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Kids Reveal the Power of the Brand

By Michael Stelzner

In a rather shocking study that was just released, Forbes mentions that kids think ANY FOOD tastes better when wrapped in a McDonalds wrapper.

According to the article:

Anything made by McDonald’s tastes better, preschoolers said in a study that powerfully demonstrates how advertising can trick the taste buds of young children.

Even carrots, milk and apple juice tasted better to the kids when they were wrapped in the familiar packaging of the Golden Arches.

The study had youngsters sample identical McDonald’s foods in name-brand and unmarked wrappers. The unmarked foods always lost the taste test.

“You see a McDonald’s label and kids start salivating,” said Diane Levin, a childhood development specialist who campaigns against advertising to kids.

Study author Dr. Tom Robinson said the kids’ perception of taste was “physically altered by the branding.” The Stanford University researcher said it was remarkable how children so young were already so influenced by advertising.

WOW!

This demonstrates the amazing power of branding.

Do you think brands carry power beyond children??

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 8th, 2007 at 11:57 am and is filed under Marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

  • Stella Murphy
    Just saw this reference to the Forbes study about kids liking food more if it's wrapped in Mac paper.
    I would like to know if the kids Forbes chose to survey were raised on junk food.
    I know for a fact that kids fed fast (junk) food early in their life develop a taste for it. My seven year old was always fed natural and home cooked food. When I took her to Macdonalds for the first time this year (we were desparate) she did not like the food at all. She even asked me not to take her there ever again.
    Also, have you heard the story about the person who kept a Macdonalds burger in their drawer for four years and it never went off? Hint: even bacteria wouldn't touch it.
    I'd say that Macdonalds are very good at capitalising on lazy and ignorant parents who would feed their kids any crap.
    I also think the big M has a much larger following in America than anywhere else in the world. (food for thought)?
  • I think it's quite amazing to see how Mcdonald's manage to trick the kids taste bud with marketing. They think about everything, from the "aggressive" colors inside the restaurant to the way they manage to get kids hooked on their food, i think mcdonald's is one of the companies with the best marketing.
  • Sanguan Chanyaputhipong
    Whether it be children or adults, regular products packaged in a famous, popular, posh, hip, trendy, environmentally-conscious ... or any kind of distinctive aligned trait, will always make for a more desirable product. I guess that's why brands are often more valuable than the revenues that the company may actually be earning right?
  • My son and I watched Supersize Me together -- twice. Now neither one of us eats McDonalds. And since reading Fast Food Nation, I've pretty much given up fast food altogether.

    But I do agree with you on the power of branding. Have you watched Nick TV with your kids? I can't believe how many adult products, i.e. hotels, are marketed to kids!
  • Sean - You are right. Things taste pretty much the same as when I was a kid and that brings back great memories. I love taking my kids there as well. - Mike
  • Sean Romanoff
    One thing that McDonald's championed other than marketing is product consistency. They churned out the same cheeseburger and the same fries over and over again at locations all across the country. And kids love consistency. This consistency is highly desirable to young, undeveloped palates. So it is not enough that McDonald's marketed better, they also had a product kids liked. Clearly, they now associate McDonald's stamp of approval as a kid stamp of approval.

    It should tell everyone who markets that to achieve this kind of imprint, you need a consistent, likeable product. We all know that it isn't 5* cuisine, but to kids - it is.
  • Mike - Here in America, my kids LOVE going to McDonalds. I wonder how they would have fared in this taste test. - Mike
  • Living in a small city from a small country, i remember that the closest MacDonalds was like 100 km away from my home. And i used to get there from time to time, as i found it fascinating... the big mac, the small toys you got in the menus, the gaming area. That was so cool. Oh, and the clown. I loved the clown.

    But things changed a lot, as i grew up and begun to understand things. Now, I'm proud to say i haven't stepped foot in a Mac for more than an year now. I never even liked their food anyway, just the atmosphere. it was just a marketing thing. And it still is, for most kids nowadays. Especially for Americans...
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