- Talk about different techniques used to target kids. Discuss celebrity endorsements by asking your child questions such as, “Why do you think your favorite actor or athlete promotes this particular item?” or “Why is product placement (the prominent on-screen display of specific brands) so common on TV programs and in movies?”

Talk about how companies are selling an image as well as a product, and how making an item seem fun, exciting “cool,” even sexy, makes it appealing to people who might begin to think they’ll obtain that image if they own that product. Ask your preteen how a commercial uses sound, images, and music to create a certain feeling in the viewer.

- Teach children to be protective of personal information (cell phone number, email address). If your child has a cell phone or email account, for safety reasons he or she should know to keep the number or address as private as possible. But also inform your child that the purpose of collecting this information by companies is often to be able to market more directly to them. Remind kids that something that might be offered as “free” (a download of a cell phone ringbone, for example) may be used as opportunity to send ads directly to their phone. You might establish a rule that online ads should never be clicked on, or a child should not fill out any contest forms without your permission.

- Encourage children to think critically about advertising claims. Ask your child, “What might the company be leaving out of this ad and why?” Remind your preteen of times in your family when the reality of a purchased item did not live up to its claims. Or inject a bit of realism into depictions of people and lifestyles in ads or commercials: “Do you know anyone who really looks like that? Do you know anyone who really lives like that? I’m not sure I do!”