Responsibility and Brand Advertising in the Alcoholic Beverage Market - Essay Example

ARTICLE REVIEW Responsibility and Brand Advertising in the Alcoholic Beverage Market: The Modeling of Normative Drinking Behaviour by Debra Jones Ringold Introduction The article on Responsibility and Brand Advertising in the Alcoholic Beverage Market: The Modeling of Normative Drinking Behaviour by Debra Jones Ringold (PhD), Professor of Marketing, Atkinson Graduate School of Management, Willamette University, compares alcoholic beverage advertising, responsibility advertising, and media advocacy. The research study conducted by Ringold (2008) is interesting because contrary to expectations, the results indicate that alcoholic beverage advertising, responsibility advertising and media advocacy do not result in increased consumption or abuse; but actually inhibit alcohol misuse. Thesis Statement: The purpose of this essay is to critically review the above article by Ringold (2008). The theories, ideas or beliefs that the author tested will be summarised; the contents of the article will be condensed; and the weaknesses and strengths of the research study will be critically analysed. Discussion Ringold (2008) states that her study revealed moderate consumption of alcoholic beverages as the norm in the United States. This is similar to the results of the Gallup polls (2004) which have indicated the same outcome since 1939. The recommendations given by the United States Dietary Guidelines on moderate drinking was consistent with the consumption found in 90% of people who consume alcohol. This is supported by Saad (2005), who states that underage drinking and alcohol abuse have considerably reduced in the last three decades. The per capita consumption of alcohol has continued to decline over the past twenty-five years, states NIAAA (2006). The main aim of the article by Ringold (2008) is to study the outcome of alcoholic beverage advertising on its consumption levels. The research study takes into consideration the actual and desired impacts of, describes and evaluates the controversy regarding industry-sponsored responsibility campaigns; and identifies a number of issues that require future research. The results of the study reveal that alcoholic beverage advertising does not exert a material influence on total consumption or abuse. On the other hand, it models normative drinking behaviour, hence may be a crucial inhibitor of alchohol misuse. Responsibility efforts sponsored by industry, by government and by nonprofits lead to desired changes, modeling desired drinking behaviours, and may be more beneficial for heavier drinkers. The article by Ringold (2008) is timely, because of the continued trend of increased expenditure on advertising, undertaken by alcohol manufacturers. This is supported by several research studies conducted by governmental agencies, which have concluded that there is no significant scientific evidence to link alcohol advertising with increased alcohol consumption. According to Hanson (2007), “the definitive review of research from around the world found that advertising has virtually no influence on consumption and has no impact whatsoever on either experimentation with alcohol or its abuse”. This is illustrated with the help of the following graph (Fig. 1). Figure 1. Graph Depicting the Decline in Alcohol Consumption Concurrent to Expenditure on Advertising (Hanson, 2007) The above graph, figure 1. clearly indicates a decrease in alcohol consumption while advertising expenditure rises with intermittent dips and plateaus. The main reason for advertising is to increase market share, for benefiting the manufacturer. Since alcohol is a mature product category having characteristics of which consumers are already aware, the advertising of particular brands does not impact consumption in an overall perspective. Advertising is targeted on established consumers of alcohol. The actual purpose of advertising is to encourage consumers of other brands to switch to their brand, and to promote brand loyalty among established consumers (Hanson, 2007). Social Marketing Public health education is based on social marketing. According to the author (Ringold, 2008: 128) “a key objective of such social marketing efforts is to reduce the psychological, social, and practical obstacles hindering the adoption of a behaviour beneficial to the target consumer and society as a whole”. Social marketing involves the development of power over health status, from gaining greater control over individual health behaviour. People are provided with accurate information so that they can take steps to improve their health. Mass media efforts for the social marketing of positive health behaviour provides information about the nature and benefits of a desired behaviour, associate feelings, an image, or a personality type with a desired behaviour. The article has theories, ideas and beliefs that were tested by Ringold (2008) by means of the research study. According to the author, brand advertising in the alcoholic beverage market remains the target of considerable social criticism. This is supported by Snyder et al (2006). Moreover, there is a requirement for increased industry self-regulation and additional investments in industry-sponsored responsibility messages. Though this is advocated by Austin & Hust (2005) & Johnson et al (2004), some public health commentators strongly oppose industry-sponsored moderation efforts. These efforts are delineated as public relations activities that are not only insincere but morally suspect, according to the Centre on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (2005). Social Cause Advertising The promotion of responsible drinking by NIAAA (2006), and public opinion supported by government agencies and industry groups resulted in considerable investments in mass media alcohol education. Social cause advertising has been used since the last few decades to increase information levels, and change attitudes and behaviour towards alcohol. The social cause strategy advocated the use of best methods of responsible drinking. Mass media health communications have also been considered as part of media advocacy. “Media advocacy is the practice of making sure that the media tell their story from a public health point of view” (Brown & Witherspoon, 2002: 163). Media advocacy changes the ways in which problems are understood as public health issues, rather