Companies look to build brand loyalty at an early age

When my wife told me she had bought a Dyson cordless vacuum for our granddaughter, I thought she was joking.

After all, she is only 10 months old. Turns out the joke was on me.

Sure enough, when the box arrived, there was a Dyson, except it was a toy that looked and sounded just like the real deal. It even came with a cleaning attachment, though it runs on batteries and doesn’t have any suction power.

Dyson’s toy, which was very cool, is a classic example of marketing and building brand loyalty at an early age. No wonder that 1- to 3-year-olds are a hot marketing segment.

Hook the toddler and the dollars will follow.

Whether it’s a toy vacuum or a kid-sized Jeep or Lexus that takes up a bay in the garage, companies know the importance of trying to pitch products to children who’ll someday be potential customers.

There’s nothing new about that marketing strategy; the dollars and the product pitches have simply gotten bigger and more sophisticated.

Mounds of research also show that children drive many parents’ purchasing decisions, from snacks to cellphones to sports gear and cars. Even 2-year-olds have been found in studies to be brand aware.

In addition, children today in general have more income of their own or their parents’ money to spend than ever before.

Those billions in buying power are too tantalizing for retailers and advertisers to ignore. And the companies that get there first and best quite likely are there to stay.

How can parents instill some sound consumer habits in their young children? You don’t have to wait until your kids are teenagers.

If you’re shopping for a new cellphone or laptop, let your teen take the lead in comparing products.

Start with commercials. The next time your kids are parked in front of the flat-screen TV, plop down next to them and monitor what they’re watching. Ask if any of the ads convinced them to want to buy the product. Did they like the commercial or not? Explain what they’re hearing in those brief commercial messages.

Grocery stores are also great places for trying field research. With older kids, teach them how to read product labels and brands to figure out the best deal. Compare the store or local brand to the national brand. Why is there a price difference on the potato chips or crackers?

If you clip grocery coupons or get loyalty rewards points, explain how you can save money.

But also talk about the flip side — that the free apple pie at the grocery store really wasn’t free because of all the spending required to qualify for the reward.

If you’re shopping for a new cellphone or laptop, let your teen take the lead in comparing products.

Finally, your kids won’t learn that money doesn’t grow on trees if you don’t practice good spending habits.

The idea behind all these teachable moments is to encourage your young consumer to spend wisely and develop a healthy amount of skepticism about product pitches.

It might even apply to buying a real Dyson vacuum someday.