Marketing Lessons 101

I was an English Lit major in college. But I really wish I'd been a marketing major. I'd have written all my papers on Playhouse Disney. Have you seen this stuff? My morning routine consists of getting myself out of bed (a Herculean effort,) showering, brushing teeth, etc. Then I plop on the couch and struggle to stay awake. When my littlest guy wakes up, I get him a bottle and milk and he joins me on the couch. We then tune into "The Koala Brothers" or "The Wiggles," depending on what time he wakes up. During their commercials, they create interest in shows, products and movie releases. The next trip to the store is always great because my 15 month old baby is surcoming to needs they have created. And don't even think about what it does to a four year old. Heck, they even have me interested in seeing some of the new movie releases. I really have to get my hands on a copy of "Home on the Range." It's about cows. And if you had a 15 month old who moo'ed like mine does, well, you'd want to see it too. Just so he'd moo a little more. I don't like everything Disney does though. One show, Dave the Barbarian has a line just about every episode that isn't very kid friendly. A few weeks ago it was a talking sword and the evil socerer. Socerer: You're mine! I'm taking you home with me! Sword: What, don't I get dinner first? Now, most kids would probably think that the sword was hungry, and that's what mine would have gotten told if they had said anything about it. But really, we all know what they are implying. And what place does it have on a show meant for 6-10 year olds? The moral learned: watch TV with your kids, even if it is someone family friendly like Disney. (Under normal circumstances, I would have emailed/wrote the company and complained. But I have two kids and now we just don't watch the show. By the time I had time to formalize the complaint, I couldn't remember details -- time, date, episode name, etc. I should have just done it right away, I know.)