Search

Objective: To characterise the nature of digital food and beverage advertising in Singapore., Setting: Food and beverage advertisements within twenty clicks on the top twelve non-food websites and all posts on the Facebook and Instagram pages of fifteen major food companies in Singapore were sampled from 1 January to 30 June 2018., Design: Advertised foods were classified as being core (healthier), non-core or mixed dishes (e.g. burger) using the WHO nutrient profile model and national guidelines. Marketing techniques were assessed using published coding frameworks., Participants: NA., Results: Advertisements ( n 117) on the twelve non-food websites were largely presented as editorial content. Food companies posted twice weekly on average on social media sites ( n 1261), with eatery chains posting most frequently and generating the largest amount of likes and shares. Key marketing techniques emphasised non-health attributes, for example, hedonic or convenience attributes (85 % of advertisements). Only a minority of foods and beverages advertised were core foods (non-food website: 16·2 %; social media: 13·5 %)., Conclusions: Top food and beverage companies in Singapore actively use social media as a platform for promotion with a complex array of marketing techniques. A vast majority of these posts were unhealthy highlighting an urgent need to consider regulating digital food and beverage advertising in Singapore.

Aims: To examine bidirectional associations between self-reported exposure to electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) marketing and ENDS use, over four 6-month follow-up surveys, among young adults., Design: The Marketing and Promotions Across Colleges in Texas project (M-PACT) is a cohort study that examined exposure to tobacco marketing and tobacco use behaviors among college students in Texas, United States., Setting and Participants: Participants were 5478 students from 24 2-year and 4-year Texas colleges. Approximately 64% (n = 3506) of the cohort were non-white, 64% were female and the average age was 20 years., Measurements: Students completed a baseline survey in Fall 2014/Spring 2015 and three subsequent surveys 6 months apart. Items assessed current ENDS use and self-reported exposure to ENDS marketing through the point-of-sale, on television, on the radio, on the internet and on billboards. A multi-level cross-lagged path model was used to examine the bidirectional associations between self-reported exposure to ENDS marketing and current ENDS use across the four waves, controlling for socio-demographics., Findings: Self-reported exposure to ENDS marketing at each previous wave predicted ENDS use at each subsequent wave (β = 0.07-0.10, P < 0.001). ENDS use at waves 2 and 3 predicted self-reported exposure to ENDS marketing at wave 3 and 4, respectively (β = 0.07-0.09, P < 0.001). Although ENDS users were more likely than non-users to report exposure to ENDS marketing, self-reported exposure to ENDS marketing predicted subsequent ENDS use controlling for prior ENDS use., Conclusion: Self-reported exposure to electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) marketing was bidirectionally associated with past 30-day use of ENDS among young adult college students in Texas, USA from 2014/15 to 2016., (© 2019 Society for the Study of Addiction.)

Electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) advertising regulations differ across countries. This study examines how differences in e-cigarette advertising regulations influence exposure to e-cigarette advertising, and perceptions about what participants had seen and read about e-cigarettes. Data come from the ITC Four Country Survey (Canada [CA], United States [US], Australia [AU] and United Kingdom [UK]) carried out between August 2013 and March 2015 (n = 3460). In 2014, AU and CA had laws prohibiting the retail sale of e-cigarettes containing nicotine while the US and UK had no restrictions, although a voluntary agreement restricting advertising in the UK was introduced during fieldwork. Smokers and ex-smokers were asked whether in the last six months they had noticed e-cigarettes advertisements and received free samples/special offers (promotion), and about their perceptions (positive or otherwise) of what they had seen or read about e-cigarettes. Data were analyzed in 2017. US and UK participants were more likely to report that they had noticed e-cigarette advertisements and received promotions compared to CA or AU participants. For TV and radio advertisements, reported exposure was higher in US compared to UK. For all types of advertisements, reported exposure was higher in CA than AU. Overall, nearly half of AU (44.0%) and UK (47.8%) participants perceived everything they had seen and read about e-cigarettes to be positive, with no significant differences between AU and UK. Participants in countries with permissive e-cigarette advertising restrictions and less restrictive e-cigarette regulations were more likely to notice advertisements than participants in countries with more restrictive e-cigarette regulations., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Increased marketing of energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods has been identified as a driver of the global obesity epidemic and a priority area for preventative efforts. Local and international research has focused on the unhealthiness of television advertising, with limited research into the growing outdoor advertising industry. This study aimed to examine the extent of food and beverage advertising on the Sydney metropolitan train network, and to assess the nutritional quality of advertised products against the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating., Methods: All 178 train stations on the Sydney metropolitan train network were surveyed in summer and winter. A survey tool was developed to collect information for all advertisements on and immediately surrounding the train station. Information included product, brand, location and advertisement format. Advertisements were coded by nutrition category, product subcategory and size. Chi-square, ANOVA and ANCOVA tests were conducted to test for differences in the amount of food and beverage advertising by season and area socioeconomic status (SES)., Results: Of 6931 advertisements identified, 1915 (27.6%) were promoting a food or beverage. The majority of food and beverage advertisements were for unhealthy products; 84.3% were classified as discretionary, 8.0% core and 7.6% miscellaneous. Snack foods and sugar-sweetened beverages were the most frequently advertised products, regardless of season. Coca-Cola and PepsiCo were the largest advertisers on the network, contributing 10.9% and 6.5% of total advertisements respectively. There was no difference in the mean number of food and beverage advertisements by area SES, but the proportion of advertising that was for discretionary foods was highest in low SES areas (41.9%, p < 0.001)., Conclusions: The results indicate that, irrespective of season, food and beverage advertisements across the Sydney metropolitan train network are overwhelmingly for unhealthy (discretionary) products. The results of this study highlight the inadequacy of Australia's voluntary self-regulatory system in protecting members of the public from exposure to unhealthy food advertising. Regulatory action by government, such as placing a cap on the amount of unhealthy food advertisements, or requiring a proportion of all advertising to be for the promotion of healthy foods, is required to address this issue.

