Deception and Exploitation in Advertising

325 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: Deception in advertisements

Whenever we turn on the television, open a magazine, or flip on a car radio, we are directly faced with advertisements for every product that is imaginable. Advertisement has been taken to a hold new level. For instance, in order to sell a product, advertisers will exploit the consumer's most personal feelings.

In a recent issue of Women's health magazine, was an advertisement promoting a famous weight loss product called, "Hydroxycut." The heading read in big red bold letters, " Have you ever looked at your body and wanted to cry?" This statement was formed to play directly on the emotions of individuals struggling with weight loss. On the left side of the page, stood a tall slim woman in a tight red dress. This woman supposedly lost sixty-three pounds from using the product. At no point do they mention anything about diet or exercise; trying to imply that she lost all the weight from using Hydroxycut.

However, the most appalling scheme is the deception of advertisement. For example, in the before photo of the woman the sky looks cloudy and gray. In the after photo the sky is sunny and blue. This indirectly suggests that the woman is depressed in the before photo, but after using Hydroxycut the woman appears to be thrilled in the after photo. I'm almost positive that this was intended to make the consumer think that by using this product they would live a much happier life. The advertiser of this ad is playing on the consumer's hopes and desires.

Another sleazy tactic advertisers take advantage of is where they position the warning label on the advertisement. As in this ad, at the very bottom of the page, with lettering so small it's practically unnoticeable to the eye, it reads, " This product contains ephedra and may cause serious adverse health effects if used improperly." Most individuals buying this product would think this information is very important. Don't you think this is what should be in big bold lettering? It also says in small print, " Julia's results are not typical." Of course not, with the use of technology today, we could make Julia look like Marilyn Monroe.

Show More
Related

  • Summary: The Gruen Transfer

    1213 Words  | 3 Pages

    This is an increasingly concerning factor in the growing national epidemic of obesity. Adverts often mask foods that are unhealthy by emphasising their positive nutritional features – such as dietary fibre and protein. While at the same time ignoring its negative features – including the high amounts of saturated fat and sugar content. In some cases, even products that mention any alleged health benefits are usually outweighed by the health risks associated with consuming the product, that they just fail to mention. In summary, big businesses are using recurring and manipulative persuasive techniques on vulnerable consumers to try to convey the false message of health and nutrition in products when they are in fact more harmful than helpful.

    Read More

  • Stimulife 750

    2950 Words  | 6 Pages

    Recently, another weight loss supplement has stepped into the ever-increasing market. This drug, called Stimulife 750, is a supposedly all-natural herbal supplement that promotes weight loss without any effort from the client. Both the parent company – Stimulife International – and various distributors of Stimulife 750 make bold blanket statements such as “Stimulife 750 has everything good and nothing bad,” which set the success of the pill far higher than is possible. Furthermore, these individuals attempting to sell the product use a variety of marketing techniques to encourage purchasing the supplement; however, they provide no scientific evidence to support the claims they make regarding the safety and effectiveness of the product. By appealing to the clients’ desire for a natural and easy way to lose weight, providing pseudo-scientific statements to convey a sense of authenticity to the product, and befriending the client by seeming to care for their best interests, the distributers attempt to woo more clients. However, Stimulife 750 contains many ingredients included in other “unsafe” weight loss supplements and scientific research shows no clear evidence that Stimulife 750 is any more effective or safe as other diet pills.

    Read More

  • Lipozene Commercial Analysis

    1096 Words  | 3 Pages

    For example, throughout the Lipozene commercial they kept comparing water and fat, one minute a clear glass of water would pop up, and then a small, yellow piece of fat would appear. The reason for that was to get people to know one is only losing water when dieting and not fat but once using lipozene one will start to lose fat. In a sense that would make people want to purchase lipozene because, the overall goal in losing weight is to lose body

    Read More

  • Charmin Toilet Paper Ad

    865 Words  | 2 Pages

    Advertisements are one of many things that Americans cannot get away from. Every American sees an average of 3,000 advertisements a day; whether it’s on the television, radio, while surfing the internet, or while driving around town. Advertisements try to get consumers to buy their products by getting their attention. Most advertisements don’t have anything to do with the product itself. Every company has a different way of getting the public’s attention, but every advertisement has the same goal - to sell the product. Every advertisement tries to appeal to the audience by using ethos, pathos, and logos, while also focusing on who their audience is and the purpose of the ad. An example of this is a Charmin commercial where there is a bear who gets excited when he gets to use the toilet paper because it is so soft.

