The National Education Policy Center (NEPC) just released a study about the harmful effects of advertising in schools. Schools are reportedly the dominant advertising locations in 2010.  The report, called, "Effectively Embedded: The Thirteenth Annual Report on Schoolhouse Commercializing Trends: 2009 - 2010, states that due to the recession, schools and school districts have welcomed company sponsorships as a way of raising money.  School and district administrators did not, however, take into account the "collateral damage" from embedded advertising. 

So what is embedded advertising?  This is when companies make their brand or products "unavoidable." These are just a few ways that companies have increased their presence on school campuses: sponsoring school contests, making exclusive agreements with school districts to only sell their products, organizing fundraising efforts, and creating curriculum.  The report used BP as an example, which has created curriculum materials to promote the company's "green" credentials. 

According to the NEPC, adolescents are at a developmental stage that makes them more susceptible to embedded advertising that targets their identity formation and self image. This advertising makes teenagers want more, eat more, and base their self-worth on the consumer products they own. In addition, the more time and energy that young people devote to consuming, the less time they devote to other things, such as family, friends, and creative thinking. Consumerism can stunt the development of other interests, according to the study, and this can be more detrimental to people of a young age who are in the process of creating an identity.  

Check out the full report for more details here.

If money equals power... then the youth in China are holding the power. According to enovate, 80 percent of China's "wealthy consumers" are under 45. Companies are focusing on how to reach this money pocket: the Chinese youth consumer.

However, young Chinese consumers will not be easily manipulated. A phenomenon called "group shopping," or Tuan Gou, is growing rapidly throughout Asia, but also spreading throughout the world.  It was listed as one of the 2010 Youth Trends to follow, in a report put out by Youth Research Partners, and shoppers are using it to lower prices of expensive items.

Group Shopping is when several consumers, all looking for the same thing, communicate with each other online and lobby for a lower price. This shows just how powerful online social networking can be. It's possible to connect with people you don’t know just to buy, buy, buy exactly what you want!

A helpful example is explained on the China IWOM Blog. Let’s say you are looking to buy a car for a certain price. The first step is to put this information online. Then you wait for people to join you with similar purchase requirements. Then, the leader of the group approaches the company, and works to get the best deal for the group. In today's economy, car companies are usually willing to bargain. Then, the group meets with the dealer to make the purchase.

You may have read the previous YMI post by Brianna Gaxiola, about being a Shopaholic. If you identified with Brianna, then maybe it's time to form a Shopaholics United, and go group shopping!

If economists were praying for a teen-led consumer spending surge this Holiday season, the October retail numbers have surely shaken their faith. Analysts are calling the teen apparel numbers for October- a traditionally slow month, admittedly- a "big disappointment". Preppy icon Abercrombie & Fitch reported a 39% drop in profit, and is bleeding market share to most cost concious retailers like Aeropostale.

Digging into the numbers reveals a bit of a jumble. Same store sales are up over last year in many cases, but analysts warn that those numbers are up from the economic abyss that was last October- when the country was still reeling from the credit crunch and the Presidential election was still on the line. In short, things are better than last year, but that's like saying a hernia is better than loosing your leg to a great white shark attack.

The worst part is that for a minute there, it looked like things were going to be okay. From Bloomberg:

U.S. consumer spending in September dropped for the first time in five months, according to Commerce Department data. Spending fell 0.5 percent after a 1.4 percent jump in August. Consumer confidence in October also declined. The jobless rate reached a 26-year high of 9.8 percent in September.

After the jump, video games bring a bright spot... sort of...