To Limit Spending, Limit Your Exposure to Advertising
One of the things we’ve noticed in our family is that the more advertising we see, the more stuff we are likely to want. This is especially true with our children. We try to minimize the amount of advertising they are exposed to which helps to alleviate some of the “I wants”. It is tricky though because advertisers are constantly trying to woo our kids.
One of the ways we attempt to keep marketing material away from the children is to minimize their tv time and their exposure to commercials. We have a rule in our house, “when the commercials come on, the tv goes off”. They are trained to shut the tv off for a few minutes while the commercials play and then turn it back on when the show they are watching resumes. We are usually close by to enforce this rule. The kids have limits on the shows they are allowed to watch as well as the length of time per day.
Another way we minimize their exposure to advertising is by throwing out all the toy catalogs and magazines that are sent their way. American Girl is one of the worst offenders. We have never purchased anything from them, but somehow they got our daughter’s name. They faithfully send her their latest catalog so she can see all the dolls she simply must have, at a cost of $100 or more per doll. Yikes! Now we sort through our mail before bringing it into the house, and toss any catalogs or sales flyers directed at the kids.
For myself, I don’t browse catalogs or stores where I know I will be tempted with impulse purchases. I have come to recognize that simply removing these things from my line of vision helps me to see more clearly our goal of saving money and living within our means. When I am feeling particularly emotional, I avoid advertising like the plague. No TV, magazines, online shopping, etc.
Now we don’t tune out all advertising. That would be impossible to do. However, we find that by keeping it to low levels, everyone in the family is not focused on the next “thing they have to have”.
you can use the following to stop most of the madness of unsolicited mail for yourself and the kids:
The Direct Marketing Association’s (DMA) Mail Preference Service lets you opt out of receiving direct mail marketing from many national companies for five years. When you register with this service, your name will be put on a “delete†file and made available to direct-mail marketers. However, your registration will not stop mailings from organizations that are not registered with the DMA’s Mail Preference Service. To register with DMA, send your letter to:
Direct Marketing Association
Mail Preference Service
PO Box 643
Carmel, NY 10512
I want to suggest another approach. Parents can actively reduce a young child’s exposure to advertising, but this becomes very difficult as they enter schools and other publicly social activities. The debate about protecting a developing mind against all the bad choices available is too deep a socio-political one for this forum.
It seems to me a better option, in addition to modeling the behaviors that you want your child to be influenced by, would be this: Teach young children how to interpret advertisements that have been artfully crafted to get their attention or give them only partial information about what they’re selling. In an intelligent way, point out the misleading aspects of the information or the missing details or the way presentation intended to grab intention but nothing more. Read books on advertising methods to educate yourself first and share this information with your kids. In fact, make it a game. Think I’m crazy if you will, but my son and I used to get a good giggle from watching 30 minutes of a tv shopping network and taking turns pointing out all the exaggerations and not-so-subtle attempts at luring the viewer into buying something nobody could ever need. I consider this kind of consumer education every bit as important to our youth as teaching youngsters not to take candy from strangers — isn’t it pretty similar in a way?
Rather than limiting exposure to ads, as an adult I find it works much better to limit my exposure to shopping opportunities. It might be a cost-savings to hire a sitter while you shop rather than to take your kids. Or avoid the shopping altogether and order only the exact thing you need. My husband often buys groceries from my list and we save money because he never varies from the list, whereas I might be more tempted to work around a sale price even if the item weren’t immediately needed. And we still have no trouble “eating from the pantry” in weeks where money is short or schedules are hectic. (In my opinion, stocking the shelves with sale items against future needs is not a good tactic. It’s better to keep the money on hand in case your future needs are for something entirely different, like needing $ to pay for a prescription that can’t be found on sale when other items you also need could be.)
We need to know about all our options in order to make wise choices. Comparison shopping is not just about finding a better price, it’s also about knowing how to choose the best item for our needs. Learn about advertising and get to know which “tricks” are most likely to tempt your willpower. Teach your kids about advertising and help them discover their own tendencies so they can learn to make smart choices too.
Ken:
Thanks for the tip. We will definitely register to be put on the delete file!
Debbie:
Thank you so much for your comment. Great points!