The advertising industry has a reputation for targeting young audiences to increase sales. This can be done either straightforwardly or subliminally. According to Statista, a United States data aggregator, in 2016, advertising was a $195.76 billion industry. The United States is the largest ad market in the world.

The average American child watches anywhere from 25,000 to 40,000 television commercials every year, according to the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy. Advertisers see the influence — and sometimes the power — that kids have in their households and use this to their advantage. In 2009, companies in the United States spent $17 billion on advertising targeted toward children.

U.S. teens alone spend approximately $160 billion per year. Kids aged 10 through 12 average $30 billion, and children 9 and under spend about $18 billion, by way of their parents. This adds up to around $208 billion that American children and teens spend annually in the United States, according to the CBS article “Resources; Marketing to Kids.”

The fast-food market targets children in particular. The average American child aged 6 to11 views an average of 253 ads from McDonald’s alone annually. McDonald’s characters such as Ronald McDonald, Grimace and the Hamburglar are characters created by McDonald’s to draw in a young crowd.

Industries target young people in hopes of creating loyal consumers for the future. However, the American Psychological Association views this as harmful.

According to the APA, kids under 8 have trouble comprehending televised advertising; they perceive commercials as truthful or accurate. In regard to fast-food ads, this can potentially lead to unhealthy eating patterns, which is evident in today’s obesity problem. However, regardless of the potential obesity that can be influenced by fast food advertising to children, the United States has only some restrictions on alcohol and tobacco advertising.
Advertising that appeals to children are even seen in car commercials from companies such as GMC. An example of this is SUVs, which are made for families with kids who want more space. Also car companies understand that children have an influence on their parents’ buying decisions, so they use mascots and animated figures like the beaver that Toyota uses. Although this does capture the attention of adults, it is designed to capture the attention of children.

Advertising to kids is a popular strategy to increase sales. According to Statista, from 2015 to 2017, advertising to kids increased by at least $10 billion every year.