Aims: In the UK, nicotine pouches are growing in popularity, particularly among young people. This study investigated the Instagram marketing strategies of one leading brand, Nordic Spirit. Methods: A total of 496 Instagram posts published by Nordic Spirit between 2019 and 2023 were collected and organised into themes using qualitative content analysis to identify recurring patterns. Then, multimodal critical discourse analysis was employed to explore the different linguistic and other semiotic resources at work in posts, their ideological patterns and how they work together to frame nicotine pouches as an essential product for young people. Results: The study identified four key messages that Nordic Spirit uses to target young people: (1) fun and freedom; (2) Nordic happiness; (3) fuss-free and discreet; and (4) healthy and scientifically rational. It found that posts are often misleading, underplay the dangers of nicotine and frame nicotine pouches as trendy lifestyle products rather than as smoking alternatives. Conclusion: The results underline the dangers of such marketing strategies in encouraging nicotine addiction and dependence. Consequently, the UK government and Advertising Standards Authority should do more to clamp down on these social media posts and introduce tighter regulations to protect young people and uphold their freedom from exploitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: E-cigarette advertising, which often includes various features, may prompt e-cigarette use and product switching. This study examined the associations between noticing e-cigarette ad features and perceived product appeal and interest in completely switching from cigarettes to advertised e-cigarettes among young adult dual users of both products. Methods: We analyzed data from an online heatmap experiment among young adult dual users defined as established cigarette smokers who currently used e-cigarettes (ages 18-34 years; n = 1,821). Participants viewed 12 e-cigarette ads, clicked on ad features (e.g., fruit flavors, nicotine warnings, price promotions, smoker-targeted claims) that attracted their attention (defined as "noticing"), and answered questions about e-cigarette product appeal and interest in completely switching from cigarettes to the e-cigarettes shown. We examined within-person associations between noticing specific ad features and outcomes, controlling for demographic and tobacco use-related characteristics. Results: Noticing fruit flavors (AOR = 1.67 and 1.28) and fruit images (AOR = 1.53 and 1.21) was positively associated with having any e-cigarette product appeal and switching interest. Noticing price promotions (AOR = 1.23) was positively associated with product appeal. In contrast, noticing nicotine warnings (AOR = 0.74 and 0.86), smoker-targeted claims (AOR = 0.78 and 0.89), and tobacco flavors (AOR = 0.92 and 0.90) was negatively associated with product appeal and switching interest. Conclusions: Noticing certain e-cigarette ad features (e.g., fruit flavors and nicotine warnings) may be associated with product appeal and/or switching interest among young adult dual users. More research is needed to assess the influence of e-cigarette ad features that promote product switching interests among cigarette smokers while discourage interests among tobacco-naïve individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background This study conducted an exploratory content analysis of TV food advertisements on the top three most popular channels for Filipino children aged two to 17 during school and non-school days. Methods Data were collected by manually recording of aired advertisements from 16 non-school days (July to September 2020) and 16 school days (January to April 2021). Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were used to assess children’s rates of exposure to food advertisements (mean ± SD of advertisements aired per channel per hour), the healthiness of promoted foods (as permitted (healthier) or not permitted (unhealthy) according to nutrient profiling models from the World Health Organization), and persuasive techniques used in food advertisements, including promotional characters and premium offers. Results The results show that the rates of exposure to food advertisements were higher during school days (14.6 ± 14.8) than on non-school days (11.9 ± 12.0) (p

