Development of a Teen-Informed Coding Tool to Measure the Power of Food Advertisements

Abstract

The food-related information environment, comprised of food and beverage advertising within one’s surroundings, is a growing concern for adolescent health given that food marketing disproportionately targets adolescents. Despite strong public interest concerning the effects of food marketing on child health, there is limited evidence focused on outdoor food advertising in relation to teenage diets, food purchasing, and perceptions. Further, limited research has considered both the exposure to and influence of such advertisements. This study used a novel multi-method approach to identify and quantify the features of outdoor food and beverage advertisements that are most effective at drawing teenagers into retail food establishments. An environmental audit of outdoor advertisements and consultations with youth were used to: (1) identify teen-directed food marketing techniques; (2) validate and weigh the power of individual advertising elements; and, (3) develop a teen-informed coding tool to measure the power of food-related advertisements. Results indicate that marketing power is a function of the presence and size of teen-directed advertisement features, and the relative nature of each feature is an important consideration. This study offers a quantitative measurement tool for food environment research and urges policymakers to consider teen-directed marketing when creating healthy communities.

Quantifying Child-Appeal: The Development and Mixed-Methods Validation of a Methodology for Evaluating Child-Appealing Marketing on Product Packaging

“…The techniques in the CAP tool also appear to mirror those covered in existing or emerging children’s marketing regulations, with the addition of broad techniques that are important to monitor due to their contribution to marketing power. It is important to note, however, that that the CAP tool’s marketing power score weighs the presence of each technique equally (i.e., one point each), but it is possible that certain marketing techniques are more persuasive to children than others [ 17 , 21 ], and therefore contribute disproportionately to the power and influence of the marketing message. The power of specific marketing techniques in relation to—or in combination with—other techniques was not tested here and should be the aim of future research.…”

“…Evidence suggests that the frequency of marketing exposure and the number of marketing instances displayed on a food package increases the power of the marketing message [ 19 , 20 ], and could therefore influence the children’s attraction to these foods. The type of marketing techniques employed by manufacturers can also alter persuasiveness [ 17 , 21 ].…”

“…One study has validated a measure of brand awareness among children [ 22 ], however, there have been no studies aiming to validate methodologies to assess child-appealing food marketing in terms of how well they measure the aspects of marketing that children actually find appealing. There has been one study that developed and validated a teen-informed coding tool [ 21 ], but this type of consumer-validated coding tool is lacking for the child demographic.…”

Food Marketing and Power: Teen-Identified Indicators of Targeted Food Marketing

“…One challenge with the existing literature on teenagers and food marketing is that very little of it engages with the actual content of the marketing message. With the exception of a few studies [9,20], the specific persuasive techniques used within the advertisements are glossed over. To date, only one study [9] engages with the persuasive techniques found within marketing found across a spectrum of platforms.…”

Examining how changes in provincial policy on vape marketing impacted the distribution of vaping advertisements near secondary schools in London, Ontario

“…This is concerning, as youth are highly susceptible to advertisements for potentially harmful products, including vapes (Krugman 2016 ). An increasing body of literature recognizes the influence of advertising in the retail environment on health-related behaviours (Bowman et al 2019 ; Mantey et al 2016 ). For example, a study of students in New Jersey found that individuals attending schools with greater retailer-based vaping advertisements within a half-mile were significantly more likely to have vaped in the past month (Giovenco et al 2016a ).…”