than attempting to change individual behaviour (Ringold, 2008). A media advocacy approach to public health education assigns responsibility to individuals, and those who make health-related decisions such as producers, wholesalers, and retailers, and proposes social controls. The goal of media advocacy is to go further than to improving knowledge on alcohol or health issues (Wallack, 1990). The media could be used to stimulate media coverage of the ethical and legal culpability of alcohol companies that promote harmful products for teenagers’ consumption. The “smoking control movement” and opponents of the fast food industry have also embraced the approach (Adamy & Gibson, 2006). According to the author (Ringold, 2008) no formal evaluation of media advocacy efforts in the alcohol context has been undertaken. However, health researchers and policy makers should study wider social analysis and action. In the media advocacy context, the message strategy might be that an individual’s drinking is the responsibility of others, and these activities should be controlled by public policy. Brand Advertising, Responsible Drinking and Media Advocacy Brand advertising, responsible drinking messages and media advocacy efforts differ in their objectives and message strategies. Brand advertising differentiates the advertisede product from its competitors in a static or declining market, thus sustaining or enhancing its market share; the objective is to influence selective demand. Responsible drinking messages, as social cause advertising work towards informing individuals to change their attitudes, thus hastening the adoption of safe drinking practices; since the aim is to influence primary demand (Ringold, 2008). This belief of the author is supported by DeJong & Winsten (1990), who state that commercial advertising is seldom designed to bring about new attitudes or patterns of behaviour. Rather, its purpose is to guide already existing preferences. On the other hand, public health campaigns aim at fundamental changes in health-related behaviour. Media advocacy focuses on the behaviour of alcoholic beverage producers, wholesalers, retailers, and others whose decisions influence the nature of the market, and subsequently the choices available to the consumer. All three methods of advertising focus on people who drink. However, in the case of brand advertising, the message focus is on influencing a brand choice from among mutually exclusive alternatives. In responsible drinking communications, the message encourages the adoption of behaviours that can be carried out simultaneously with the consumption of any brand or safe drinking practices. In media advocacy, the advertising message shifts the responsibility for alcohol-related behaviour from the individual to “marketing channel members, other drinkers, and even society at large” (Ringold, 2008: 129). According to the author (Ringold, 2008), alcoholic beverage brand advertising provides information that helps consumers to make satisfactory choices, results in the increase of market shares of superior brands, raises the levels of new product entry, causes more price competition, and gives firms incentives to live up to product claims. However, brand advertising does not cause a material influence on total consumption, experimentation with alcohol, or alcohol abuse. The author found from her research that responsible drinking campaigns sponsored by government and nonprofit organizations as well as advertisements that were industry sponsored responsibility efforts, can both affect changes in knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour; however knowledge is likely to be influenced the most and behaviour the least. Further, regarding industry-sponsored responsibility efforts, the evidence indicates that they are quite similar to those sponsored by government/ nonprofit organizations on a number of important dimensions, and also, may be more effective than government or nonprofit messages with heavier drinkers (Ringold, 2008). From various sources, both positive and negative information about alcohol may be available to consumers. Positive information is available from “sports and cultural events sponsorships, consumer novelties, in-store displays, clothing with brand names, closed-circuit televsion in public places, product placements, direct marketing, and unpaid media portrayals”. Negative information about alcohol is from “counter-advertising, health news reported in the mass media, other health education and warning labels” (Martin, 1995: 85). Counter-advertising is the use of the mass media to promote healthy behaviours. These additional sources of information are also subject to diminishing marginal product, according to the economics dimension of advertising. The author (Ringold, 2008) has supported her hypothesis with an adequate number of relevant and current research studies on the consumption outcomes of alcoholic beverage advertising. Although the argument of the Ringold’s (2008) thesis is convincing, the evidence may be partially less valid, since the impact of other intervening influences such as peer pressure and family effects have been ignored in the research studies. A strength of the research study is that it includes the social learning theory, which is derived from classic learning theory that advances that humans learn by watching others and will engage in behaviours that they see rewarded, or not punished. In the case of alcohol, the theory predicts that viewers who see celebrities or glamorous individuals drinking in television advertisements and not suffering serious consequences, will imitate or model the drinking (Martin, 1995). A weakness of the research study is that it lacks the theory of cultivation analysis. Cultivation analysis is a theory that pertains to the potential effects of televised portrayals of alcohol. According to this theory, people who view television more frequently are more likely than less frequent viewers to adopt the view offered by television advertisements for alcohol and programmes showing the drinking of alcohol. Since drinking alcohol is seen in advertisements and programmes on television, the heavy drinkers would be more likely to believe that most people drink and that drinking is not a problem. Hence, they may be more likely to drink themselves (Martin, 1995). The methodology for the research is quite thorough in its accessing of information