Advertising agencies are smart. They are highly trained in the art of manipulation. Deft and assasin-like, they wield a power to convince us to purchase items that we don’t really need.
As such, we have made attempts to shield Elli from a lot of advertising. The limited TV she watches is commercial free, which is a big part of the battle. And yet, at the ripe age of three, there are certain brands that she is very passionate about. It doesn’t happen often. Typically, she just refers to objects by their generic name (cookie, juice, ball, puzzle). But I have noticed a handful of occasions recently where a specific brand has already found its way into her little heart.
- Wheat Thins – A little bizarre. I’m pretty sure she’s never seen a commercial for them. But we were shopping the other day and she got really excited when she saw the boxes. She was able to name them correctly and has been very passionate about the crispy crackers the past couple of days. My refusal to let her take the whole box to the table and gorge herself immediately before dinner the other night stirred up quite the tempest of rage.
- Chick-fil-a – Granted, she finds the pronunciation very tricky (she calls it “Chick-a-fay). But boy howdy, does that girl love her some Chick-fil-a. We’ve been inundated with requests for the restaurant lately. She knows they have nuggets. She knows there is a “silly cow” in the entry. She knows they give out balloons and have a wicked fun playground.
- Bancability – Recently, a bunch of independent banks in the KC metro banded together to create a banking group. They also underwent some branding and now have a snazzy green leaf logo. We don’t personally use the banking group, but our former babysitter did. She would take her kids and Elli to the bank, and every time they went they would get balloons. Trap some air in a rubber membrane, and you have stolen Elli’s affection for life. When she sees ads for the banks in the news paper, she gets all worked up and starts babbling about balloons. Same thing if we pass one of the banks with the green leaf on their sign. Those balloons end up being a fantastic investment if they procure life-long customers.
- Dora – This one is a little odd. Elli’s relationship with Dora didn’t start with the TV show. It started because the Dora-themed children’s yogurt has less sugar than other selections. It wasn’t until recently that Elli actually started requesting that she get to watch Dora, and yet she has been a huge fan for over a year. It’s funny that Yoplait paid a bunch of money to Nick to put her image on a product, that then encourages a kid to watch the show. Double win for Nick. And while we’re on the topic, Dora is ubiquitous at the grocery store. That little lady has her image splashed on tons of products.
Renew and Restore
They’re also fans of the yogurt, too. Marketers know if you throw in a balloon, kids will be hooked!! ha