Throughout the early twentieth century, the widespread growth of coffee drinking in Sweden led for calls by health reformers, doctors and scientists to implement measures to curtail what they deemed "coffee abuse." Debates about the dangers of coffee took place in Swedish Parliament and trickled out into the popular press. It was not long before canny manufacturers saw an opportunity to capitalize upon this, introducing coffee substitutes onto the Swedish market. One of the most popular brands was the roasted wheat bran drink Postum. This article seeks to investigate the early marketing practices of Postum in Sweden and how the brand used advertisements to exploit the public's growing fears around coffee and put itself forward as a viable substitute that was essential for good health. Using a dataset of 200 advertisements published in Svenska Dagbladet between 1926 and 1940, it demonstrates how Postum skewed scientific/medical knowledge on caffeine to their advantage, urging consumers to buy Postum to protect themselves against neurasthenia, insomnia and digestive disorders. In doing so, Postum went far beyond its role as a drink, instead tapping into discourses of wellbeing, morality and productivity, which remain a central part of food marketing today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the introduction of the banana to Sweden in the early twentieth century and how “eating knowledge” of this new and exotic fruit was transferred to consumers through marketing that drew heavily upon scientific discourse. Using a case study of advertisements from Fyffes – the most dominant banana brand of the period – it employs multimodal social semiotics to identify a range of verbal and visual strategies that were adopted to turn the product into a core part of the Swedish diet. It argues that these strategies were critical in educating Swedish people about the link between food and health and shaped their (positive) attitudes toward bananas. The banana, thus, stands as a strong example of how marketing can transport, shape and transform knowledge about food, particularly at a critical time when it is first being introduced into a country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This discursive study explores the portrayal of empowering women in advertisements, shedding light on the evolving narrative within the realm of marketing and media. The analysis delves into the discursive strategies employed by advertisers to construct empowering representations of women, examining linguistic, visual, and cultural elements. Through a comprehensive review of diverse advertisements, this study investigates how these portrayals shape societal perceptions of women's roles and identities. The research seeks to unravel the underlying discourses that either challenge or perpetuate traditional gender norms, assessing the impact of these representations on both individual and collective consciousness. By critically examining the discursive dimensions of women's empowerment in advertising, this study provides insights into the socio-cultural implications and the potential role of advertisements in fostering positive societal change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background This work is aimed to describe the recent scientific literature developed in the food/beverage sector and social networks aimed at children and adolescents, as well as current regulations. Methods A rapid review of the studies on advertising and social media aimed at children, published from 2010 tp 2020 is carried out, following the established inclusion criteria. In addition, the regulations in the countries in which the studies were carried out were also reviewed. Results Of the 573 articles, 7 met these criteria. The great attraction of unhealthy foods for children is observed, who remembered and recognized a greater number of unhealthy food brands and, by extension, the ability to influence of communication in social networks. Each country has its own self-regulation, two (Ireland and USA) have legislation on children’s food advertising, and Australia has legislation that applies only to open television. However, none of the analyzed countries have specific regulations on food, children and media advertising. Conclusions Given the fact that there is evidence about the great attraction that social networks suppose for the child, that they are a stimulus for the consumption of food and that many of these foods are harmful to their health; we should work in two directions: 1) Promote public policies based on promoting healthy habits among minors; and 2) Monitor and implement regulations in commercial communication social media.

