairstyle or clothing for “my” player

choose the gender for “my” player

play as a specifically chosen brand character

play as a specific non-brand related character

choose opponent

choices Involving the mode of play (25%)

level of difficulty

speed of play

type of golf swing

type of event (e.g., downhill vs. slalom skiing)

words to put in a puzzle

how characters move or what they say

number of baseball innings

type of movie

Game mode (e.g., race vs. capture the flag)

choices Involving design of the Game space (23%)

colors within game

name of game space

music or musical beats

flavor of brand package

color of brand package

type of movie or video

product design (e.g., candy design, surprise inside)

pictures to put on the wall in “my” room

*percentage of all personalization attempts. many games included 2 or more approaches. these are illustrative examples.

fIGURe 3

eXaMPles of actIVItIes anD benefIts foR cHIlD MeMbeRs

acquire Gaming enhancements

post high scores to a leader board after playing games

receive monthly updates on new games

Gain exclusive access to “secret” games on the site

Get “bonus power” or “extra lives” in games

customize “my” web space

create “my” room on the site (also view a friend’s room)

customize “my” house (e.g., child can choose furnishings, decorate different rooms)

create a “personally flavored” home page

create a passport

create a “funky face”

participate In promotions

enter sweepstakes

enter to become animated in a commercial

enter codes from package to see if you are a winner

Get “sneak peeks” at new Brand content

receive updates regarding new brands, promotions and exclusive offers

Get new flavor “sneak peeks”

receive a first-look at new television commercials

Get sneak-peeks at the newest celebrities on the site

earn & accumulate “rewards”

accumulate passport stamps by surfing the site (stamps are required to play games)

earn decibels

earn stickers by playing a game

earn “stripes” for cool rewards

track your accomplishments

other activities

access a “what do you think?” page (allows children to answer a brand-related poll)

post ideas and opinions on the site

serve as a judge or provide comments on a film festival held on site

Gain access to the “lizard lounge” (a fun place for children to play)—play music, set an alarm clock, listen to dinosaurs talk when visitor clicks on them, watch tV commercials

obtain access to the music studio

use secret codes from package to gain access to special areas on the site


fIGURe 4

MoVIe tIe-InsBatman Begins

star wars

aladdin

finding nemo

shrek 2

christmas with the Kranks

spiderman 2

fantastic four

the hulk

Kangaroo Jack

pirates of the caribbean

charlie and the chocolate factory

lemony snicket

robots “the movie”

madagascar

et

disney films **32 films, all referenced on a single site (wonderball.com)

fIGURe 5

teleVIsIon sHoW tIe-Insdexter’s lab dora the explorer

Johnny Bravo yu-Gi-oh

powerpuff Girls Ghoria (Video Game awards)

courage, the cowardly dog american Idol

ed, edd n eddy looney toons

cow and chicken Jimmy neutron

sheep in the Big city flintstones

I am weasel Garfield (character, not show itself )

mike, lu & og mtV

nickelodeon danny phantom

teen titans Barney

scooby doo arthur

spongeBob squarepants clifford

fairly odd parents Berenstein Bears

snoopy maya & miguel

mucha lucha mega warhead

fIGURe 6

eDUcatIonal actIVItIes anD InfoRMatIonhistory food-related topics

facts about egypt (in a game) facts about fruit

Great american presidents facts about milk

historical people + dress (in a game) 3-a-day program

Information about the aztecs Information about cheese

names of people in history who share your birthday Information about calories

occupations Information about the importance of eating right

Baking

science safety rules for the kitchen

dinosaurs activities involving food pyramid

astronomy facts

animals Games

space technology Indoor games

activities to see optical illusion Games to play on road trips

Birthday party ideas

other academic areas Jokes and tongue twisters

spelling game riddles

math game

Importance of foreign languages other topics

Grammar web safety

Geography Information about osteoporosis

art & artists oral hygiene

facts about child hunger

sports & exercise Information about halloween

learn about athletics

Information about specific sports

sports information

facts about exercise


fIGURe 7

IllUstRatIVe “aDVeRcatIon” toPIcs

Information related to Brand, Brand Ingredient, or spokesperson

how gum is made (airheads)

facts about Juicy fruit and timeline for packaging

history of dr. pepper

how chocolate is made (hershey)

tony mobile trivia (e.g., length, weight, number of hours to build)

learn about nascar, buzzwords from brand spokesperson, Jeff Gordon

learn about pepsi racing and car specifications

ten-year timeline of “got milk?” advertising

statistics on candy dish owners (lifesavers)

trivia game or quiz (related to brand or its ingredients)

Brand character presents a science or history topic

facts about dinosaurs (on ritz dinosaur home page)

learn about optical illusions (with brand character embedded in them)

provide a history of st. patrick’s day (by “elmer the elf” - who suggests Keebler cookies for a st. patrick’s day holiday party)

haiku (by “Buckets the elf”) who explains concept, then creates a haiku about Keebler)