    Read More

  • Direct-To-Consumer Advertising

    1005 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is clear that most DTC advertisements in the pharmaceutical industry easily approach consumers and inject distorted information about drugs into them. DTC advertisements provide clarity in product performance claims, with less reliance on implied benefits (Beltramini 574). Furthermore, DTC advertisements have made a huge impact on public consciousness with constant exposure to their consumers and sell less effective drugs (Lurie 445). Consumers do not recognize the danger of ineffective drugs due to the embellishment of the marketing strategy. Zelnorm, a drug for women with irritable bowel syndrome, is an example of how a highly visible television advertising campaign makes this less effective drug popular. From a pharmaceutical company’s analysis, while 0.1 percent of patients treated with the drug had a heart attack, chest pain, or a stroke and one died, patients taking a placebo had 0.01 percent of these symptoms and none died. Despite inefficiency of the drug, it became a popular treatment for irritable bowel syndrome because of television advertisement campaign; it displays attractive young women whose bellies are inscribed with the catchphrase, "I feel better" (Shuchman 2239). The reason that ineffective drugs, such as Zelnorm, became popular is because most people who have not enough knowledge to evaluate drugs

    Read More

  • Analysis : ' Buy Ology : Truth And Lies About Why We Buy

    1798 Words  | 4 Pages

    This book has opened a whole new perspective on advertising and the reasons we buy things and regret them later. Thinking that I have the urge for a McDonalds hamburger may feel real, or it might just be an elaborate, expensive advertising technique used to manipulate my buying behavior.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Dove's Real Beauty Campaign

    1001 Words  | 3 Pages

    [This] phase of the campaign was created to debunk the stereotype that only thin is beautiful” (“The Dove® campaign for real beauty”, n.d.). This part of the campaign was monumental because “all women in the ad are real.” (Fielding et al., 2008). Because the concept of real women was implemented, women were able to relate their own self-identity, flaws and overall body image to the women on the advertisements. The use of “real people” in Dove’s campaign helps people realize that average citizens can still be as beautiful as the people that are consistently portrayed in the usual advertisements. These real people offer a connection to an individual’s everyday body issue struggles and allows Dove’s audience to recognize the fact that beauty should not be limited to western societies view. Ultimately, this section of the campaign allows viewers to make personal connections to the models in the advertisements which furthers Dove’s intentions of the Real Beauty

    Read More

  • Misleading Fitness and Health Commercials

    719 Words  | 2 Pages

    Some people do not know all that much about exercise and dieting. They do not know healthy ways to eat, and they don’t realize that one can’t get the “Perfect Body” in just a few days. These people are possibly victims of Fitness Myths. “In 2002, the Federal Trade Commission released a report that shared a review of 300 weight-loss ads promoting 218 different products. They found the rampant use of false or misleading claims” (FTC, 2003) Misleading fitness products can be particularly damaging. If one is mislead into purchasing a product and the product doesn’t work as it was advertised, not only have you wasted your money, but also the product may have physically hurt your body. FTC chairman Timothy Muris talks about the advertising and promotion tactics of the fitness industry “ads that make claims and promises that are clearly implausible and patently false run in all forms of media, with the notable exception of network TV” (FTC, 2003). Misleading advertisements are common among all forms of media. Although TV commercials may be more powerful in their persuasion, an obvious reason for this is that TV advertisements show more misleading commercials. A technique frequently used in commercials to make them seem credible is that “many deceptive ads run in highly respected publications and they are perceived to be credible”(FTC, 2003). Therefore if the TV program you are watching, while the commercial is being played, seems credible, consumers tend to believe that the products advertised during the episode are also trustworthy.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Diet Coke

    1050 Words  | 3 Pages

    The models are thin and wearing nice, party dresses, which show a fair amount of skin. This showing of skin creates a fashionable and carefree image. The dresses that the two women wear are tasteful and complement each one individually, adding a sense of appeal to the men and women that are viewing the advertisement. The clothing, fitted to slimmer models, implies that Diet Coke does not cause weight gain. The dresses "promise" the consumer that they will look thinner and more radiant if they drink the product. Also, the Diet Coke advertisement uses thin models to portray that drinking this product is harmless to the body. The slim models compel the viewers to believe that they won 't gain weight if they drink this beverage. If young women see beautiful girls drinking Diet Coke, they 'll want to drink it too, so that they might look as attractive as the models. Meanwhile, the young men who see this advertisement will want to drink a Diet Coke so that they would have a common interest with girls similar to those presented. When an individual sees the image of the two models having a fun time, they associate it with the Coca Cola brand and will want to buy a Diet

    Read More

  • An Axe Excite: Even Angels Will Fall?