Despite advertising imagery portraying cancer medicines as offering substantial improvement or cure, most patients can expect modest or no incremental benefit from most new treatments, according to pre-specified criteria. When improvements in overall survival are demonstrated, they average just 2.1 months. Despite limited benefits, drug prices have risen while median household incomes have remained largely unchanged, and these higher prices are poorly correlated with improved outcomes. Better alignment of perception with demonstrated drug benefit could be achieved by limitations on advertising and improved labeling or other disclosures. Reforms are also needed to remove financial incentives to prescribe costlier drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From its inception in 1869, margarine was considered a working-class food, associated with poverty and inferiority. In the early twentieth century, Swedish margarine brands set about to change public perception of the product, investing vast sums of money in extensive marketing campaigns to showcase it as suitable for the middle classes. However, wanting to retain as much market share as possible, they also continued to direct margarine advertisements at the working classes. Thus, a seemingly paradoxical situation emerged where the same brands, often in the same newspapers, published advertisements aimed at two distinct audiences. This paper uses multimodal critical discourse analysis to examine a large body of margarine advertisements produced in Sweden between 1923 and 1933. Specifically, it considers how brands appealed to either working-class or middle-class identities, socialisation, relationships, and rituals in the arguments they put forward about the values of margarine. It finds that middle-classadvertisements were focused on promoting margarine as exclusive and luxurious, challenging prejudices and encouraging them to learn from the working classes, while working-class advertisements centred around respectability and keeping up appearances, valuing frugality and thrift and commending traditional ways of life and regional/national customs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Knowledge: International Journal is the property of Institute for Knowledge Management and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper historicizes our understanding of the contemporary functional beverage trend by focusing on the marketing practices of the biggest-selling "health drink" in early twentieth-century Sweden: Samarin. Drawing upon a large dataset of Samarin advertisements, it uses multimodal critical discourse analysis to track the evolution of Samarin over a 48-year period, from its launch in 1923 to the introduction of the Market Practices Act in 1971, which clamped down on false advertising. The analysis demonstrates how Samarin advertisements were continuously reshaped to capitalize upon new scientific/medical discoveries, societal changes, and public interests, tapping into evolving ideas on health and diet to remain popular with consumers. Through these constantly shifting discourses, Samarin became mythologized and framed as a "good" food choice, essential to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The findings reveal that many of these strategies are still used today, despite legislation in place that is supposed to protect consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers the first case study of the marketing of cod liver oil in Sweden (1920–1930), following the discovery of vitamins A and D. Drawing upon a large dataset of cod liver oil advertisements from the Swedish Newspaper Archive, it uses multimodal critical discourse analysis to investigate how language and other semiotic resources (e.g. image, typography, color) work together to convey the benefits of cod liver oil intake. It identifies three overarching themes—scientific rationality, scientific motherhood, and nature—noting how advertisements were aimed squarely at mothers and struck a balance between vitamins as scientifically formulated products and mythical, natural substances to convince them that cod liver oil was necessary for their children. Exploring how cod liver oil was marketed from a historical perspective shows how nutritional research gained prominence and became of increasing importance for marketing, as well as how food, through science, became incorporated into a consumerist lifestyle. It also provides a way to deconstruct contemporary marketing practices, thereby enabling consumers to rethink products framed as indispensable for their health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the implementation of programmatic buying in the digital audio sector. The sustained growth present in the different markets helps the consolidation of this medium that brings enormous benefits to commercial communication. The main aim of this research is to understand the current situation of the programmatic audio advertising buying sector. In order to address the object of study, an exploratory approach has been carried out by applying a qualitative and quantitative methodology developed with professionals from the sector and supported by the collaboration of entities such as IAB and Programmatic Spain. The results show that there is a greater commitment by brands to invest in digital audio due to its flexibility and the ability to send segmented messages with greater effectiveness and consumer engagement. As a non-invasive medium, the inclusion of digital audio in media plans has a direct impact on listener's attention. Data shows that there has been a significant increase in the consumption of streaming music, online radio, and podcasts. Nevertheless, investment is still focused on traditional radio and the results of the study show a reluctance to plan integrated campaigns. Moreover, the difficulty in measuring return on investment is a major deterrent to the investment attracted. Professionals interviewed say that the market provides transparency and quality guarantees, as opposed to other problems such as fraud in data measurement that have slowed down investment in the past. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advancement of technology has broadened possibilities for people working in the sex industry. Specifically, sex workers' use of online classified advertisement websites to market companionship and escort services has increased in recent years, yet research has lagged behind these developments. This study addresses the gap in research by examining female companionship advertisements on one of the most popular websites: Backpage.com. The lead author qualitatively analyzed over 1,500 advertisements to identify common themes and patterns in how escort companions were described. This study explores the type of identity claims escort companions make and how they formulate advertisements to appeal to a broad client base. Research on gendered stereotypes is used to interpret escort companions' use of language, symbols, and photography, through covert and overt messaging. Study results revealed that women offering companion services promoted and reinforced traditional gendered stereotypes through their online advertisements. Findings may be used to understand the context of sex work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to examine the strategies of persuasion used in American-cuisine restaurant menus in Jordan. It seeks to identify the power of language used by advertisers in order to attract and persuade their patrons. It mainly investigates persuasive strategies used in 26 American cuisine restaurant menus by adopting Aristotle's framework in association with Saussure's structuralist semiotics. The results showed that American restaurant menus tend to use various types of persuasive appeals that influence patrons emotionally, affect their food choices, and facilitate the process of convincing. The study also concludes that menus include five major appeals, namely sensual, emotional, desire, pleasure, and thought and brand appeals, whose ultimate goal is to provoke some desired mental images to influence the patrons' food choice decisions.

