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Class, Pay Attention To This Message From
Our Sponsor
Brigid Bergin
CrainsNewYork.com
October 18, 2008
Every year, Colgate-Palmolive sends toothbrushes and
samples of its toothpaste to 4 million schoolchildren.
In its annual report to shareholders, the company calls
the effort a “consumption-building program.”
When the Bright Smiles, Bright Futures program is
marketed to schools, it becomes a literacy tool that
also happens to use Colgate branding to teach students
about oral health.
The force behind that transformtion is JMH Education
Marketing, a communications firm that specializes in
getting companies and nonprofits' messages into
classrooms. For nearly 30 years, JMH has navigated the
controversy surrounding advertising to schoolchildren by
choosing its clients carefully and hiring former
teachers to design programs.
“We know the fine line,” says Chief Executive Janice
Hamilton. “It's obvious that a corporation like Colgate
or Nestlé is bringing that information to them, but it's
not blatant.”
The growing emphasis on corporate social responsibility
and the ubiquity of advertising have combined to make
branded educational content more appealing and
prevalent.
Because kids' current and future purchasing power makes
them a prized market, schools are a valued marketing
venue, according to a report, At Sea in a
Marketing-Saturated World, from Arizona State
University.
But companies' efforts are meeting with growing
opposition.
High-quality materials
“It's important for children to brush their teeth,” says
Susan Linn, director of the Boston-based Campaign for a
Commercial-Free Childhood. “But do they need to do it
with Colgate toothpaste? Once a brand is involved, it
stops being education.”
JMH overcomes the objections by making sure that its
materials are top-notch and receive the imprimatur of
teachers.
After receiving a client's proposal, JMH looks at the
needs of teachers, then considers how a client's message
might correspond with a specific discipline, such as
literacy, language arts or geography. When materials are
ready, JMH lets instructors know they're available by
request.
“We look at where the fit is, then we partner with an
education association—quite frequently, that's in the
curricular area,” Ms. Hamilton says. “It helps a teacher
do what she's doing better.”
For instance, JMH sought input from the National Council
of Teachers of Mathematics for a financial literacy
program, called Feed the Pig, introduced in September.
Aimed at grades four through six, it instructs kids on
how to set financial goals and helps teachers cover
lessons in decimals, fractions and multiplication.
Robust program
“We ended up with a really robust math program,” says
Abigail Ramos, education program manager at JMH and a
former teacher.
The American Institute for Certified Public Accountants
and the Ad Council co-sponsor the program. Their logos
appear on the materials and accompanying Web site.
There's no overt sales pitch, but teaching fiscal
responsibility to consumers when they're young increases
the likelihood that they will need an accountant later
on.
JMH's finely tuned approach means that the firm is
selective about the business it accepts. For example, a
cigarette company asked Ms. Hamilton about doing a
communications project, but she turned it down.
For Ms. Hamilton, the proof of JMH's value is evident in
cities like San Francisco, which has banned all
advertising from classrooms but has allowed the Colgate
campaign because of its overall educational benefit.
Harmony Philo, now 7, a student at Lake Pleasant Central
School in upstate New York, participated in the Bright
Smiles program as a kindergartener. She recalls getting
a free toothbrush and toothpaste, but not the brand.
What she took away was the lesson about brushing
technique, she says: “You have to get the top and the
bottom. And when you're done, you close your mouth and
do them all together.”
AT A GLANCE
JMH EDUCATION MARKETING
FOUNDER Janice M. Hamilton
STARTED 1980
REVENUES $5 million
EMPLOYEES 14
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