In school advertising to the K through 12 Market

The K through 12 Market is one of the hardest to reach markets in the US is the K through twelfth grade market.From 1990 to 2000, the number of Teens ages 12 to 19 grew from 27.5 million to 32 million. This growth rate far outpaced the growth of the rest of the population.  The United States is facing a major population shift. With this large number of Teens about to become young adults, the behaviors and values they have are important to marketers now and in the years to come.They have a significant income of their own to spend and also wield increasing influence on household purchases. For example, in 2003, nearly half  of 9- to 17-year-olds were asked by their parents to go online to find out about products or services compared to 37% in 2001.Harder to reachThis age group is not prone to watch TV as their parents were at this age.  Theydo not  get their news from newspapers or magazines or traditional news on TV, as in the past.  Even their heavy use of the internet is not as effective for advertisers as in the past. The online marketing environment is overcrowded with advertisements and so they increasingly  "tune out" banner ads on the websites they visit. There is , however, a very effective way to reach this audience for an extended period of time and get their attention in an uncluttered environment, the classroom.In School AdvertisingThere are over 90,000 schools in the US for grades K though 12 grades.  The total enrollment for these schools is in excess of 54,000,000 students.  Marketers that target this area by using products that have an educational angle not only get the attention of the students, but the appreciation of the teachers.  In the current economic environment schools are more desperate than ever for any financial help for supplies. Teachers often pay for school supplies out of their own pockets. So marketers who tap into this situationproperly can create a win-win-win of advertisers, teachers, and students.Sponsored SuppliesMajor corporations are turning to companies that specialize in placing product in schools that understands the limits of the commercialization of schools. There is a balance that must be maintained between commerce and education. The schools will not stand for blatant advertising on the school grounds, but are open to anything that helps the teachers further the education of their students.ProductsSome of the typical branded products that are sent to schools are: homework folders, book covers, lesson plans, current events magazines andfree bookmarksare sent freely to schools throughout the US.What some teachers say:"We love the bookmarks, the children are excited to have the ones with their favorite movie or cartoon characters on them and we use it to encourage reading and as rewards for good behavior"We would love to receive your free bookmarks or anything you can send to us.  We reward the students with great behavior with them, and the kids just love them!!I am so happy to have received some book covers again. The students are so looking forward to them. I am the librarian at our school with about 500 students from Preschool to 8th Grade. The book covers I received today will be gone within 2 or 3 days. As usual, they will be a great hit, If you have extra bookmarks, please send them. Thank you.