    821 Words  | 2 Pages

    An average American is said to be exposed to about five thousand advertisements in one day. Through these ads, producers can connect with consumers at a manipulative level. That instead of just simply displaying their product to attract the consumers’ interest different motifs and sale pitches are used to manipulate customers into buying their product.

    Read More

  • Media And Negative Body Image

    1134 Words  | 3 Pages

    They know that they must appeal to logic, an appeal to emotion and a to appeal to credibility. Pathos is considered is one of the most powerful tools in advertising because emotions are what guide consumers, and this tactic connect directly with consumers’ emotions. Women put up their emotional defenses and smile bravely in order to disguise their true emotion others, like their sadness or low self-esteem due to their weight, but their defenses are down when their homes alone and when a weight loss advertisement flashes across the television or in a magazine, they are tempted. The marketer relies on drawing them in during their weakest moment because the marketers know that’s when they are most likely to buy their supplements. These marketers know that the women consumers may think their claims are hyped up or lies. The women consumers know that these ads show bodies that are not realistic or representing the general population of healthy women. Nevertheless, the marketers also know that the little voice in the back of the consumers’ mind will keeps asking, “What if this product is legitimate? What if this one that will be the one to finally help me achieve my weight loss goals? “ Unfortunately, during this moment of weakness, the women consumers aren’t reading the small print of the ad, nor are they realizing that this model could have a personal cook and a

    Read More

  • Informative Advertising: The Dangers Of Manipulative Advertising

    1043 Words  | 3 Pages

    Advertising is designed to get information from the companies to the consumers. With that being said, there are several ways in which companies will go about this to ensure that their information is relayed to the consumers effectively and efficiently. According to George N. Root, from Demand Media, “advertising uses misguided promises of desired results to convince customers to purchase a product.” Nancy Day expresses in her book, when there are many of the same products, companies need to convince the public that their product is superior. Which results in an increase in the demand for advertising (7-8). This is when informative advertising turns into manipulative advertising. Root goes on to explain that advertising agencies use manipulative techniques such as “expert” opinion, attractiveness, lifestyle, and fear to control their audience.

    Read More

  • Analysis of McDonald’s Corporation Advertising

    1431 Words  | 3 Pages

    Advertising generally tries to sell the things that consumers want even if they should not wish for them. Adverting things that consumers do not yearn for is not effective use of the advertiser’s money. A majority of what advertisers sell consists of customer items like food, clothing, cars and services-- things that people desire to have. On the other hand it is believed by some advertising experts that the greatest influence in advertising happens in choosing a brand at the point of sale.

    Read More

  • Advertising: Information or Manipulation?

    1821 Words  | 4 Pages

    In today’s difficult economy who can afford to spend their hard-earned money carelessly? Americans want good quality and low prices, and businesses that advertise their product make saving money possible. Advertising was created for one reason, so businesses could make known their product (Black, Hashimzade, and Myles). Some consumers may argue that advertising is not informative, but that it is manipulative because some advertisements make false claims. Fortunately, there are regulations and consumer rights that promote truth in advertising. Consumers must embrace their rights to keep advertising the way it is meant to be. Advertising is meant to be informative and not manipulative, and consumers play a great role in promoting truth in advertising.

    Read More

  • The Power of Advertising

    1367 Words  | 3 Pages

    Advertising has been defined as the most powerful, persuasive, and manipulative tool that firms have to control consumers all over the world. It is a form of communication that typically attempts to persuade potential customers to purchase or to consume more of a particular brand of product or service. Its impacts created on the society throughout the years has been amazing, especially in this technology age. Influencing people’s habits, creating false needs, distorting the values and priorities of our society with sexism and feminism, advertising has become a poison snake ready to hunt his prey. However, on the other hand, advertising has had a positive effect as a help of the economy and society.

    Read More

More about Deception and Exploitation in Advertising

Open Document