Targeted Advertising and Cumulative Exposure Effects: The Impact of Banning Advertising to Children in Quebec

摘要

We examine the impact of advertising to children using Canadian data after the 1980 passage of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) in Quebec province that prohibited advertising targeted to children under 13. Using difference-in-differences methodology, we estimate that the CPA significantly reduced household toy expenditures by 15-35% in Quebec from 1984 through 1992, with the largest impact (35%) 10 and 12 years after the ban's imposition. The overall impact over time tentatively supports the view that advertising has cumulative exposure effects: Its sales impact increases as consumers are exposed to longer periods of targeted advertisements.