Importance of eating breakfast

- “trix tips”, (e.g., “cereal is fuel for busy kids”)

- lucky charms (e.g., “children who eat breakfast do better in school”)

fun facts about animals (on page where animal characters “love hostess snacks”)


fIGURe 8

tYPes of bRanD-RelateD “eXtRas”desktop features (39%)* toys & accessories (11%)

downloads of brand characters to your desktop that sing, walk around printable baseball card (that you can put a photo)

Im or buddy icons paper airplanes (cut outs)

cursors masks (cut outs)

web browser banner printable snowboard creations

Brand wallpaper Bookmarks

Brand screensaver printable surfboard

Brand reminders (14%) product beauty shots (pdf)

pictures of brand logos and packages cut out a picture that you can put your head through

Brand name generator t-shirt design or iron on

pictures of brand characters printable obstacle course

Brand calendars (e.g., lunchables) tattoos

Brand door hanger printable costume kit (for brand character)

signs character flip books

tV ads paper light saber

milk mustache ad checklist stickers

radio ads health/wellness (7%)

sound bytes of brand character safe cooking tips

sounds of sipping, can opening (soft drink) health journal

light switch cover height chart (e.g., measure how many goldfish tall you are)

arts & crafts activities (13%) exercise journal

make a spirit bracelet exercise tips

cow puppets “taking care of a pet activity”

make “funky faces” plan a family fun day

printable interactive coloring pages prizes/certificates (2%)

drawing instructions autographed pictures

art using brand (e.g., popsicle stick art) pdf of price specifications

printable custom bikes and skateboards that visitor creates congratulatory card

printable brand-related pennant that visitor creates on site award certificate

Brand-related activity pages club membership card

Book cover instructions and decorations music (3%)

printable cd covers (that visitor creates) music

Games & puzzles (10%) party (2%)

puzzles/word search party ideas

Games party invitations

personality types (created in games) e-vites

additional items created in games (e.g., robots, outfits, home) shopping Inducements (1%)

Game ideas 6 rows of shopping list to give to parent (e.g., w/brand)

maze coupon

quiz

*among all “extra” items offered (n=277). note that 76% of all brands offered at least one “extra,” while 52% offered two or more items.


fIGURe 9

collectIon of ‘PoInts’ anD tHeIR ReWaRDsREwaRds To Enjoy offlinE REwaRds To Enjoy onlinEItem collected Items collected

points inside Kids’ meals code from product package

codes on product package Game pieces from product package

points from product package (e.g., Kool-aid points) question posed on website, find answer on product package

proofs of purchase (upcs) question posed on website, find answer on in-store product display

nature of reward nature of reward

discounts on toys downloads

free movie tickets Instant messenger icons

Branded clothing (e.g., hat, t-shirt) screensavers

movie character figurines (e.g., robots) sound file with brand character (for your computer)

discount on personal video recorder

toys (e.g., lego set, branded plush toys) Bonus Items for customizing website

coupon book of “values” Items to decorate “your room”

free product (e.g., candy) additional features for the “face you create”

prizes (e.g., tV)

extra Game features

new levels of play within a game

new characters within a game

new games

performance enhancing game features (e.g., “power tokens”)

free nintendo game tips

promotions and prizes

sweepstakes entry

certificate for prizes (e.g. movie rentals, free product [candy], music, game rental)


fIGure 10

examples of “ad BreaK” remInders—type of IndIcators sIte names

BurgerKing

hershey’s & Kidztown

nabiscoworld

postopia

candystand

cuatmcdonalds

millsberry

nesquik

subwayKids

wonderball

wonka

aPPenDIces


aPPenDIX a

fooD PRoDUct cateGoRIes

product cateGorIes contaInInG chIldren’s Brands product cateGorIes comprIsed of adult Brands

Gelatins & puddings (mixes & prepared) sugar, syrup & artificial sweetener

cereals shortening, oil, margarine

pasta products & pasta product dinners salad dressing & mayonnaise

prepared dinners & entrees (includes pizza) Baking mix, crust, topping, filling & ingredients

milk, butter, cream, eggs, yogurt & sour cream seasonings, spices, extracts & marinades

Ice cream, frozen novelties & sherbet etc. condiments, pickles & relishes

other fruits sauces, gravies & dips

soups Ingredients, mixes & seasonings

Breads, rolls, waffles & pancakes Infant foods

cakes, pies, pastries & donuts cheese

cookies & crackers dairy product substitutes

cocoa & milk additives citrus fruits

fruit juices & fruit flavored juices Vegetables

regular carbonated soft drinks Beans & grains

carbonated soft drinks lunch meat, hot dogs, bacon & sausage

non-carbonated soft drinks meat

Beverages poultry

candy & mints fish & seafood

Gum Bakery goods

chips, nuts, popcorn & pretzels coffee

confectionery & snacks tea

restaurants, national Vegetable juices

dietary carbonated soft drinks

Bottled water

dairy, ice cream & yogurt stores


aPPenDIX b

fooD bRanDs InclUDeD In tHe stUDY

using data from competitive media reports, these brands were identified as the top-spending children’s food advertisers on tV,accounting for 80% of television ad spending in their respective product categories

