The Age of Sponsored Content and What Parents Need to Know
It’s difficult to know what children are exposed to on social media daily; we can all agree that ads have taken over our feeds on every platform. As adults, we usually recognize when we see an ad amidst all the authentic content. However, children are growing up in a new digital age where it’s often hard to tell the difference between what’s real and what’s sponsored. Creators and big companies are marketing products and authenticity through seemingly normal videos. So, what happens when kids are constantly bombarded with ads? Parents end up paying the price, quite literally.
While every parent wants to give their kids everything they want, the things kids ask for nowadays often come with a hefty price tag. Maybe the best way to combat excessive spending and wanting to get the latest trending item is by equipping children with digital literacy skills to help them stop the doom scrolling and spot an ad when they see one. An article posted by UNC Pembroke entitled “The Importance of Digital Literacy in Elementary Education” points to the importance of teaching children basic digital literacy skills at a young age, given our highly technological world.
What is Digital Literacy?
“In many ways, digital literacy is simply an extension of what we have traditionally imagined as literacy, or the ability to read and write, ” the article states. It further emphasizes that digital literacy empowers children with critical thinking and creative processes. These skills enable them to discern reliable sources online, combine images with words to communicate effectively, and, most importantly, make informed decisions in the digital world.
Digital Literacy and Education
In Pembroke’s article on digital literacy, there are four basic skills that they believe elementary-aged children should learn: the importance of basic computer skills for young students, the need to critically evaluate media sources in the age of abundant online content, the significance of understanding authorship and avoiding plagiarism, and the importance of displaying good digital citizenship by treating others with respect and kindness in online interactions.
All of these skills are very important for children to learn when navigating the world of social media, but when it comes to sponsored posts and ads, getting children to critically evaluate the media they consume and question everything will not only become an important skill when it comes to spotting ads but also being aware of the threads of misinformation that exist more and more as the years go by. With more threads of misinformation comes a greater need for children of all ages to build digital literacy skills.
In a recent study, “Digital literacies, social media, and undergraduate learning: what do students think they need to know?” published in the International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, authors Erika E. Smith and Hannah Storrs found that students felt there was a critical need for learning digital literacy skills. The authors wrote, “While students highly agreed that they need digital literacies, they reported being taught little about these digital literacies (including DL needed to effectively use social media).”
The study explored how students were using media as a learning tool and found that “When using social media in their own learning, the types of activities students placed the highest value on were information searching, collaboration, information sharing, help-seeking, discussion, and logistical functions (e.g., organizing materials, schedule management).”
The study found that students believe they need digital literacy for effective social media use but reported learning very little about it in their undergraduate education. They rated their efficacy with sociocultural skills on social media lower than cognitive or technical skills.
The study shows that while children are growing up with rapidly evolving technological advances, they’re not necessarily fully equipped with the skills they need to effectively use the technology we’ve all grown so accustomed to. So, when it comes to marketing campaigns and targeted ads, the responsibility of teaching kids how to spot these things falls to parents.
Spotting Sponsorships and Ads on Social Media and Beyond
So, how can parents begin to equip their children with the skills to evaluate media and spot ads? First, let your kids know that most sponsored ads and posts aim to sell things, and the target audience is often kids. Then, clarify that ads are everywhere; parents can even make it a game.
You can begin to point out the branding on your clothes, toys, and even your phones or tablets. Kids will begin to see that marketing, ads, and sales are all around us. If you’ve got a teen at home, they’re more than likely watching shopping hauls at some point during the week or day, so bring up the idea that videos like these were probably paid for and often have products gifted to the person in the video.
Let your kids know that online ads can include giveaways, unboxing videos, social media takeovers, brand ambassadorships, and even live streams of creators sharing their latest favorite thing. You can also point out hashtags and any mentions of major corporations. Parents can also point out that if a video seems different from what their kids are used to seeing from their favorite creator, this often signals that they’re watching an ad.
Scroll together and see who can spot a sponsored post first. Talk about what this could mean for the products they’re seeing and whether or not it’s actually worth it. This will begin the road to building the skill of critically evaluating everything they see and questioning the validity of products, creators, and certain types of content.
Tackling what kids need to know about social media is continuously evolving. We can all agree that the lines of communication must stay open and that, as parents, it’s important to remain vigilant about what kids are consuming online. A big part of that has now become ads. Seeing these ads and wanting these products is so much more than just buying the latest trend; kids are looking to fit in, and that’s something that any generation can understand. Approaching that conversation in this new era is definitely different, but fortunately, not impossible.
Psst… check out Teaching Kids How to Identify and Avoid Scams.