The advances in technology and communication have made it easier and faster for producers to reach consumers and to access products. In today's market conditions, where competition is very intense, a number of emotional and cognitive factors called appeal are used to capture impressive, persuasive and catchy advertisements, which capture the audience and motivate them to develop the consumer trend. In the study, the appeal of 4 different categories of humor, fear-anxiety, emotionality and sexuality; the contribution of the advertisement to the level of attracting attention and conveying the desired message, how the ad affects the ad taste, recall, the brand and purchasing attitudes, and the reactions of the consumers are examined. The research is carried out on 50 participants, 25 men and 25 women, in three stages using the questionnaire method. In the first phase, first questionnaire is applied to determine the demographic structure of the participants, their attitudes towards advertisements, their approach to advertising films and their appeals. In the second stage, second questionnaire is conducted to determine the emotions and thoughts about the advertisements, the effect of the advertisement appeal, the attitudes towards the product and brand, the preferences, the points that he remembered and attracted attention. In the third stage, seven days after watching the advertisement, third questionnaire is applied to the same participants about the recall of the advertised advertisements and the attitude towards product and brand. As a result, although it varies according to the social structure, it is observed that the use of humor and emotional appeal in advertisements is more effective than sexuality and fear appeal in arousing interest, creating appreciation and persuasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this compendium of recent research in this themed issue is to heighten awareness of eye-tracking methodology and its application in tobacco regulatory science to advance knowledge of consumer understanding of the diversity of advertising, marketing, and other communications about tobacco products. Eye-tracking provides an objective and direct measure of attention that cannot be obtained through self-reported measures. The 7 papers selected for this special issue contribute to scientific knowledge and this editorial provides a synthesis to help guide readers and offer insights for future eye-tracking research. These elegantly designed studies apply eye-tracking methods to 3 major topics related to tobacco products: health warnings, advertising, and constituent information. The application of eye tracking methodology to tobacco regulatory science research has the potential to increase understanding of the impact of tobacco communication and marketing on consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previous studies have examined what adolescents find appealing in tobacco and alcohol advertisements and how different themes in advertisements are used to manipulate consumer behaviors. Yet, we know little about the relationship between the themes portrayed in advertisements and youth attitudes towards those themes. Objectives: This study compared attitudes towards advertisements for different consumer products in a sample of urban and rural adolescent boys in order to examine how key marketing themes impact adolescent attitudes towards those advertisements. Methods: Participants were 11- to 16-year-old boys (N = 1220) residing in either urban or rural Ohio Appalachian counties. Each participant viewed five print advertisements (one each for cigarettes, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), smokeless tobacco (SLT), non-alcoholic beverages, and alcohol), presented in a random order, for eight seconds each. All advertisements had appeared in magazines that adolescent males commonly read. Attitudes towards each of the five advertisements were assessed. The advertisements were then coded for the presence of various themes, including social acceptance and masculinity. Analyses were conducted to determine associations between advertisement type and the attitude measure, and between the presence of a theme and the attitude measure. Results: Overall, participants preferred non-tobacco advertisements to tobacco advertisements, rural participants had less positive attitudes and participants who had peers who used tobacco had more positive attitudes. Social acceptance and entertainment themes increased the appeal of SLT advertisements, and sex appeal increased the appeal of e-cigarette advertisements. Conclusions/Importance: Findings suggest that advertisements that promote the social nature of use in SLT advertisements may be of particular concern for their influence on adolescent boys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Excessive alcohol consumption compromises health and increases risk of mortality. Advertisements for alcohol in city environments have been shown to influence consumption. The aim of this pilot study was to estimate the prevalence of alcohol advertisements displayed on LinkNYC kiosks, a new communication channel that provides outdoor Wi-Fi access and advertising on streets within urban environments. Direct observations were conducted to document advertisements on a 20% random sample of the 500 LinkNYC kiosks in Manhattan, NYC. From May to September of 2017, each of the 100 selected kiosks was observed for a 10-min period to document advertisements for alcohol. In addition, differences in prevalence of alcohol advertisements were examined by the location of the kiosk based on NYC zip codes’ median annual income. Of the 2025 advertisements observed, 5.09% (N = 103) were for an alcohol product (including duplicates). Such advertisements were observed on 17% of the kiosks. No health warnings or age warnings were presented in any of the alcohol advertisements. Compared with kiosks located in zip codes with lower median annual income, significantly more alcohol advertisements were displayed in zip codes with higher median annual income. This is the first study to estimate the prevalence of alcohol advertising on the LinkNYC Wi-Fi and telecommunication system, now ubiquitous on Manhattan’s sidewalks. This study adds to the current literature that suggests New York City residents could benefit from health-promoting versus health-compromising advertising. The findings also highlight the potential of LinkNYC kiosk marketing to undermine health-related social marketing efforts by City government and other organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]