Breads & pastrIes cooKIes & cracKers prepared foods & meals

Kellogg’s pop tarts oreo cookies Kraft macaroni & cheese

eggo waffles* ritz crackers & Bits lunchables

little debbie cakes pepperidge farm Goldfish chef Boyardee pasta

hostess Baked Goods chips ahoy totinos frozen pizza rolls*

rice Krispy treats cheez-It spaghettio’s

candy & Gum teddy Grahams campbell’s soup

snickers cheese nips restaurants

m&ms chips deluxe mcdonald’s

reese’s cups & sticks fruIt JuIces & other non-carBonated drInKs Burger King

Kit Kat Kool-aid wendy’s

skittles sunny delight fruit drinks Kfc

life savers & crème savers capri sun fruit drinks pizza hut*

hershey’s Kisses tang* subway

starburst Juicy Juice chuck e. cheese

3 musketeers hi-c fruit Juices & drinks* salty snacKs

hershey Bar nestle nesquik milk & drink mix pringles

milky way* milk doritos

Butterfinger Ice cream & froZen noVeltIes cheetos

wonka candy popsicle ruffles*

nestle crunch nestle cones and pops lays potato chips*

twizzlers other snacKs Bugle corn snacks*

air heads fruit rollups fritos*

ring pops Betty crocker fruit By the foot* soft drInKs

nestle wonderball Betty crocker Gushers fruit snack coca cola

topps push pops quaker chewy Granola Bars pepsi

wrigley’s Juicy fruit Gum General mills milk & cereal Bars* sprite

Ice Breakers Gum trix yogurt* mountain dew

Bubble tape Bubble Gum yoplait Go-Gurt yogurt* 7 up

cereals dannon danimals dr. pepper

cheerios Jell-o Gelatin & pudding snacks

frosted flakes peanut Butter & Jelly

pebbles Jif peanut Butter

captain crunch smuckers Jams & Jellies

honeycomb

froot loops

cinnamon toast crunch

apple Jacks

reese’s peanut Butter puffs

trix

life cereal

lucky charms

cocoa puffs

Kix

* using the specified decision rules, no child-oriented websites for these brands were found in may 2005. they were not included in subsequent analyses.


aPPenDIX c

WebsItes InclUDeD In tHe stUDY3musketeers.com honbatz.com popsicle.com

7up.com jello.com poptarts.com

airheads.com juicyjuice.com (just for kids’ section) postopia.com

applejacks.com juicyfruit.com pringles.com

bk.com (kids’ section) keebler.com/brand/onthegosnacks quakeraday.com(family fun section)

bubblegum.com kelloggsfunktown.com ronald.com

bubbletape.com kelloggs.com/products/treats/index.html sillyrabbit.millsberry.com

butterfinger.com kfc.com (kids’ section) skittles.com

candystand.com kids.icecream.com smuckers.com

capncrunch.com kidztown.com snickers.com

caprisun.com kool-aid.com sprite.com

cheetos.com lifecereal.com starburst.com

chefboy.com littledebbie.com subway-kids.com

chuckecheese.com luckycharmsfun.com sunnyd.com

cuatmcdonalds.com lunchables.com thecheesiest.com

danimalsxl.com millsberry.com thehollowtree.com

dannon.com mountaindew.com tonguetracks.com

dewbajablast.com mycoke.com tonythetiger.com

doritos.com mypasta.com topps.com

drpepper.com mysoup.com twinkies.com

frootloops.com nabiscoworld.com us.mms.com

funkyfaces.com nestlecrunch.com wendys.com(kids section)

gotmilk.com nesquik.com whymilk.com

got-milk.com nutritioncamp.com wonderball.com

gushers.com pepsi.com wonka.com

hersheys.com pfgoldfish.com

<— SPINE = .1482

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Addit ional copies of this publ icat ion (#7536) and i ts exec ut ive summar y (#7537) are avai lable on the Kaiser Family Foundation website at w w w.k�.org.

The Kaiser Family Foundation is a non-pro�t, pr ivate operat ing foundat ion dedicated to providing information and analys is on health care issues to pol ic ymakers, the media, the health care communit y, and the general publ ic. The Foundation is not associated with Kaiser Permanente or Kaiser Industr ies.

The Henr y J . Kaiser Family Foundation: 2400 S and Hi l l Road, Menlo Park , C A 94025Phone: 650.854.9400 Fax: 650.854.4800Washington O �ce: 1330 G Street N.W., Washington, DC 20005Phone: 202.347.5270 Fax: 202.347.5274

www.k�.org

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