IELTS Writing Task 2 Exercises: The Effects of Advertising on Children’s Consumer Behavior

Useful Vocabulary and Phrases

• advertising (n) – the act of promoting products or services to consumers
• consumer behavior (n) – the way people choose, buy, and use goods
• target audience (n) – the specific group of people a product is aimed at
• brand loyalty (n) – preference for a particular brand over others
• peer influence (n) – impact of friends or social groups on decisions
• pester power (n) – children’s ability to convince parents to buy products
• marketing strategies (n) – plans used to promote and sell products
• ethical concerns (n) – questions about right and wrong
• commercial content (n) – media messages that promote products
• consumer awareness (n) – understanding of purchasing choices and effects

Exercises:

Task 1: Write sentences from given cues. Make changes to the cues when needed.

1. Advertising / influence / children / to desire / toys / and / snacks.

2. Peer influence / increase / children’s / spending / on / branded products.

3. Marketing strategies / target / young audience / using / cartoons / and / social media.

4. Pester power / lead / parents / to buy / items / children / request.

5. Ethical concerns / arise / when / children / exposed / to / excessive advertising.

Task 2: Vocabulary list for fill in the blanks

advertising | consumer behavior | target audience | brand loyalty | peer influence
pester power | marketing strategies | ethical concerns | commercial content | consumer awareness

Fill in the blanks with the correct words from the list above.

Children are highly susceptible to (1) ____________, which can shape their (2) ____________ and preferences. Many companies design (3) ____________ specifically for this age group, using colorful cartoons or interactive games to attract attention. This can result in strong (4) ____________ for certain products and brands.

Furthermore, (5) ____________ from friends may encourage children to desire specific items, while (6) ____________ allows them to pressure parents into buying products. Exposure to excessive (7) ____________ raises (8) ____________ about the ethics of targeting young consumers. Teaching (9) ____________ helps children make informed decisions and resist manipulative (10) ____________.

Answer Sheet

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Task 1:

1. Advertising influences children to desire toys and snacks.
2. Peer influence increases children’s spending on branded products.
3. Marketing strategies target the young audience using cartoons and social media.
4. Pester power leads parents to buy items children request.
5. Ethical concerns arise when children are exposed to excessive advertising.

Task 2:

1. advertising
2. consumer behavior
3. marketing strategies
4. brand loyalty
5. peer influence
6. pester power
7. commercial content
8. ethical concerns
9. consumer awareness
10. target audience