The Guardian UK
Market research data on 15- and 16-year-olds used to inform campaigns, says research paper
The alcohol industry is sidestepping advertising rules by targeting young people, implying that drinking will bring friends and fun, and making light of drunkenness, according to an analysis for the British Medical Journal published today.
Documents obtained by the Commons health select committee from drinks firms reveal that market research data on 15- and 16-year-olds is being used to inform campaigns and that there is a focus on promoting drinking to those just turning 18.
"Upcoming generations represent a key target for alcohol advertisers," says the paper, published online by the BMJ. "Although the documents mainly refer to this group as starting at the legal drinking age (18 years), this distinction is sometimes lost. Thus market research data on 15- and 16-year-olds is used to guide campaign development and deployment, and it is clearly acknowledged that particular products appeal to children (Lambrini, for instance, is referred to as a 'kids' drink').
"Many references are made to the need to recruit new drinkers and establish their loyalty to a particular brand; WKD, for instance, wants to attract 'new 18-year-olds', and Carling takes a particular interest in the fact that the Carling Weekend is 'the first choice for the festival virgin', offering free branded tents and a breakfast can of beer."
The industry code says that advertising must not appeal strongly to people under 18 or be associated with, or reflect, youth culture.
The documents were obtained by the select committee in the course of its recent inquiry into alcohol. It commissioned the analysis from Prof Gerard Hastings and colleagues of the institute for social marketing at the University of Stirling. Because alcohol advertising is such big business, worth £800m a year, the committee focused on just four manufacturers, yet it obtained thousands of pages of paper and electronic documentation from companies and their communications agencies. They included notes of meetings, client briefs, creative briefs, media briefs, advertising budgets and market research reports.
Campaigns aspire to be associated with youth, say Hastings and colleagues. "Smirnoff Ice wants to 'become the most respected youth brand (overtaking Lynx [deodorant])'," they write. New media channels, such as Facebook and other social networking sites, are used because of their youth audience. "Lambrini's 2007 television campaign set out to be 'a cross between Myspace and High School the [sic] Musical'."
Other documents showed that marketing campaigns aimed to suggest drinks were potent and that they would enhance the drinker's social success, both of which contravene the self-regulated code of practice. Lambrini is described as a "social lubricant", while WKD's message is that it "is all about having a laugh with your mates".
The analysis drew a furious response from the industry. Alcohol company Diageo GB claimed the article was a gross misrepresentation and a distortion of the evidence it provided to the inquiry. Its managing director, Simon Litherland, argued that "inappropriate consumer views and early proposals" pitched in the marketing process were rejected at an early stage.
"We are extremely disappointed that the confidential and commercially sensitive information shared with the committee, in good faith, has been made available for Prof Hastings's use in pursuing his own public agenda," he said.
While £600–£800m a year is spent on alcohol advertising, something like 40,000 people a year in England and Wales die of alcohol misuse.
Documents obtained by the Commons health select committee from drinks firms reveal that market research data on 15- and 16-year-olds is being used to inform campaigns and that there is a focus on promoting drinking to those just turning 18.
"Upcoming generations represent a key target for alcohol advertisers," says the paper, published online by the BMJ. "Although the documents mainly refer to this group as starting at the legal drinking age (18 years), this distinction is sometimes lost. Thus market research data on 15- and 16-year-olds is used to guide campaign development and deployment, and it is clearly acknowledged that particular products appeal to children (Lambrini, for instance, is referred to as a 'kids' drink').
"Many references are made to the need to recruit new drinkers and establish their loyalty to a particular brand; WKD, for instance, wants to attract 'new 18-year-olds', and Carling takes a particular interest in the fact that the Carling Weekend is 'the first choice for the festival virgin', offering free branded tents and a breakfast can of beer."
The industry code says that advertising must not appeal strongly to people under 18 or be associated with, or reflect, youth culture.
The documents were obtained by the select committee in the course of its recent inquiry into alcohol. It commissioned the analysis from Prof Gerard Hastings and colleagues of the institute for social marketing at the University of Stirling. Because alcohol advertising is such big business, worth £800m a year, the committee focused on just four manufacturers, yet it obtained thousands of pages of paper and electronic documentation from companies and their communications agencies. They included notes of meetings, client briefs, creative briefs, media briefs, advertising budgets and market research reports.
Campaigns aspire to be associated with youth, say Hastings and colleagues. "Smirnoff Ice wants to 'become the most respected youth brand (overtaking Lynx [deodorant])'," they write. New media channels, such as Facebook and other social networking sites, are used because of their youth audience. "Lambrini's 2007 television campaign set out to be 'a cross between Myspace and High School the [sic] Musical'."
Other documents showed that marketing campaigns aimed to suggest drinks were potent and that they would enhance the drinker's social success, both of which contravene the self-regulated code of practice. Lambrini is described as a "social lubricant", while WKD's message is that it "is all about having a laugh with your mates".
The analysis drew a furious response from the industry. Alcohol company Diageo GB claimed the article was a gross misrepresentation and a distortion of the evidence it provided to the inquiry. Its managing director, Simon Litherland, argued that "inappropriate consumer views and early proposals" pitched in the marketing process were rejected at an early stage.
"We are extremely disappointed that the confidential and commercially sensitive information shared with the committee, in good faith, has been made available for Prof Hastings's use in pursuing his own public agenda," he said.
While £600–£800m a year is spent on alcohol advertising, something like 40,000 people a year in England and Wales die of alcohol misuse.
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