Alcohol Advertising
Why Advertise for Alcohol?
The first question that needs to be answered is why alcohol producers would want to target young people in the first place. The alcohol industry needs new drinkers because the drinking population is aging, consumption is dropping and brand competition is getting fiercer. If alcohol companies don’t attract young drinkers, they will continue the downhill track they’ve been on for the past 20 years. By recruiting young people, the industry is developing a lifetime’s worth of brand loyalty. Alcohol Advertising on the Web In the late 1990s, the U.S. Center for Media Education (CME) published a series of reports on how alcohol and tobacco companies were using the Internet to target young people. At that time, it was one of the first organizations to voice concerns over alcohol companies using the Internet to avoid the traditional advertising legislation in place for radio, television and magazines. The Web made it easy for alcohol marketers to blur the lines between marketing and entertainment. And, with its large youth demographic, it was a natural medium for reaching and influencing young drinkers. Another part of the Web's appeal was its interactive nature, which permitted companies to engage individual users. The Web – live, interactive and reader-friendly – offers advertisers an astonishing array of tools for creating community among its users. The advertising industry calls this approach "relational marketing," and it is particularly useful for companies like alcohol and tobacco producers who are competing for a shrinking pool of buyers, where brand loyalty is viewed as key to long-term survival. The CME noted that relational marketing plugs right into the adolescent market, where coolness and self-identity are based on belonging. In its Absolut Web report in 1997, the CME surveyed the content of more than 100 commercial Web sites to see whether or not they were actively engaging kids and teens. (In an updated report in 1998, an additional 48 sites were examined.) Sites were analysed based on four categories: youth appeal, privacy/data collection, age disclaimers and information on substance abuse.The study found several different types of online alcohol sites – geared towards different audiences. Generally, sites for microbreweries and wine companies appeared to target older, wealthier customers. But many commercial sites for beer and liquor companies – 62 per cent of total sites surveyed – seemed specifically designed to appeal to college and high school students. The report concluded: "These sites exude a joyful abandon about drinking: that it is good, clean, sexy and rebellious fun that doesn't hurt anybody.The CME identified the following strategies commonly used on alcohol sites to attract young people:
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For Discussion
Be sure to copy the questions and type your responses underneath. Responses do not need to be full sentences, but they must be complete. You must explain each of your responses fully.
Turn in Option #1: Send an email to [email protected] with your response and use "Alcohol Advertising Discussion" as the subject.
Turn in Option #2: Save your response in a Word Document as "Last Name--Alcohol Advertising Discussion" and place in the Journalism Folder in the drop box.
1. For advertisers, what makes the internet an attractive way to advertise to young people?
2. What is relational marketing? How does relational marketing connect to alcohol advertising?
3. In its survey, the Center for Media Education (CME) found more “youth-friendly” Web sites for beer and liquor than for wine. Why might this be so?
Turn in Option #1: Send an email to [email protected] with your response and use "Alcohol Advertising Discussion" as the subject.
Turn in Option #2: Save your response in a Word Document as "Last Name--Alcohol Advertising Discussion" and place in the Journalism Folder in the drop box.
1. For advertisers, what makes the internet an attractive way to advertise to young people?
2. What is relational marketing? How does relational marketing connect to alcohol advertising?
3. In its survey, the Center for Media Education (CME) found more “youth-friendly” Web sites for beer and liquor than for wine. Why might this be so?
For Analysis
Select one of the following websites to visit and analyze. Explore the website and analyze if and how the following items are present/used in the website. Responses do not need to be full sentences, but they must be complete. You must explain each of your responses fully.
Turn in Option #1: Send an email to [email protected] with your response and use "Alcohol Advertising Analysis" as the subject.
Turn in Option #2: Save your response in a Word Document as "Last Name--Alcohol Advertising Analysis" and place in the Journalism Folder in the drop box.
Budweiser Beer: www.budweiser.com
Anheuser-Busch Corporate Web site: www.anheuser-busch.com
Absolut Vodka: www.absolut.com
Arbor Mist: www.arbormist.com
Molson Canadian Beer: www.molsoncanadian.ca
Molson Coors Canada Corporate Web Site: www.molsoncoorscanada.com
Cuervo Tequila: www.cuervo.com
Kittling Ridge Wines: www.kittlingridge.com
Coors Beer: www.coors.com
Molson Coors Corporate Web site: www.molsoncoors.com
Captain Morgan Rum: www.captainmorgan.com
Robert Mondavi Winery: www.robertmondaviwinery.com
Miller Beer: www.millerbeer.com
MillerCoors Corporate Web site: www.millercoors.com
Skyy Vodka: www.skyy.com
Fetzer Estates: www.fetzer.com
Items to Analyze
Use of Videos/Cartoons
Branded Merchandise (tshirts, hats, sweatshirts, etc.)
Games/Contests/Activities
Age Disclaimer
Slang/Youth-Related Language
Downloads (sounds, songs, etc.)
Sports Information
Community Building
Email Activities
Screen Savers
Brand "spokespersons"
Messages about responsible drinking
Use of "sex"
Turn in Option #1: Send an email to [email protected] with your response and use "Alcohol Advertising Analysis" as the subject.
Turn in Option #2: Save your response in a Word Document as "Last Name--Alcohol Advertising Analysis" and place in the Journalism Folder in the drop box.
Budweiser Beer: www.budweiser.com
Anheuser-Busch Corporate Web site: www.anheuser-busch.com
Absolut Vodka: www.absolut.com
Arbor Mist: www.arbormist.com
Molson Canadian Beer: www.molsoncanadian.ca
Molson Coors Canada Corporate Web Site: www.molsoncoorscanada.com
Cuervo Tequila: www.cuervo.com
Kittling Ridge Wines: www.kittlingridge.com
Coors Beer: www.coors.com
Molson Coors Corporate Web site: www.molsoncoors.com
Captain Morgan Rum: www.captainmorgan.com
Robert Mondavi Winery: www.robertmondaviwinery.com
Miller Beer: www.millerbeer.com
MillerCoors Corporate Web site: www.millercoors.com
Skyy Vodka: www.skyy.com
Fetzer Estates: www.fetzer.com
Items to Analyze
Use of Videos/Cartoons
Branded Merchandise (tshirts, hats, sweatshirts, etc.)
Games/Contests/Activities
Age Disclaimer
Slang/Youth-Related Language
Downloads (sounds, songs, etc.)
Sports Information
Community Building
Email Activities
Screen Savers
Brand "spokespersons"
Messages about responsible drinking
Use of "sex"