for the study. However, one of the weaknesses is that an economic model of alcohol advertising needs to have been included. This would have provided additional information on the effects of advertising on “industry demand, industry concentration and profitability” (Martin, 1995: 84). The thesis argument is convincing, and the evidence obtained is valid to a large extent. A great number of pertinent research studies have been reviewed by the author (Ringold, 2008). However, future studies on the topic should include research studies that include the influence of other factors also, on the drinking outcome, besides the impact of advertisements. The strengths of the article lie in the thoroughness with which the author has investigated the various theories relating to alcoholic beverage advertising, responsibility advertising, and media advocacy and their influences on alcohol consumption. The weaknesses, limitations, or problems of the articles used by the author to support her thesis: The four major limitations that crop up in alcohol advertising research are: first, researchers do not take into consideration the interaction of advertising with many other variables that intervene between the advertising and the consumption, and do not measure these variables. Factors such as family and peer pressure account for the greatest impact on consumption, particularly among adolescents. Secondly, researchers may rely too much on single experimental studies that bring people into a room, expose them to advertisements and then measure the immediate effects. However, in the real world, the effect of advertising is cumulative, Therefore, it is essential to develop more longitudinal studies that investigate the results of advertising over a period of time (Martin, 1995). Thirdly, context is an important factor. If a particular advertisement is targeted at a group of people who may be watching a sports game in a bar, there is a certain context involved in these circumstances. Such situations where people are exposed to the advertising should be studied more frequently. Finally, theories that do not apply to alcohol promotion or consumption since they are traditional theories borrowed from other disciplines should be avoided. Alternative theories such as cognitive dissonance theory and commodity theory deserve greater consideration. By overcoming the limitations of the supporting research studies, the author should use research that is based on an understanding of the effects of alcohol promotion on both consumption as well as the intervening stages leading up to consumption (Martin, 1995). Conclusion This paper has highlighted and critically reviewed the article by Ringold (2008). The theories, ideas or beliefs that the author tested were summarised; the contents of the article was condensed; and the weaknesses and strengths of the research study were critically analysed. The results of the research article have been found to be largely convincing, comprehensive and thorough. Some questions that are required to be answered by future research are: Is media advocacy a constructive and long-term public health strategy? What are the implications for a society wherein individual consumers are not responsible for their choices? What differences occur in the drinking behaviour outcome when other intervening factors are included along with alcohol beverage advertising? The research evidence indicates that alcoholic beverage advertising does not exert a material influence on total consumption or abuse. On the other hand, it models normative drinking behaviour, hence may be a crucial inhibitor of alchohol misuse. Responsibility efforts sponsored by industry, by government and by nonprofits lead to desired changes, modeling desired drinking behaviours. These may be more beneficial for heavier drinkers. The article by Ringold (2008) makes an original contribution to the field of advertising and marketing of alcoholic beverages, as pertaining to business ethics, and is a valuable addition to the literature available on the topic. References Adamy, J. & Gibson, R. (2006). Flak over fast food nation. Wall Street Journal (18th May): B1, B4. Austin, E.W. & Hust, S.J.T. (2005). Targeting adolescents? The content and frequency of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage ads in magazines and video formats, November 1999-April 2000. Journal of Health Communications, 10: 769-785. Brown, J.D. & Witherspoon, E.M. (2002). The mass media and American adolescents’ health. Journal of Adolescent Health. 31 (6S): 153-170. Centre on Alcohol Marketing and Youth. (2005). Alcohol industry “Responsibility Advertising” on Television, 2001 to 2003. Washington, D.C: Georgetown University. DeJong, W. & Winsten, J.A. (1990). The use of mass media in substance abuse prevention. Health Affairs, 9 (2): 30-46. Gallup Organization. (2004). Alcohol and drinking. National Adult Personal Polls, 1939- 2004. Retrieved on 23rd February, 2009 from: http://brain.gallup.com/content Hanson, D.J. (2007). Alcohol advertising. Alcohol: Problems and Solutions. Retrieved on 24th February, 2009 from: http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/Advertising.html Johnson, E.M., Amaretti, S. & Funkhouser, J.E. (2004). Reducing underage drinking: a collective responsibility. Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences. The National Academies Press. Washington, D.C. Martin, S.E. (1995). Effects of the mass media on the use and abuse of alcohol. The United States of America: Diane Publishing Company. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). (2006). Per capita ethanol consumption for states, census regions, and the United States, 1970-2003. Retrieved on 23rd February, 2009 from: www.niaaa.nih.gov/Resources/DatabaseResources/QuickFacts/AlcoholSales/consum03.htm Ringold, D.J. (2008). Responsibility and brand advertising in the alcoholic beverage market: the modeling of normative drinking behaviour. Journal of Advertising, 37 (1): 127-141. Saad, L. (2005). Fewer young adults drinking to excess. Gallup News Service (July 22) Princeton: Gallup Organization. Snyder, L.B., Milici, F.F., Slater, M., Sun, H. & Strizhakova, Y. (2006). Effects of alcohol advertising exposure on drinking among youth. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 160 (January): 18-24. Wallack, L. (1990). Two approaches to health promotion in the mass media. World Health Forum, 11 (2): 143-154. Read More