Advergames: A Marketing Playground for Junk Food
Brands in a game or game of brands?
For starters, ‘advergames’ are advertisements presented in the form of a video game. Marketing of food on these digital platforms is predominantly for unhealthy foods and has been increasing exponentially over time.
Why use gaming platforms to advertise if there are many other outlets available?
It not just on gaming platforms, its also on livestreaming platforms. And, this shift in marketing outlet mirrors growth in adolescent digital media usage, especially among 12-15 year olds.
The most frequent food brand mentioned on the top three videogame livestreaming platforms are for energy drinks (e.g., G Fuel), restaurants (including online food delivery services, e.g., Uber Eats), and processed snacks (e.g., Doritos).
Wait a minute, is it even effective to use advergaming?
Big food companies have masterfully crafted their advertising strategies to captivate the youngest audience, employing tactics that are both aggressive and subtly manipulative.
Brief exposure to food advertising significantly increases caloric intake among children aged 2-14 years.
Specifically, 4.4 minutes of TV food advertising can increase consumption by 60.0 kcal, while 5 minutes of playing advergames with food cues leads to an additional intake of 53.2 kcal.
Now that’s the power of advertisements on children’s eating behavior!
What about livestreaming platforms?
One live streaming platform increasingly used by children and adolescents is Twitch. This platform’s reach is international and it is currently the leading provider of video game livestream material.
In a study of Twitch users, 7 out of 10 recalled observing at least one food or non-alcoholic beverage advertisement on the platform. Of those who watched the advert, 14 % reported craving the product after seeing its ad and 8% reported purchasing the product!
“Ta ذغ iya” by Sarah Zahr
Should there be stricter regulations on how brands can market to young audiences within digital spaces?
Evans, Rebecca, et al., ‘Recall of Food Marketing on Videogame Livestreaming Platforms: Associations with adolescent diet-related behaviours and health’, Appetite, vol. 186, no. 106584, July 2023.
Evans, Rebecca, et al., ‘Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverage Marketing Via Fortnite Streamers on Twitch: A content analysis’, Appetite , vol. 195, no. 107207, 11 January 2024.
Harris, Jennifer L. et al., ‘US Food Company Branded Advergames on the Internet: Children's exposure and effects on snack consumption’, Journal of Children and Media , vol. 6, no. 1, February 2012, pp. 51-68.
Bankole, Elijah et al., ‘A Systematic Review of the Adolescent Directed Marketing Strategies of Transnational Fast Food Companies in Low and Middle Income Countries’, Obesity Science & Practice, vol. 9, no. 6, December 2023, pp. 670-680.
