The average child watches 25 hours of television each week. During that time, they are bombarded with advertising geared to their interests and desires. They need your positive influence to help them become savvy shoppers. Try these ideas:
- Talk about advertising. Point out that those ads don’t always tell us what we need to know to make wise purchases.
- Talk to your child about fads, while understanding that peer pressure is a powerful motivator for kids. Explain why you won’t pay $120 for a pair of jeans with holes and fabric so thin it will rip at the slightest pressure. Be more flexible, perhaps, on a couple of less expensive items on your child’s “must have” list.
- Model good buying behavior.
- Use back-to-school shopping as a teaching opportunity. Show your children how to compare items, read labels and check for quality. Take advantage of back-to-school sales.
- If your child just has to have the latest expensive shoes or jeans, make them earn part or all of the money. They may be more open to alternatives that aren’t so pricey when it’s coming out of their pocket.